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The nerves are kicking in for New Zealand's history-making surfer Paige Hareb, but she won't have long to contemplate her debut in elite company.
Hareb, 18, will become the first New Zealand woman to go fulltime on the world tour in the season-opening Roxy Pro Gold Coast, scheduled to start tomorrow.
Weather and surf permitting, Hareb will be first in the water at 8am (local time) after she was drawn in heat one with the Australian pair of Samantha Cornish and Jessi Miley-Dyer.
"I've got a bunch of mixed emotions at the moment, but mainly excitement," Taranaki's Hareb said.
"It's good I'm in the first heat and I can get straight into it. The other two have got some good experience on the tour but they haven't been world champions so hopefully they're a bit worried about the newcomer."
Hareb was relieved to avoid Australia's reigning two-time world champion Stephanie Gilmore and the likes of last year's Gold Coast winner Sofia Mulanovich, of Peru, in the opening round.
Having had a taste of the big time at the Hawaii world tour event in December, the 2007 world junior championship runner-up was happy to set her sights high in the 18-woman field.
Of the A$90,000 ($114,000) prize pool, the winner earns A$15,000.
"I've set a goal to finish at least fifth and anything more than that is a bonus," Hareb said.
She cannot be faulted on preparation since her disappointing quarter-final exit as top seed at the world juniors in Sydney last month.
Under the guidance of Australian coach Jenny Boggis, Hareb based herself around the famed stretch of coastline taking in Surfers Paradise this month in preparation for her world tour debut.
"I've been out there every day for the past month and it feels a bit like home. I really like it here; it's a world-class venue."
Speaking of home, Hareb was well aware she was flying the New Zealand flag around the world this year.
Her parents, who always travel to attend her events, will be on hand this weekend and a flood of internet and text messages have arrived from home.
"Of course there's nerves, it's my first major event and, being the first Kiwi, I want to do well for New Zealand. There's a bit of pressure there."
Gilmore and Mulanovich are two of the drawcards at the Gold Coast, with 18-year-old Australian Sally Fitzgibbons, the top qualifier last year, and another Australian Chelsea Hedges, a former world champion returning from maternity leave.
The Roxy Pro is scheduled to run until March 11, weather permitting.
The main site is the world-famous Snapper Rocks, with the nearby breaks of Duranbah, Greenmount, Kirra, Burleigh Heads and Stradbroke Island in reserve.
- NZPA
