“However the surfing community,especially in Brazil,is mesmerised with the poor clarity and inconsistence (sic) of judging for many years now,but lately it has been even more shocking.

“It is quite clear that judging is now rewarding very simple surfing,seamless transitions and have taken critical turns in critical sections off the criteria.

“This is very frustrating and is stagnating the sport.

“Fans and sponsors will not accept this to continue and will in a near future be drawn away once all they want is equal and fair judging to the sport.”

Medina went on to claim that feedback sought from the WSL by coaches and surfers had caused more confusion than clarity.

The WSL rejected the criticism and said Medina’s comments were “unacceptable”.

“Surfing is an ever-evolving,subjective sport and we appreciate a robust debate around the progression of our sport and the criteria used to judge our competitions,” a WSL spokesman said.

“However,it is unacceptable for any athlete to question the integrity of our judges who ... are elite professionals.”

Leading Australians Jack Robinson and Molly Picklum both spoke positively after the Surf Ranch Pro event — which included night-surfing and a new format in a bid to spice up the tournament — despite underwhelming results.

The wave pool event was a difficult one overall for the Australian contingent on tour.

Tyler Wright sacrificed the No.1 ranking with a surprise first round loss while Picklum was also eliminated early. Robinson bowed out in the opening heats as well to fall to No.5 on the tour behind Ewing.

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