Sally Fitzgibbons of Australia tipped Hawaii’s Coco Ho on Sunday in the final of the Billabong Rio Pro surf contest in Rio de Janeiro.

In small waves at Barra da Tijuca, Fitzgibbons outpointed Ho 14.10 to 14.03.

Needing a big score with time running out, Fitzgibbons scored a 7.93 out of 10 to clinch the victory.

"That was so crazy, and Coco had me on the ropes," Fitzgibbons said on the Association of Surfing Professionals website. "I just had my fingers crossed and knew there would be one towards the end. I made a few mistakes and it happens in finals, but I was able to recover there at the end."

Ho moved up to No. 9 in the world rankings with her runner-up finish.

"This result really opens things up for me," Ho said. "This is my best result of the year and this has been an important event for me."

Fitzgibbons beat reigning ASP World Tour champ Carissa Moore of Hawaii in the semifinals.

Ho topped Hawaii wild-card Alessa Quizon to move on to the final.