Owen Wright has secured a bronze medal, the first ever in Olympic surfing, in Tokyo.
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Brazilian opponent Gabriel Medina pulled off an aerial spin move in a bid to take the lead but it was only judged a six point ride, as Wright held on 11.97 to 11.77.
Wright had surfed consistently throughout the tournament, building solid scores and it helped him prevail when it matted in the third-placed battle.
He greeted the Australian team, including Sally Fitzgibbons who was knocked out of the women's quarter finals, in celebration afterward, a round of "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi" belted out.
Wright missed the chance for gold after going down to Brazil's Italo Ferreira in an enthralling contest.
Ferreira chased aerials for much of the event, but it was a more conservative ride which booked his place through, scores of 6.67 and 6.50 ensuring his 13.17 overall was enough to edge past Wright, who finished with 12.476 overall.
In similar fashion to Sally Fitzgibbons, who bowed out in the quarter-finals, Wright chased a late wave in search of victory, but it proved fruitless.
Wright will now take on Brazil's Gabriel Medina in the bronze medal showdown.
Japan's Kanoa Igarashi made it through to the final on his home surf after producing a stunning 540-spin aerial move to beat Brazil's two-time world champion Gabriel Medina.
Igarashi's 9.33 pushed his overall score to 17, with Medina on 16.76 in a thrilling semi-final battle.
It came after Fitzgibbons' shock loss to Japan's Amuro Tsuzuki.
Fitzgibbons briefly hit the lead after posting a 6.17 wave, but Tsuzuki responded just moments later, with 6.67.
It was then a frustrating end to Fitzgibbons' debut at the Olympics, as the wave she needed for a winning 7.11 score did not materialise and Tsuzuki prevailed 13.27 to 11.67.
"It hurt so bad, this one is probably the toughest loss of my career," Fitzgibbons told Olympics broadcaster Seven Network.
"I had the best time out there, I fought my hardest and it just wasn't my day.
"It's so hard and my heart's just shattered."
Tsuzuki will now meet World Surf League star Carissa Moore in the semi-finals, while Bianca Buitendag and Caroline Marks are also in the final four.
It's the first time surfing has been at the Olympic Games.
Men's final
Gold medal (4.46pm): Kanoa Igarashi (Japan) v Italo Ferreira (Brazil)
Bronze medal (3.16pm): Owen Wright (Australia) 11.97 d Gabriel Medina (Brazil) 11.77.
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Tim Barrow
When it comes to sport - at professional and community level - in the Illawarra, I'm here to provide insight, context and opinion, as well as the latest news you won't find anywhere else.
When it comes to sport - at professional and community level - in the Illawarra, I'm here to provide insight, context and opinion, as well as the latest news you won't find anywhere else.
