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> News > World Surf League Celebrates One Year to Go Until First-Ever Olympic Surfing Event in Tokyo

surfing News

World Surf League Celebrates One Year to Go Until First-Ever Olympic Surfing Event in Tokyo

World No. 1 Carissa Moore (HAW) tops the leaderboard with four events remaining on the 2019 WSL Championship Tour. Image credit: / WSL/Cestari

24 July 2019

Today marks one year to go until surfing makes its Olympic debut in Tokyo and the world's best surfers are halfway through the 2019 World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT) and their journey to qualify.

To celebrate the countdown to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 the WSL has launched worldsurfleague.com/2020 where fans can follow the qualification race and see the rankings.

"Surfing is a truly global sport and it's fantastic to see it included in the Olympic Games,” said Pat O’Connell, WSL Head of Competition and SVP of Tours and Events. “The surfers are genuinely excited about representing their countries on such a prestigious stage and I think it will provide the Games with an important and exciting new dimension in 2020 and beyond."

The CT is the elite year-long tour that crowns the men's and women's surfing World Champions each season and 2019 is also the primary qualifier for the Olympic Games. Stop No. 6 on the tour, the Corona Open J-Bay, has just wrapped up in South Africa and there are now just five events remaining on the men’s tour and four on the women’s, so the race is on.

Following the final CT events of 2019 (the Hawaii Pro and Billabong Pipe Masters), the world rankings will determine the first 18 eligible Olympic qualifiers (10 men and 8 women), subject to all qualified surfers meeting the ISA’s and IOC’s eligibility requirements and being selected by their respective National Olympic Committee.

There is a maximum of two men and two women for each country that can qualify so this year’s CT sees surfers not only battle for the World Title and requalification but also to finish as one of the top two ranked surfers from their nation.

The remaining 22 places will be determined at the 2019 and 2020 ISA World Surfing Games, the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, and a single slot (each for men and women) for the host nation, Japan.

Watch Surf Breaks: Olympic Countdown

Based on today’s standings, the following 18 athletes would qualify to compete in the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020:

CT Olympic selection after Corona Open J-Bay:

USA - Kolohe Andino, John John Florence, Carissa Moore, Lakey Peterson
Australia - Ryan Callinan, Julian Wilson, Sally Fitzgibbons, Stephanie Gilmore
Brasil - Filipe Toledo, Italo Ferreira, Tatiana Weston-Webb, Silvana Lima
Japan - Kanoa Igarashi
South Africa - Jordy Smith
France - Michel Bourez, Jeremy Flores, Johanne Defay
Costa Rica - Brisa Hennessy

The next event on the Men’s CT is the Tahiti Pro Teahupo'o (August 21 - September 1) and the next stop on the Women’s CT is the Freshwater Pro (September 19 - 21). Both events will be broadcast LIVE on WorldSurfLeague.com, the WSL App and Facebook.com/WSL. Also, check local listings for coverage from the WSL’s broadcast partners.

About the WSL

The World Surf League (WSL) is dedicated to celebrating the world's best surfing on the world's best waves through a variety of best-in-class audience platforms. The organization, headquartered in Santa Monica, is a global sport with regional offices in Australasia, Africa, North America, South America, Hawaii, Japan and Europe.

The WSL has been championing the world's best surfing since 1976, annually running more than 230 global events across the Men's and Women's Championship Tours, the Big Wave Tour, Redbull Airborne, Qualifying Series, Junior and Longboard Championships, as well as the WSL Big Wave Awards. The League possesses a deep appreciation for the sport's rich heritage while promoting progression, innovation and performance at the highest levels, and in doing so crowns the undisputed Men's and Women's World Champions across all tours.

Showcasing the world's best surfing on its digital platform at WorldSurfLeague.com, the WSL has a passionate global fan base with millions tuning in to see world-class athletes like Kelly Slater, Stephanie Gilmore, Tyler Wright, John Florence, Lakey Peterson, Grant Baker, Keala Kennelly, Paige Alms, Kai Lenny, Steven Sawyer, Soleil Errico, Mateus Herdy, Kirra Pinkerton, Carissa Moore, Gabriel Medina, Courtney Conlogue and more battle on the most dynamic field of play of any global sport.

For more information about WSL, please follow this link.