EDP Junior Pro Gijón

Nov 9, 2026

Sara Romeo Astiazaran and Joshua Karbus hold their winners' cheques above their heads on the top step of the EDP Junior Pro Gijón podium

Photo: WSL / Masurel

Joshua Karbus and Sara Romeo Astiazaran win EDP Junior Pro Gijón

Ireland’s Joshua Karbus took his first Junior Qualifying Series title at Playa de San Lorenzo and stretched his lead at the top of the rankings. Sara Romeo Astiazaran won the women’s event on a beach she has surfed since she was a child.

Karbus wins at the third attempt

Karbus came to Gijón as rankings leader for the penultimate JQS event of the season, having already made two finals this year without a win. He settled in early at Playa de San Lorenzo and carried that form all the way to Sunday’s final, according to the World Surf League.

A surfer in a hooded wetsuit walks along the Gijón seafront promenade at dawn carrying a surfboard, with competitors and a Quiksilver tent behind him under strings of lights

Photo: WSL / Masurel

He opened the final with a solid score, then sat and waited for the waves he wanted while the rest of the field kept building their totals. When the right one came he took the heat with a 10.00, beating an in-form Fernando Ibarra (ESP) into second on 9.17.

Joshua Karbus in a green competition jersey throws spray off the top of a wave at Playa de San Lorenzo

Photo: WSL / Masurel

“It feels great, third time’s the charm,” said Karbus. “Patience was definitely key in the final. I’m really happy to take the win and let’s keep it going. It’s a dream come true to be at the top of the rankings with World Junior Championships qualification, but let’s see what happens, I’m just taking it heat by heat, day by day.”

Joshua Karbus in a red winner's jersey is carried up the beach on the shoulders of two friends, holding his board and throwing a shaka, with the Cimadevilla headland behind

Photo: WSL / Masurel

The result puts more distance between Karbus and the chasing pack. His focus now is on qualifying for the World Junior Championships later this month.

First Pro Junior title for Astiazaran

Sara Romeo Astiazaran (EUK) won the women’s event in waves she knows better than anyone in the draw. The 19-year-old from the Basque Country has been surfing Gijón for years, and took her first Pro Junior title in front of family and friends at the event’s first edition.

Sara Romeo Astiazaran in a green competition jersey leans into a turn through the whitewater, one hand trailing behind her

Photo: WSL / Masurel

Her season had not delivered the results she wanted before this week. In the final she found the best wave of the heat on her first ride and followed it with another good score. Rankings leader Tiara van der Huls (NLD) came back hard in the closing minutes, but Astiazaran never lost the lead and won on 9.03 to Van der Huls’s 8.77.

Sara Romeo Astiazaran raises both fists as two friends carry her on their shoulders across the beach at Playa de San Lorenzo, with the Gijón old town behind

Photo: WSL / Masurel

“I’m very happy to win my first pro junior event here in Gijon,” said Astiazaran. “I’ve been coming here since I was a little girl, so this place holds a special place in my heart. I loved sharing the final with my friends. The conditions were small and difficult, but it’s been like this all summer long. I’m really happy I could win today.”

Van der Huls stays at the top of the rankings heading into the Junior Pro Taghazout Bay in Morocco next week.

Men’s final results

1. Joshua Karbus (IRL) 10.00
2. Fernando Ibarra (ESP) 9.17
3. Axel Dominguez (FRA) 8.90
4. Jay Phipps (FRA) 7.13

Women’s final results

1. Sara Romeo Astiazaran (EUK) 9.03
2. Tiara van der Huls (NLD) 8.77
3. Kenia Carril (ESP) 6.80
4. Enara Palacios (ESP) 4.37

The EDP Junior Pro Gijón ran from 5 to 8 November 2026 at Playa de San Lorenzo, Gijón, Spain. More information is available at worldsurfleague.com.