If you don’t love a blazing soundtrack and core surfing we can’t be friends. Hit play and treat your eyeballs to some core surf action to get you amped featuring the likes of Ian Crane, Timmo Simmers, Kolohe Andino, Wiley Archbold, Tyrone, Hayden Rodgers, Dane Matson, Rex Hennings, Crosby Colapinto and more.
Let’s be friends anyway, as long as you watch this sick edit.
Ahmed “Ammaday” Agil will rep the home nation. Pic Husham Ibrahim
Jeremy Flores, Jadson Andre and Ahmed “Ammaday” Agil Complete Elite Roster at the 2024
Four Seasons Maldives Surfing Champions Trophy
The Four Seasons Maldives Surfing Champions Trophy field is set for 2024 with the final three names added to the incredible field competing at the 12th edition of “the world’s most luxurious surfing event.” Joining five-time Hawaiian world champion Carissa Moore, Australian Olympic medallist Owen Wright, and South African Mikey February at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa for the annual invitational are Frenchman Jeremy Flores, Brazil’s Jadson Andre, and Maldivian Ahmed “Ammaday” Agil.
Jeremy Flores. PIc Trevor Moran
Jeremy Flores is undoubtedly the greatest European surfer of all time. The 2007 WSL Rookie Of The Year brought down the curtain on an incredible 15-year Championship Tour career in 2021, with two Pipe Masters titles and a win at the Billabong Pro Tahiti, testament to his sublime skills in waves of consequence. In 2019, Flores capped his career with a famous victory on home soil at the Quiksilver Pro France, an event he first competed in as a teenage wildcard. Flores, who grew up on France’s Ile de La Réunion, is an island boy at heart and is excited to finally compete for a trophy he’s been eyeing up since retiring from the tour.
“I can’t wait to get to the Maldives for the Four Seasons Surfing Champions Trophy!” says Flores, currently coaching the French Olympic team in Tahiti. “Surfing perfect waves, staying in paradise with my family, are you kidding? This is the dream! I’ve watched this event for a long time, hoping to get an invite because it looks so fun, and now I’m finally doing it. I’ve already started ordering my boards and am so excited to share the lineup with Carissa, Jadson, and the rest of the crew!”
Flores is ordering equipment especially for the event due to one of the unique aspects of the competition: a multi-board format that requires surfers to be proficient across several styles of surf craft. After three rounds of competition, comprising single, twin and (thruster) tri fin surfboard rounds, the top two ranked competitors then battle it out in a single heat showdown for the Surfing Champions Trophy.
Jadson.
Hoping to deny Flores the trophy is Jadson Andre. Arguably the planet’s most universally adored Brazilian surfer, the veteran of an 11-year Championship Tour career is known as much for his magnetic personality as his stellar competitive resume. In his 2011 rookie season Andre burst out of the blocks to claim a Championship Tour victory at just his third event, the Santa Catarina Pro, beating Kelly Slater in the final. Over the next decade Andre adapted to every challenge thrown his way, most successfully in heavy waves, as he grew a fearsome reputation in Hawaii, Tahiti and Fiji while becoming a fan favourite around the world. Naturally, it is the friendships formed on tour that Andre mentions when asked about competing in the Surfing Champions Trophy.
“My last competition in the Maldives was in 2009!” comments Andre. “I almost made the final against Owen and now, 15 years later, we’ll be back there together competing again. I feel so blessed to be a part of this amazing event, I can’t wait to be back with everyone competing and having fun.”
Rounding off the exceptional Surfing Champions Trophy line-up is local wildcard Ahmed ‘Ammaday’ Agil. Hailing from the island of Thulusdhoo, in 2022 he achieved his longtime goal of becoming the number one ranked surfer in the Maldives. A natural footer renowned for his tube riding prowess and crazy air game, ‘Ammaday’ is bursting with anticipation at the thought of mixing it with the best in the rippable rights of Sultans.
“Competing in the Surfing Champions Trophy is a dream come true!” says Ammaday. “A lot of my close friends have surfed in this event before, and now I get a chance to fly the flag and show the world that Maldivian surfing continues to go from strength-to-strength.”
This year the Four Seasons Maldives Surfing Champions Trophy will run from 28 August 28 to 5 September at the stunning Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa. Heat times are staggered by age, with the oldest surfers allowed more time in the water than their younger competitors, with US$25,000 prize money on the line across the various divisions – although as previous SCT competitors will attest, this is truly one event where kudos and camaraderie are king.
“For twelve years, Kuda Huraa’s Surfing Champions Trophy has been shining a spotlight on the Maldives’ perfect waves,” comments Didier Jardin, General Manager at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa. “The event’s reputation now precedes it and it’s great to hear how surfing legends can’t wait to compete here. We’re delighted to once again be welcoming an incredible line-up of not-to-be-missed talent. For guests keen to rub shoulders with surfing royalty, now’s the chance with just a few rooms at the resort still available during the contest.”
The world’s best longboarders answered the call for Finals Day performances with the event’s best showcases going down to close out action in Huntington Beach as Rachael Tilly and Taylor Jensen emerged victorious. Dominant displays from proven elite, the new guard showing they’re up for the task in 2024, and commanding wins from Tilly and Jensen upped the anty toward the World Title hunt. Now, competition shifts gears from style and grace to high octane action for the world’s top Challenger Series contenders looking for Championship Tour qualification points in Surf City USA.
After a strong showing Britains Ben Skinner headed into the semis and ended with a third place.
Current world title rankings below.
Men
Women
The BYD Pro kicked off the European Qualifying Series season. Some of the best UK and International surfers went head-to-head in the country’s biggest surf competition. Watch highlights from the first day of competition at Fistral Beach, Cornwall, as the 2024 Boardmasters action gets underway.
This is what you are looking for. All the thrills, spills and absolute carnage at Deadmans, one of the most insane slab breaks in Australia. Footage was filmed on Thursday 1st August 2024 from sunrise to midday by @thrillsandspillz
Featured surfers:
Sam Jones
Klint Cimmins
Max Hyatt
Tom Myers
Billy Langley
George Langley
Asher Ginsburg
Jack Macdonald
Lachie Rombouts
Max Dodshon
Blake Levett
Caroline Marks (USA) and Kauli Vaast (FRA), two 22-year-olds born just twelve days apart, won Surfing’s second Olympic Gold Medals on a historic day at Teahupo’o, French Polynesia’s idyllic location for Surfing in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. It was always going to be an incredible Finals Day, and Tahiti delivered once again, with tension building throughout the day, punctuated by a fresh swell that rose heat-by-heat.
On paper, the match-ups held undeniable promise, showcasing the ISA as a strong pathway to the Olympic Games. Three of the four men in the Semifinals were ISA Medalists, who had qualified for Paris 2024 through the ISA World Surfing Games, (WSG) and each of the four women to make the Semifinals were ISA Medalists, three of them ISA World Junior Champions.
The host nation of France claimed two medals, their first in Surfing. Vaast’s Gold Medal was complimented by a Bronze Medal for Johanne Defay. Brazil also earned two medals, the Silver for Tatiana Weston-Webb and Bronze for Gabriel Medina.
Caroline Marks was able to retain the Gold Medal for Team USA, backing up the Gold Medal her teammate Carissa Moore won at Tokyo 2020, while Australia’s Jack Robinson bettered the Bronze Medal Owen Wright took home from Tokyo by winning the Silver Medal.
Reigning World Champion Caroline Marks retains Gold Medal for Team USA
Caroline Marks (USA) added to her growing list of achievements with the addition of an Olympic Gold Medal to that of ISA World Junior Champion and WSL World Champion. The youngest surfer to compete in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games is also the youngest to ever qualify for the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT), or compete in a CT event. At 22-years-old, she is now the youngest woman to win Olympic gold in Surfing.
“It’s really hard to put into words what this feeling is like,” Marks said. “I feel like it hasn’t really hit me yet. I’m just really happy and trying to soak everything in because it’s probably the best day of my life.”
It was a slow build in the women’s Gold Medal Match. The first waves surfed came one after the other at the 11-minute mark, with Tatiana Weston-Webb (BRA) falling on take-off and Marks pulling off. Another few minutes passed before Marks found the wave that defined the heat, a 7.50 for a clean barrel. She was unable to pick up more than a 3.00 back-up, however. With two minutes left, Marks used priority, coming very close to coming out of the best barrel of the day. Weston-Webb took off behind with a series of solid turns, putting it all on the line but coming unstuck over dry reef on the finish. Her number arrived as a 4.50, just 0.18 shy of the requirement, leaving Marks as victor, though it took a moment for both surfers to process the number.
“I wasn’t quite sure of the exact score that Tati needed,” Marks continued. “I was just trying to focus on paddling back out and trying to get another score. Nothing came and they were taking a minute to process the score. I was just looking at everyone like, ‘What happened? What happened?’ We both didn’t quite know what each other needed. Once they announced she didn’t get enough I burst into tears, just super emotional. Your whole life goes into a moment like this so it’s just really special.”
It’s the second time Weston-Webb has missed out on a major achievement by a single turn, after a similar moment in the 2022 WSL Finals saw her finish the season as runner-up. That moment took a long time for the 28-year-old to recover from, however she was in good spirits after her Silver Medal finish.
“The world wants me to get second,” Weston-Webb laughed. “But you know what they say, first is the worst, second is the best. I’m just kidding. What an honor to be able to surf at my favorite wave. I got so much time out there, especially in the last few months. What a blessing.”
Local Tahitian Kauli Vaast claims victory for host nation
Growing up down the road from Teahupo’o, and surfing his first wave at the notoriously dangerous location at the young age of 8, Kauli Vaast (FRA) has been primed for precisely this moment. Throughout his life, the 22-year-old has built a defining profile in its death-defying waves, having ridden the wave of the year there just days before competition began.
It wasn’t his big wave skills that were required today, but his deep knowledge of the intricacies of the reef. Vaast stayed highly active in his Semifinal against Peru’s Alonso Correa, but played a patient game against Jack Robinson (AUS).
In the Gold Medal Match, the local immediately took the commanding position in the lineup from the Australian and waited almost 10 minutes to catch his first wave. A long, deep barrel with multiple sections that grew down the reef earned him a 9.50, which he backed up in quick succession, posting an 8.17. Robinson had taken the second wave in the set after Vaast’s first wave to find a shorter barrel for a 7.83. Those were the only three waves surfed, leaving the Tahitian with an almost 10-point win over Robinson.
“It’s a dream come true,” Vaast said. “I can’t believe it right now. I just made history. For me, for all Tahitians, for surfing in Polynesia and France. I couldn’t be more proud to represent Tahiti and France at home. I’m just super happy. It was a long day, two heats, crazy Final. I had the mana the whole time. Super, super stoked.”
Robinson’s single-wave had precedent. He himself overcame Gabriel Medina (BRA) in the Semifinal in a very similar battle that went down to the wire with the Brazilian only surfing one wave. To begin that heat, Robinson and Medina spent a full seven-minutes in touching distance, sometimes almost paddling over the top of each other in a battle of wills to determine first priority. The 26-year-old child prodigy turned professional powerhouse was happy with his result and able to recognize the overall significance of the moment within his career.
“Always the inner competitor wants to go one better,” Robinson said. “But you also have to think that it’s such a long ride that I’ve been on and it’s really just getting into the best part of it right now. I’ve got a lot more to come.”
Medal moment for Medina at long last
The relief on Gabriel Medina’s (BRA) face was palpable when he realized he was finally able to claim an Olympic medal. After placing fourth in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Medina was determined to not leave Tahiti empty-handed. Multiple tight exchanges played out in the Bronze Medal Match between the 2024 ISA WSG Gold Medalist and Peru’s Alonso Correa, the 2016 ISA U/18 World Junior Silver Medalist.
The turning point came when Medina was able to hold on for dear life to reemerge from a long, deep barrel that he had no right to come out of, closing it out with turns for a 7.50. Medina then pounced on the paddle back out, taking priority ahead of Correa and proceeding to post two 7.77’s for a 15.54 heat total and the Bronze Medal.
While it wasn’t the podium-topping performance that the three-time WSL World Champion appeared primed for, it was nonetheless an important accolade to add to his dominance of the modern surfing landscape.
“It feels good,” Medina said. “That was my goal coming here, I really wanted to get the medal and today I had two opportunities. It was a tricky one to deal with, but I’m happy [with] that. I gave it my all.”
Though falling just shy of a medal, the Peruvian was proud of his performance, and has learned much to take away from the event.
“Confidence is key,” Correa said. “Confidence is everything out there. How confident you are going into the water can really change you. I can really push my surfing. I feel like I can do so much better. I’m going to keep training, keep competing and going hard.”
Defay’s consistent career capped with Olympic Bronze
The strategy for Johanne Defay (FRA) today was clearly to stay busy. Across her two heats, the 30-year-old multiple-time ISA WSG Medalist caught far more waves than her opponents. In the Semifinal, the patient selection of Caroline Marks (USA) paid off, but in the Bronze Medal Match against Brisa Hennessy (CRC) Defay’s aggressive approach saw her build and build towards her first Olympic medal, the bronze.
Defay’s heat strategy stayed constant throughout the event, leading to victory over three of the toughest competitors in the draw in Molly Picklum (AUS), Vahine Fierro (FRA) and Carissa Moore (USA), before the reigning World Champion sent her into the battle for the bronze. The medal highlights an incredibly consistent career for the Reunion Island raised, 10-year CT veteran.
“I’m feeling amazing, a lot of relief,” Defay said. “You watch the other sports on the TV and it just puts everything in perspective. It’s just such a lifetime opportunity. The stress and the [desire] just builds every day and today was the most stressful day in my career I think; to get that medal and to represent France.”
Hennessy’s fourth place finish improves upon a Quarterfinal finish in Tokyo 2020. Despite an unfortunate priority error early in her Semifinal against Tatiana Weston-Webb (BRA), which took the wind out of her sails on Finals Day, Hennessy was able to carry the optimism that she’s known for.
“It was an amazing experience, being able to connect with my country and connect with myself, connect with this place,” Hennessy said. “It’s been life-changing, to be honest. Of course I would want to medal, but what I’ve learned in this journey, the highs and the lows, the wipeouts and the barrels of my life, has been the greatest gift of all.”
ISA President, Fernando Aguerre, said:
“There are plans and there are hopes and there are dreams. We dreamed and we hoped that our plan for surfing in Teahupo’o was going to work out the way we dreamed and the way we planned it. But I’m very, very happy and very satisfied because everything went way above and beyond the plan.
“Thank you Tahiti. Thank you Paris 2024. Thank you IOC. Thank you to the community of Teahupo’o for having us here for these amazing and unforgettable times. We will never forget these couple weeks in Tahiti. It’s been magic, it’s been amazing and it will be in our hearts for the rest of our lives. Merci beaucoup, mauruuru.”
Visit isasurf.org for full Paris 2024 results, content, and information.
