What happens when you bring the Billabong team together and head west to tap into the wild, raw energy and cold waters of Western Australia? Hit the play button and find out. Now playing: ‘Good Call,’ a Billabong surf film by Toby Cregan. Shot in WA earlier this year, starring: Creed McTaggart, Jai Glindeman, Joel Parkinson, Ryan Callinan, Italo Ferreira, Ethan Ewing, Isabella Nichols, Mia McCarthy, Griffin Colapinto, Jack Freestone, Liam O’Brien, Seth Moniz, and Sid Englert.
Mason Ho and Sheldon Paishon do a quick surf session at San Clemente Pier in Southern California. Mason using a San Clemente built, Lost surfboard that was coloured by Drew Brophy at his art studio in San Clemente.
The kind of lineup competitors will hope for when in France Photo: © WSL / Poullenot
The biggest professional surfing event in France comes back from October 16-24 to the world-famous stretch of sand of the Landes. Formerly a Championship Tour event, the Quiksilver and ROXY Pro France are now part of the newly introduced Challenger Series, the direct pathway to the elite World Surf League tour.
The complete redesign of professional surfing’s ladder in 2021 now offers a clear path for athletes to come up the ranks and ultimately join the world’s best. It starts at the Junior level, where young surfers compete to build on experience. They then graduate to the Qualifying Series, a succession of events in their region open to everyone.
The top athletes from the QS are offered a spot on the Challenger Series, a worldwide tour with iconic locations such as Australia’s Gold Coast, Ballito in South Africa, New Zealand and Hawaii, where they ultimately fight for a spot on the Championship Tour. The Challenger Series, though condensed to four events (US Open, Portugal, France, Hawaii) due to COVID in 2021, will feature 8 stops, combined men and women events with equal prize money starting next year.
Johanne Defay will be a clear fan-favorite in France Photo: © WSL / Poullenot
The festivities will launch in France with the Quiksilver and ROXY Junior Pro 40 from October 13-15, the final event for young surfers, that will crown the European Junior Champions. They will have a chance to perform on a world-class venue just days before some of the planet’s best surfers.
Stop No.3 on the Challenger Series, the main events, Quiksilver and ROXY Pro France will then welcome an A-list of competitors both in the male and female fields with already 20 current CT competitors enlisted as well as the top talents from the QS worldwide.
European stars Johanne Defay (FRA), Frederico Morais (PRT), Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) and Michel Bourez (FRA) will headline alongside some of the best up-and-coming talents like Tahiti’s Kauli Vaast (FRA) and Vahine Fierro(FRA). Olympic surfing debut’s silver and bronze medalists Kanoa Igarashi(JPN) and Owen Wright (AUS) will also take part in the show as well as World No.2 Tatiana Weston-Webb (BRA) and Californian superstar Caroline Marks (USA).
Michel Bourez in the arena with crowds up close on the beach Photo: © WSL / Poullenot
Pressure will rise dramatically in France as these events will determine who makes the Top 80 men and Top 48 women who get a chance to compete at the final event in Hawaii.
The nine day waiting period in October sits in the prime window for great conditions in Southwest France and the competition site at Culs Nus beach offers a picture-perfect A-frame sandbank with opportunities to score both quality lefts and rights.
COVID-19 Updates
The health and safety of athletes, staff, and the local community are of the utmost importance and there are a robust set of procedures in place to keep everyone safe. Athletes, staff, media and the public will be required to show proof of the “Health Pass” before accessing any of the event facilities or the beach.
The WSL encourages fans to follow the event online and watch all the action LIVE at WorldSurfLeague.com.
UK’s biggest ever beach clean will reach Million Mile milestone on 3rd October, 2 months ahead of schedule!
On 2-10 October, UK charity, Surfers Against Sewage (SAS), are holding a mass-community mobilisation week to push past the millionth mile of their 2021 Million Mile Clean campaign.
Launched in April of this year, the Million Mile Clean is the most ambitious UK beach clean campaign ever and has mobilised more than 100,000 volunteers, nationwide, to each clean 10 miles of blue or green space through 2021.
The environmental charity originally targeted hitting one million miles of beach, street, river and mountain cleaning by December but the appetite of the public to get out into the UK’s blue and green spaces and tackle the plastic pollution crisis has been such that SAS now anticipate breaking through the Millionth Mile in October.
The Millionth Mile Week, which will take place from 2-10 October, will see 400 cleans taking place across the UK, attended by 30,000 volunteers and will launch at The Millionth Mile Clean on Sunday 3rd October, Perranporth Beach, Cornwall.
SAS is issuing a rallying cry to Ocean Activists across the UK to organise a clean or find one near them and get involved by heading to beachcleans.org.uk
Initially focussing on reconnecting communities with each other and the environment whilst putting plastic pollution back to the top of the political agenda, the Million Mile Clean campaign has fast become much more. Following the impact of the pandemic, the campaign has also focused in on mental health and physical wellbeing and has seen over 100,000 individuals reconnecting with blue and green spaces nationwide.
SAS is encouraging people to get involved and make a difference in their local community by registering a clean. All Clean Leaders are provided with an equipment pack for free along with all relevant safety guidance.
Hugo Tagholm, Chief Executive of Surfers Against Sewage, commented: “Despite the restrictions and uncertainty still in place throughout 2021, we have been blown away by the response from communities across the UK so far. Through the Million Mile Clean we have empowered an army of Ocean Activists like never before and we are now calling on you one last time to unite for the ocean and environment. We know we will achieve one million miles but this shouldn’t be seen as a limit. The question now is how far can we go? Sign up and get involved today and together we can make a difference.”
Richard Walker, IFCF Trustee and Managing Director of Iceland Foods, said: “I am hugely proud of the amazing efforts by the SAS community to achieve a million miles. Tens of thousands of people are showing just how much they care about protecting our blue and green spaces for future generations. We need to ensure that this is also at the top of every business and policy agenda, so we can drive change together.”
Finally, following weeks of virtually flat ocean the waves have finally graced our coasts. Hollow waves on perfect sand bars offered some nice tubes for the takers on this beautiful day for surf. We could say the season is on in Hossegor.
