Get the Lowdown on Surfing’s Olympic Debut

Surfing will make its long-awaited debut at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics this weekend. The fight for inclusion dates back to 1912 and hasn’t stopped since. Many see the addition of surfing as a chance to raise the sport’s profile internationally and expose it to a new audience. So, who’s competing, where are they surfing and how will it work? 

The Fight for Inclusion

As the story goes, the godfather of modern surfing (and five-time Olympic swimming medallist), Hawaii’s Duke Kahanamoku first pushed for surfing to become an Olympic sport in 1912. In recent years International Surfing Association (ISA) President Fernando Aguerre took up the fight. The ISA began formally lobbying the International Olympic Committee in 1995. Fernando Aguerre initially aimed to have surfing on the world stage at the Sydney 2000 Olympics but encountered many political and legislative hurdles. 

Who’s Surfing and How Do They Progress?

Surfers secured a qualifying spot at the Pan American Games, ISA World Surfing Games, and World Surf League. 32-year-old Julian Wilson will don the green and gold for Australia. He’ll be joined by Owen Wright, Stephanie Gilmore and Sally Fitzgibbons.

The event features a six-round heat format that will steadily narrow the field for the 20 men and 20 women until the gold, silver, and bronze medal discussion. Round 1 is a non-elimination stage. Athletes were seeded into five heats of four surfers each, with the top two competitors advancing directly to Round 3. The bottom two surfers will have to compete in the first elimination round – Round 2 – which features two heats of five athletes each.

When Can We See It?

The Olympic Surfing Festival begins on July 25. There is a ten-day window for competition, but it’s hoped the first Olympic surf champions will be crowned after four days. 

Earlier this month, the world governing body for the sport of surfing released the seedings for the men’s and women’s Round 1 heats. Sally Fitzgibbons will take on Brisa Hennessy from Costa Rica, Japan’s Mahina Maeda and South Africa’s Bianca Buitendag. Stephanie Gilmore surfs against Brazil’s Silvana Lima, France’s Pauline Ado and Anat Lelior from Israel. 

Julian Wilson will come up against Kolohe Andino from the USA, Peru’s Luca Mesinas and Billy Stairmand from New Zealand. Owen Wright will surf against John Florence from the USA, Chile’s Manuel Selman and Ramzi Boukhiam representing Morocco. 

Where Are Athletes Surfing?

The Olympic Surfing Festival will take place at Tsurigasaki Beach, about 100km from the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo. It’s in Ichinomiya, a small town in Chiba Prefecture facing the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the easternmost points of Japan making it particularly suited to any swell that comes from the north, east, or south, depending on the season.

You can watch the Olympics action on the big screen outside Depot Cafe, Level 1 Coffs Central.