di Erika Scafuro
WSL is about to give us another exciting season. In less than a month, in fact, the Championship Tour that all surfing enthusiasts have been waiting for begins again.
On January 29, the international surfing spotlight will be turned back on Banzai Pipeline of Oahu’s beach to start placing bets on who will climb the rankings and get the prestigious world title.
The eleven WSL Championship events will touch four continents where the elite surfers will face the world’s best waves as always.
2023 WSL Championship Tour schedule:
- January 29, February 10 Billabong Pro Pipeline, Hawaii
- February 12 – 23, Hurley Pro Sunset Beach – Oahu
- March 8 – 16, MEO Portugal Pro – Peniche
- April 4 – 14, Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, Australia
- April 20 – 30, Margaret River Pro, Australia
Mid- season cut
- May 27 -30, Surf Ranch Pro USA – Lemoore, California
- June 9- 18, Surf City El Salvador Pro, El Salvador
- June 23 – July 1, Rio Pro, Rio de Janeiro Brazil
- July 13 – 22, Corona Open J-Bay, South Africa
- August 11 – 20, Shiseido Tahiti Pro, Teahupo’o French Polynesia
September 7 – 15, Rip Curl WSL Finals, Lower Trestles, California
With the announcement of new locations and the new look for the 2023 that the WSL Longboard Tour schedule has been announced.
Pleased for the success achieved by the WSL Longboard Tour, Jessi Miley-Dyer, WSL SVP of Tours and Head of Competition, commented on the announcement of the 2023 calendar as follows. “The intention of the new structure is to create improved opportunities for surfers to compete. We’ve added more tour stops, incorporated wider qualification, and are committed to crowning World Champions in the water with a new one-day Finals-format. We look forward to the 2023 season and beyond to continue to celebrate the world’s best longboarding”.
The 2023 WSL Longboard Tour will consist of four stops around the world.
2023 WSL Longboard Tour Schedule:
- August 30 – September 2, Bells Beach Longboard Classic, Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia
- September 19–25, Surf City El Salvador Longboard Classic, El Sunzal, El Salvador
- October 3 – 13, Longboard Championship, Malibu, California
- Fourth Longboard Tour event to be announced at a later date
The locations include celebrated events and point-breaks from around the world.
Bells Beach is one of the most iconic waves in Australia and the world. Located southwest of Melbourne, Bells Beach sits in a bay between two headlands creating a natural amphitheater for the long and powerful right-hand wave that breaks along the reef point.
The most surfing history of El Salvador was written in El Sunzal, one of the best spot for longboarders. The long right point break is very consistent and breaks in deep water, allowing it to handle a range of swells.
Then Malibu does not need too many words, it is part of the surfing and Californian heritage. It has long been regarded as one of the best point breaks in California, consistently breaking over a cobblestone reef and sand.
The 2023 WSL Longboard Tour will host 24 male and 24 female competitors. The first three events will count towards qualifying for the fourth and final event, the Malibu Longboard Championship. The Top 8 men and Top 8 women on the rankings will be given a spot in this one-day, winner-take-all event, which will determine the World Champions. The surfers’ points will go down to zero and they will be seeded into brackets determined by their rankings with priority given to the higher seed in the opening round.
Betting starts on who the new 2023 WSL world champions will be, looking forward to the most important competitions for all surfing enthusiasts.
