Viewing entries tagged
World Surf League
As much as I wanted to hide on my little island, I decided to enter into the spotlight and I hoped that my story would continue to be a light to others. You can be a light to others in your life if you’re willing to step out of your comfort zone too!
—Bethany Hamilton, Feb 27, 2023
A few weeks ago, I received good news from Oahu about the World Surf League’s schedule. On the call, Carol Philips, surf instructor and owner of North Shore Surf Girls, said that the 2021 season will include the same number of Championship Tour (CT) events for women as for men. This is the first time the WSL has offered gender parity in the CT schedule with 11 events for each division, the most women’s CT events ever included.
In 2018, the Committee for Equity in Women’s Surfing shattered the glass ceiling by pressuring the WSL into paying equal prize money across all global events. At the time, the WSL did not address the disparity in CT and QS schedules. Since 2015, I’ve been fighting gender discrimination that excludes women from competitive opportunities in California and Hawaii. Unfortunately, the proposed 2021 QS schedule continues a historic pattern of institutionalized inequality with 40 events for men and 32 events for women. Overall, men still have far more opportunities to win prize money and improve their ranking.
Philips also said that women will compete in a CT event on Oahu. This is progress because the North Shore has been completely dominated by men’s competitions for many years. In 2021, the Sunset Open was changed from a men’s only QS event to a CT event that includes a women’s division and a men’s division. It will be held on January 19-28, 2021. Sadly, still no QS events for women in Oahu.
After traveling on my own dime to Oahu numerous times in 2019 and early 2020 to lobby City and County of Honolulu councilmembers and parks officials I badly want tangible results. I’m thankful for the unanimous approval of Resolution 20-12 in support of gender equity in professional surfing and hopeful that the City and County of Honolulu will eventually require a permit condition that insures all professional sports competitions held solely on city/county land have gendered categories with identical playing time and prize compensation for each category at each participant level.
In just four days, some of the world’s top female surfers will gather for the start of the 2021 WSL Championship Tour. The Maui Pro will be the first women’s CT event at Honolua Bay from Dec. 4-15, 2020. Traditionally the women’s CT ended in Maui. Last season the entire CT was canceled because of COVID-19. Moving the Maui Pro up helps insure the event takes place. The men’s CT will start at Pipe Masters on the North Shore of Oahu from Dec. 8-20, 2020. Previously Pipe Masters ended the men’s tour.
More good news, the WSL will achieve parity by adding women to the Outerknown Tahiti Pro from Aug. 23-Sept. 2, 2021. Tahiti will be the venue for surfing in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
There will be three women’s and men’s CT events in California. Who’s going? Oh wait, spectators are prohibited because of coronavirus concerns.
Santa Cruz Pro, Feb. 2-12
Surf Ranch Pro, Aug. 12-15
The WSL Finals, Trestles, Sept. 8-17
It’s great to live to see the WSL take meaningful steps to correct decades of gender discrimination. I urge them to adopt new rules that require the same number of events for the women’s division and the men’s division in all CT, QS, LT and JT schedules.
To top it all off, the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing will go digital for the first time with competitors submitting videos of their two best waves from Sunset, Haleiwa and Pipeline for judging. I’m told there will be a women’s division and men’s division in the digital Triple Crown of Surfing. This is the first time a women’s division has been included since 2010. The 2021 contest is open to everyone.
The 2020 CT and Mavericks cancelations as well as the 2021 Tokyo Olympics postponement were disappointing. If the 2021 season goes as planned equality might be here to stay with a bit more effort by advocates, lawmakers and the WSL.
The way I see it, the WSL’s decision to include women in a CT event on Oahu was motivated by the tireless advocacy of a small group of volunteers that included Keala Kennelly, Betty Depolito, Carol Philips, myself and a few other women.
After the Committee for Equity in Women’s Surfing successfully led the 2018 fight for equal prize money recent achievements in Oahu and in the CT give me hope that full inclusion will become a reality in the not-too-distant future.
To see a list of all CT events checkout the 2021 schedule.
By Sabrina Brennan, founder of Surf Equity, Sport Equity and co-founder of the Committee for Equity in Women’s Surfing.
On July 17, 2020, the World Surf League officially canceled the 2020 Championship Tour (CT) and Qualifying Series (QS) season due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
“After careful consideration and extensive discussions with key stakeholders, we have made the decision to cancel the 2020 Championship Tour and Qualifying Series seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said WSL CEO Erik Logan in a video released on WSL channels. “While we firmly believe that surfing is amongst the sports best suited for competition to be held safely during the age of unresolved COVID, we have huge respect for the ongoing concerns of many in our community as the world works to resolve this.”
2020 CT schedule:
Women’s 2020 WSL CT Schedule canceled:
Corona Open Gold Coast March 26-April 5, 2020
Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach April 8-18, 2020
Margaret River Pro April 22-May 2, 2020
Quiksilver Pro G-Land June 4-14, 2020
Oi Rio Pro June 18-27, 2020
Corona Open J-Bay July 7-19, 2020
Michelob Ultra Pure Gold Freshwater Pro Sept 15-20, 2020
Roxy Pro France October 1-11, 2020
MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal Oct 14-25, 2020
Maui Pro Nov 25-Dec 6, 2020
Men’s 2020 WSL CT Schedule canceled:
Corona Open Gold Coast March 26-April 5, 2020
Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach April 8-18, 2020
Margaret River Pro April 22-May 2, 2020
Quiksilver Pro G-Land June 4-14, 2020
Oi Rio Pro June 18-27, 2020
Corona Open J-Bay July 7-19, 2020
Tahiti Pro August 26-September 6, 2020
Michelob Ultra Pure Gold Freshwater Pro Sept 15-20, 2020
Quiksilver Pro France October 1-11, 2020
MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal Oct 14-25, 2020
Billabong Pipe Master’s December 8-20, 2020
