Photography: Pedro Mestre
The calendar for the 2021 Challenger Series has already been released – this is the competition that gives visibility to the next surfing generation to prove their talent and try to join the elite of world surfing by competing for a place on the 2022 Championship Tour (CT) .
This season will be reduced to four stages, with men’s and women’s categories that will pass through California, Portugal, France and Hawaii. In Portugal, Ericeira’s World Surfing Reserve will be the chosen stage for athletes who are unable to confirm their permanence in the CT ranking, having the opportunity to reach requalification for the next season of the Championship Tour.
Ericeira’s World Surfing Reserve will hold one of the four stages of the WSL qualifying circuit
The Challenger Series will begin after world titles are decided at the Rip Curl WSL Finals in Trestles, California. The first challenge in this World Surf League competition will be at the US Open of Surfing, between the 20th and the 26th of September, in Huntington Beach, California. Then, the athletes will head to Europe, with MEO Pro Ericeira, between the 2nd and the 10th of October. This will be followed by Quiksilver and Roxy Pro France, from the 16th to the 24th of the same month, in Landes, on the southwest coast of France. From the 25th of November to the 7th of December the last race will take place in Hawaii, with the Haleiwa Challenger.
The top three results for each surfer count towards the final ranking. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, each surfer’s best result in the 2020 WQS will be also taken into account.
Portuguese athletes Vasco Ribeiro and Teresa Bonvalot are already confirmed in the World Surf League playoff, which will feature 96 male surfers and 64 female surfers in the climb for access to the main circuit.
Esta publicação também está disponível em | This article is also available in: Portuguese (Portugal)
