Surfing Competitions

Surfing competitions are exciting events where the best surfers in the world ride ocean waves. Judges score each ride based on how big the wave is, what tricks the surfer does, and how smooth they look.

How Competitions Work

In a surfing competition, surfers go out in groups called heats. Each heat lasts about 20 to 30 minutes. Surfers catch as many waves as they can. Judges watch and score each wave from 1 to 10.

Surfers try to do their best tricks on the biggest waves. They do turns, cutbacks, and aerials, which are tricks where they fly off the top of the wave. The surfers with the highest scores move on to the next round.

Famous Events

The World Surf League runs the biggest surfing competitions. Surfers travel to beaches around the world to compete. Famous spots include Pipeline in Hawaii, Bells Beach in Australia, and Teahupo'o in Tahiti.

Surfing became an Olympic sport at the 2020 Tokyo Games. Now the best surfers can compete for gold medals. Big wave surfing is another exciting type of competition where surfers ride waves that can be over 60 feet tall.

Fun Facts

• Surfing became an Olympic sport at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
• The biggest wave ever surfed was over 80 feet tall.
• Hawaii is considered the birthplace of modern surfing.

Did You Know?

The tallest wave ever surfed in competition was over 80 feet tall, which is about the height of an eight-story building!