- WSL / Niltz

The 2015 World Surf League (WSL) Shoe City Pro is set to run from January 5 through January 8th on the Southside of the historic Huntington Beach pier. The WQS1000 rated event will be the first ever event to take place under the new WSL name. It will be the second Shoe City Pro to hold a WSL sanction following the inaugural competition that took place in October of 2014. The Shoe City Pro is co-sanctioned between the WSL and American Pro Surf Series (APSS).

The October Shoe City Pro saw classic California Fall conditions over two days, with warm temperatures on the beach and a head high combo swell providing peaks up and down the beach. In the end two Huntington Beach natives Kanoa Igarashi (USA) and Chris Waring (USA) went head-to-head in the final with Igarashi ending up on top.

The upcoming event will be looking to capitalize on classic Winter conditions, with colder water and potentially larger surf on offer. APSS Contest Director Scott Waring is excited about the seasonal element of these events and is working toward expanding the new partnership with the WSL.

“With American Pro Surfing Series going into its 5th season our aim is to hold events like the Shoe City Pro in the United States, providing local surfers the opportunity to gain some WQS points without the major expense of traveling abroad. Our first event with the ASP (now WSL) was this past October and it was a great couple of days. The competitors put on an amazing show in really fun waves,” said Waring.

“During winter in Huntington Beach we can expect some solid swells, with barreling lefts and rights going all the way to the beach. We're going to run the event on the best two days of the scheduled dates, and hopefully having that flexibility will give the competitors the best opportunity for quality conditions.”

The 2015 Shoe City Pro will be the first event to kick off the newly implemented WSL North America Regional Series. The series will give local surfers the chance to gain crucial points toward entry into the higher rated Qualifying Series events of 2016.

“The Shoe City Pro will be the first event on our 2015 Regional Series of events,” said WSL North America Tour Manager Brian Robbins. “At the end of the season we will be crowning Men's and Women's Regional Champions, and awarding them a guaranteed spot into 2016 WQS Events, including WQS10000 and WQS6000 events. It's a great opportunity to fast track our regional champions onto the international stage, and we're excited to provide this to the competitors.”

With such a huge opportunity at stake this year in the North America Regional Series, local WQS surfers will be looking to start their 2015 campaigns with a solid result here in Huntington Beach.

The waiting period for the 2015 WSL Shoe City Pro is set to begin on January 5th and run through January 9th.

www.shoecity.com

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