When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference.
These cookies are essential to enable user movement across our website and for providing access to features such as your profile. These cookies cannot be disabled. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information and cannot be used for marketing purposes.
These cookies allow us to analyze visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site and enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers, such as Google Analytics, whose services we have added to our pages. Information collected through these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly and/or we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance.
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts or content. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
These cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.
Week In Waves: Preparations For Surfing's Olympic Debut Heat Up
Ben Collins
Right now, if you're a Championship Tour surfer, you've either got an extended break until the Corona Open Mexico presented by Quiksilver, or you're putting the finishing touches on your preparation to become an Olympic athlete in Tokyo in under a month.
And this week, we got a few more pieces of one of the biggest puzzles heading into the Games -- the make-up of the Men's USA team.
JJF Provides More Details On His Injury
Right now, one of the biggest questions is whether or not John John Florence will surf in Tokyo. If he doesn't, it will mean his spot goes to 11-time World Champion Kelly Slater, who you can only imagine wants it badly.
Florence agrees with this sentiment. In an interview with The Inertia, he revealed he'd been surfing every day, gradually applying more pressure to his turns after injuring his left knee in Margaret River a few months ago.
And on the question of whether Slater is hoping he'll have to pull out?
"He probably wants it really bad," John John told Joe Carberry. "I can only imagine. Kelly is a competitor, he's probably doing the best he can to be ready. I'm doing the best I can. I'm pretty motivated. I didn't put all that work in to not get there this time around. I'm putting every second of every day into this knee."
Andino Back Surfing As Well
Now for the other big piece of the Men's USA puzzle: Kolohe Andino is also back in the water, after surgery to his injured ankle. We revealed last week he'd taken part in a Team USA expression session at Lower Trestles.
Well now, here's some Andino footage so you can see for yourself just how ready he is to go for Gold in Tokyo.
Defay Is Ready To Go
Johanne Defay will be going into the Games with a lot of confidence, given she won the most recent Championship Tour event, the Jeep Surf Ranch Pro presented by Adobe.
This week she released an edit which really showcases the fact that she has one of the best backhand attacks on the Championship Tour. We can't wait to see what she's going to do in Tokyo.
Ferreira Also Training Hard To Represent Brazil
If you've seen the way Italo Ferreira competes at Championship Tour events, can you imagine what he's going to do when he's trying to take Gold for Brazil?
Well, he's been training hard, posting some updates to his Instagram account this week. Brazil is arguably the favorite going into the event, with a frankly imposing combination of Ferreira and Gabriel Medina.
WIlson Provides Candid Details On His Olympic Motivation
This week Team Australia member Julian Wilson provided some details on his own Olympic motivation in an interview with the WSL.
Wilson sat out the recent Surf Ranch event to focus on his Olympic prep, and he went deep on how important it is to do his country proud at the games, the pressures of balancing travel on the Championship Tour and family life, and many other things.
"I've felt a lot of concern around the commitment to the time away from my family chasing the dream of a world title which has been a primary focus of mine for a long time now. But obviously, there's a bigger priority of factors now as my career gets further along," Wilson told Alex Workman.
Check out the full interview here.
Some Enjoyable Viewing From Hawaii
And finally, while we may be a ways off getting back into Hawaii-mode, its waves are something most surf fans will never get sick of looking at.
Team Billabong and Ethan Ewing, Griffin Colapinto, and Seth Moniz released this edit from their most recent season in Hawaii and it's well worth a watch.
Italo Ferreira
Italo Ferreira debuts at Margaret River with a strong showing, surging past Australians George Pittar and Jacob Willcox with a strong
Featuring Filipe Toledo, Italo Ferreira, Liam O'Brien, Molly Picklum, Julian Wilson, Rio Waida, Griffin Colapinto, Bettylou Sakura Johnson,
Featuring John John Florence, Jack Robinson, Kolohe Andino, Filipe Toledo, Stephanie Gilmore, Ryan Callinan, Jeremy Flores, Italo Ferreira,
The current World No. 1 Italo Ferreira is back at the venue that marked his first-ever CT win and in dominant form with an excellent 8.50.
Featuring Italo Ferreira, Filipe Toledo, Leonardo Fioravanti, Sawyer Lindblad, Caitlin Simmers, George Pittar, Jack Robinson, Jordy Smith,
News
Quarterfinal Showdowns Set the Stage for an Electric Final Day as Emerging Talent Dominates the Men's QS and LQS Divisions
Neste sábado acontecerão as disputas das quartas de final e semifinais nas categorias masculina e feminina
WSL Longboard Tour Qualification on the Line in Virginia Beach
Local Heroes Advance, Top Seeds Fall, and Semifinal Lineups Take Shape Across All Divisions
Bells Beach on Victoria's South Coast is the longest-running surfing competition and will host the 62st edition this year. Bells is