Paige Alms of Hawaii winning the 2019 cbdMD Jaws Big Wave Championships for the third time in her career at Peah’i on December 12, 2019 in Oahu, United States. (Photo by Keoki Saguibo/WSL via Getty Images)

  • Quiksilver Returns to Big Wave Surfing in Hawaii
  • World’s Best Big Wave Surfers on Standby for Nazaré and Jaws
  • Competition Windows Open Now Through March 31, 2022
  • More Available at WorldSurfLeague.com

The world’s best big wave surfers are back on call as the holding period for the World Surf League (WSL) 2021/2022 Big Wave season officially opened today. The official holding period for the WSL Big Wave competitions will run through March 31, 2022. This year’s big wave season will feature the Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge and Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge presented by Jogos Santa Casa where each will showcase the best of big wave surfing in the paddle and tow-in disciplines, respectively.

Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge
The Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge will feature paddle-in surfing in an individual competition format. In the men’s division, 24 competitors are divided into four heats of six surfers for the first round. Heats are generally 45 minutes and surfers may catch as many waves as they wish with a panel of five judges scoring each ride on a scale of 1 to 10. Each competitor’s two best waves are counted, with their best wave score doubled. The three highest-scoring surfers advance to the Semifinals, which run in the same format, and the top three surfers from the Semifinals advance to the Final. 

The women’s division runs in a similar format with 12 competitors participating in two six-surfer Semifinals with the top three surfers in each heat advancing to the Final. 

Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge Invitees:

Female Invitees
1 – Paige Alms (HAW)
2 – Felicity Palmateer (AUS)
3 – Annie Reickert (HAW)
4 – Keala Kennelly (HAW)
5 – Emily Erickson (HAW)
6 – Michaela Fregonese (BRA)
7 – Bianca Valenti (USA)
8 – Skylar Lickle (HAW)
9 – Justine Dupont (FRA)
10 – Raquel Heckert (BRA)
11 – Laura Enever (AUS)
12 – Izzy Gomez (COL)

Male Invitees
1 – Billy Kemper (HAW)   
2 – Ian Walsh (HAW)        
3 – Nathan Florence (HAW)
4 – Kai Lenny (HAW) 
5 – Makua Rothman (HAW) 
6 – Lucas Chianca (BRA)  
7 – Russell Bierke (AUS)
8 – Nic Von Rupp (PRT)  
9 – Eli Olson (HAW)
10 – Torrey Meister (HAW)
11 – Koa Rothman (HAW)
12 – Nic Lamb (USA)
13 – Grant Baker (ZAF)
14 – Jamie Mitchell (AUS)
15 – Albee Layer (HAW)
16 – Tyler Larronde (HAW)
17 – Jojo Roper  (USA)
18 – Ty Simpson Kane (HAW)
19 – Matt Bromley  (ZAF)
20 – Francisco Porcella (ITA)
21 – Trevor Carlson (HAW)
22- Tom Lowe (GBR)
23 – Aaron Gold (HAW)
24 – Greg Long (USA)

Quiksilver Returns to Big Wave Surfing in Hawaii
One of the most iconic brands in surfing, Quiksilver has signed on to be the title partner of the Jaws Big Wave Challenge for a multi-year partnership. Through this partnership, Quiksilver and WSL will further solidify their support for big wave surfing in Hawaii in the years to come. 

“Supporting Big Wave Surfing in Hawaii has always been at the core of Quiksilver’s DNA and has played a vital role in our company’s rich history,” said Quiksilver Global General Manager Brad Blankinship. “We are proud to partner with the WSL for the Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge.”

“We are thrilled to have this iconic brand with us at Jaws,” said Cherie Cohen, WSL Chief Revenue Officer. “Quiksilver has been pioneering innovation and promoting safety tools that have become the industry standard. The Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge is one of the most highly anticipated events of the season, and together we will celebrate the brave men and women who will surf this great Hawaiian wonder.”

Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge pres. by Jogos Santa Casa
The Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge presented by Jogos Santa Casa will be a one-day, specialty teams event with tow-in surfing. There will be nine teams made up of two competitors in each team. The teams will be divided into three groups with three teams in each group. The competition will have a total of six 50-minute heats, where each group will participate in two heats, with each team alternating between surfing and driving the team’s jet ski.

A surfer’s best two waves after surfing both heats will count to an individual total score, with the best wave counting as double points. In total, a surfer’s maximum individual score will be 30 points, as each wave is scored from 1-10 points. Surfers will be awarded across multiple categories at the end of the competition day. 

Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge pres. by Jogos Santa Casa Invitees:
Team 1: Kai Lenny (HAW), Lucas Chianca (BRA)
Team 2: Nic Von Rupp (PRT), Pedro Scooby (BRA)
Team 3: Rodrigo Koxa (BRA), Eric Rebiere (FRA)
Team 4: Andrew Cotton (GBR), Will Skudin (USA)
Team 5: Axier Muniain (EUK), Francisco Porcella (ITA)
Team 6: João de Macedo (PRT), Antonio Silva (PRT)
Team 7: Maya Gabeira (BRA), Sebastian Steudtner (DEU)
Team 8: Justine Dupont (FRA), Pierre Rollet (FRA)
Team 9: Michelle des Bouillons (BRA), Ian Cosenza (PRT)

Event officials will monitor swell-producing storms, watching for the precise conditions that will produce waves in the competition range. Once the call is made by the event officials, competitors will have 72-hours notice to be ready to compete.

Due to safety and environmental concerns, there is no location available for on-site spectating for the Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge. There will be no parking available to non-residents on either side of Hana Highway anywhere near the event location on the day of the competition. 

The Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge and Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge pres. by Jogos Santa Casa will be broadcast LIVE on WorldSurfLeague.com, the WSL app, and on WSL’s YouTube Channel. Also, check local listings for coverage from the WSL’s broadcast partners.

The Quiksilver Jaws Big Wave Challenge is proudly supported by Quiksilver, Michelob ULTRA, and Red Bull. The Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge pres. by Jogos Santa Casa is proudly supported by Jogos Santa Casa, Corona, Red Bull, MEO, Hertz, Tourism Portugal, and Nazare City Council. 

For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.

About the WSL 
Established in 1976, the World Surf League (WSL) is the home of the world’s best surfing. 
 
A global sports, media and entertainment company, the WSL oversees international tours and competitions, a studios division creating over 500+ hours of live and on-demand content, and via affiliate WaveCo, the home of the world’s largest high performance, human-made wave. Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, the WSL has regional offices in North America, Latin America, Asia Pacific, and EMEA.
 
The WSL annually crowns the men’s and women’s surfing World Champions. The global Tours and Competition division oversees and operates more than 180 global contests each year across the Championship Tour, the development tiers, including the Challenger, Qualifying and Junior Series, as well as longboard and big wave properties.  
 
Launched in 2019, WSL Studios is an independent producer of unscripted television projects, including documentaries and series, which provide unprecedented access to athletes, events, and locations around the world. WSL events and content are distributed on linear television in over 743M+ homes worldwide and across digital and social media platforms around the world, including WorldSurfLeague.com. 
 
WaveCo includes the Surf Ranch Lemoore facility and the utilizing and licensing of the Kelly Slater Wave System.
 
The WSL is dedicated to changing the world through the inspirational power of surfing by creating authentic events, experiences, and storytelling to inspire a growing, global community to live with purpose, originality, and stoke.  
 
For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.

About Quiksilver
Quiksilver is an emblematic boardsports brand of Boardriders, Inc., founded by a group of surfing enthusiasts in Australia in 1969. True to a unique lifestyle, Quiksilver holds passion, authenticity and innovation to be fundamental values. The brand’s identity is represented by its logo, a mountain inside a wave symbolizing its attachment to boardsports and its playgrounds, the sea and the slopes. Quiksilver products cover the whole range of sportswear, accessories and boardsports gear. Quiksilver is also intimately associated with the very best athletes and the biggest events in the history of boardsports. www.quiksilver.com.