USA Surfing welcomes the ISA/IOC’s new LA28 Olympic Surfing Qualification System, which represents an important shift from the last two Olympic cycles by introducing more pathways to qualification than we’ve seen before in Olympic surfing and creating additional opportunities for nations to earn full three-men / three-women teams.

Under the system announced by the ISA/IOC, there are now five pathways to Olympic qualification for U.S. surfers:

1)                  2028 WSL Championship Tour

2)                  2028 ISA World Surfing Games

3)                  2027 Pan American Games

4)                  2026 & 2027 ISA World Surfing Games (Team winners may earn a quota for their country if the country has not already reached the max quota of 3 athletes per gender)

5)                  Host Nation Allocation (one per gender if not already qualified through pathways 1–4)

A notable change is that ISA World Surfing Games participation is no longer a universal requirement. Surfers may now qualify through the WSL Championship Tour alone, reflecting more routes to Olympic qualification that count. We believe the Qualification System applies lessons from past Olympics with expanded pathways providing more competitive opportunities for individuals and teams. These pathways are demanding and dependent on variable conditions, heat format, and endurance-style schedules. For surfers balancing the CT with ISA events the added load may increase risk of injury/illness. The ISA and WSL should coordinate on scheduling and consideration of athlete welfare.

We recognize that many of the world’s top surfers and the World Surf League have voiced dissent about elements of the new system. Surfing’s Olympic future is strongest when athletes, tours, federations, and the broader surf community can move forward with clarity, fairness, and shared purpose. We hope that goal can be achieved.

While USA Surfing is not currently the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC)-certified NGB, we are the ISA-recognized national federation for Olympic surfing in the United States and are working with the USOPC to gather surfer input on domestic nomination procedures. The LA28 Qualification System provides considerable latitude for nations to establish domestic selection procedures for nominating surfers into ISA Olympic qualifying events and for allocating Olympic spots earned through ISA events.

To ensure a transparent, surfer-involved selection process, USA Surfing, in coordination with the USOPC, hosted an informational Zoom with surfers and agents, and will be sending a survey to all American Olympic-hopeful athletes this week. Proposed criteria include basing selection on WSL CT rankings, season-end results, and other benchmarks.

USA Surfing will continue to prioritize surfers’ input, transparency, and competitive excellence as we move forward. LA28 and surfing’s place in the Olympic Games are possible because of the ISA’s decades-long leadership and persistence in elevating surfing to the world stage. With surfing as California’s state sport and Lower Trestles in our backyard, we’re proud to welcome surfers from around the world to one of the sport’s most iconic venues.

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