With Caity Simmers and John John Florence winning the 2024 world titles, this year’s iteration of the Championship Tour is officially in the books. From the Olympics in Tahiti last month to last week’s title showdown at Lowers, it’s been a wild ride for professional surfing, and we’re not quite done yet.
Two more events remain on the WSL’s Challenger Series, and with spots on the 2025 on the Championship Tour at stake, there’s still a lot of surfing left to be done over the next couple of months. The Ericeira Pro hits Portugal at the end of September, followed by the Saquarema Pro in mid October. When it’s done and dusted, the top 10 men and top five women on the Challenger Series will graduate.
On the women’s side, the generational shift is in full effect. While veteran Sally Fitzgibbons sits atop the leaderboard, hot on her heels is America’s Bella Kenworthy in second, followed by Erin Brooks in fourth. Should both young women hold onto their rankings and make the cut, they’ll join newly crowned world champ Simmers and San Clemente all-star Sawyer Lindblad on tour next year. That’s a whole crew of teenage talent, who are not only all good friends, but are all incredibly talented and intent on taking the world by storm.
Related: Sally Fitzgibbons Wins Second US Open of Surfing Crown in 13 Years
For the men, 50 percent of the current top ten is comprised of surfers from Brazil. Ian Gouveia is riding high in first, followed by Sammy Pupo in second. Alejo Muniz, Michael Rodrigues and Miguel Pupo are in fourth, fifth and sixth respectively. Meanwhile, there’s only one Aussie, one Hawaiian and zero Americans above the cut line. Nolan Rapoza’s the closest surfer from the U.S., sitting at 13th right now. And there are eight Aussies hanging between 10th and 25th on the leaderboard.
This brings us back to the whole “lot of surfing left” part. There are a ton of points still up for grabs, and as we’ve seen in the past, spots like Ericeira and Saquarema have a way of shuffling the deck.
Related: 18-Year-Old Caity Simmers Makes History As Youngest Women’s World Champ Ever
Related: John John Florence Claims Third World Title, Wins 2024 WSL Finals