When it comes to the Rip Curl GromSearch, the talent cup runneth over, so to speak. New groms under the age of 16 seem to pop up every year and surprise us. Take last year’s winners of the International Final held in Canggu, Bali. Lukas Skinner grew up in the United Kingdom, yet took out higher-profile names on the way to the podium (and paddled into an outrageous Off The Wall cone last winter). Meanwhile, San Clemente’s Eden Walla won seemingly every event she entered in 2024, sliced her way to the win and Bali and packed enormous barrels at a Mexican beachbreak with her father.
The GromSearch returned this year with regional events held in Tofino, Huntington Beach, Oahu, and New Jersey. Winners from those events surf in the National Finals, which starts this weekend in Virginia Beach’s Atlantic Park Surf wavepool. The winners from the pool will then converge on the coast of Southern France for the International Final from November 4-8 (did you see how fun the waves looked for the Quiksilver Festival last month?)
But there’s still room for two more groms to get to France. Starting today, Rip Curl is hosting an online GromSearch competition for any grom under the age of 16 to post their best surfing clip to TikTok or Instagram. One boy and one girl will be hand-picked by none other than 2025 World Champion Molly Picklum and Championship Tour surfer Crosby Colapinto. The entry period runs from October 1-10. Get on it, groms.
How to enter the online GromSearch
- Post your best surfing clip to TikTok or Instagram between October 1–10
- Use the hashtag #GromSearchOnline
- Tag @ripcurl
- Include your name (first name & 1st letter of last name) and location (beach & country) in your caption.
Related: Who’s the Next Big Surf Star? Rip Curl’s ‘Dunno’ May Have Answers