The global surfing community has descended upon El Salvador for the International Surfing Association’s 2023 World Surfing Games. It’s a qualifying event for the 2024 Paris Olympics – which will be held at Teahupo’o, Tahiti – hence all the hungry surfers vying for those coveted spots in surfing’s second appearance on the Olympic stage.
But two big-name surfers from Team Brazil have exited the competition early. Three-time World Champion Gabriel Medina and current world number two Joao Chianca have withdrawn from competition due to reports of illness.
From a translated post from the Brazilian Surf Confederation, the news was announced:
“In a joint decision of athletes Gabriel Medina and João Chianca with CBSurf Sports Director Paulo Moura, it is with sadness that we announce that Gabriel and João will no longer compete at the ISA Games, which is happening in El Salvador.
“Paulo Moura: ‘Gabriel has had the flu for 2 days, João also woke up with the flu, and due to the proximity to the El Salvador stage of the WSL, with the world title and the Olympic spot at stake, we opted for the decision, together with them, to withdraw them from the competition.
“If the CT stage wasn’t so close, we’d go ahead in the competition, but Gabriel Medina and João Chianca can’t risk it, as they need to be 100% this coming weekend!”
The day following the announcement, Gabriel was looking curiously healthy, per social media posts showing him working out. Makes one wonder if Gabriel (and perhaps Joao) are potentially eyeing another route for Olympic qualification. Like, via the CT.
Perhaps.
See below for a refresher on the 2024 Paris Olympics qualification hierarchy:
- 2023 World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour: First 10 eligible men and first 8 eligible women.
- 2023 ISA World Surfing Games: 4 men and 4 women selected based on their continent. Top finishing eligible surfer of each gender from Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania.
- 2023 Pan American Games: First eligible man and first eligible woman in the surfing competitions.
- 2024 ISA World Surfing Games: First 5 eligible men and first 7 eligible women.
- 2024 ISA World Surfing Games: The winning teams by gender, will qualify 1 place for their respective country/NOC, regardless of the 2-per country quota limit.
- 2022 ISA World Surfing Games: The winning teams by gender, will qualify 1 place for their respective country/NOC, regardless of the 2-per country quota limit.
- Host nation slot: One man and one woman slot will be guaranteed for the host nation of France, unless already filled through the above hierarchies. Should athletes from France qualify regularly, their slots will be reallocated to the highest ranked eligible surfers from the 2024 World Surfing Games.
- Universality Place: For the first time, one place per gender will be made available to eligible NOCs. Special consideration will be given to the nature of the wave in Teahupoo in terms of the eligibility criteria for these places. Should there deemed to be no qualified surfers in this category, these slots will be reallocated to the highest ranked eligible surfers from the 2024 World Surfing Games The complete process and selection criteria for these places will be communicated by the IOC at a later date.
***
Don’t miss another headline from SURFER! Subscribe to our newsletter and stay connected with the latest happenings in the world of surfing. We’re always on the lookout for amusing, interesting and engaging surf-related videos to feature on our channels.
Whether you’re a professional surfer or just an amateur, we want to see your best footage and help you share it with the world. Submit your video for a chance to be featured on SURFER and our social channels. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch high-quality surf videos.