// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did the World Windsurf Tour say to the wave? "You blow me away.
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The World Windsurf Tour (WWT) is the professional windsurfing competition circuit that operates a unified five-tier event and ranking system in partnership with the Professional Windsurfers Association (PWA). The system ranges from 1-Star local events to 5-Star major championships.[1][2]
History
[edit]Professional windsurfing has been organised through successive competitive structures. The Professional Windsurfers Association (PWA) was established in 1995 as an athlete led organisation. The International Windsurfing Tour (IWT), which developed from the earlier American Windsurfing Tour, built a wave focused circuit with events outside Europe.[3]
In 2023, the PWA and IWT announced a unified structure for wave events and rankings under a common five-star hierarchy.[4] The resulting circuit now operates under the unifying World Windsurf Tour name. Early unified calendars included events in Japan, Chile, Fiji, the Canary Islands, Peru, Germany and Hawaii.[5]
Competition structure
[edit]The WWT uses a five-tier event classification:
- 1-Star – local-level events
- 2-Star – national-level events
- 3-Star – regional or qualifying events
- 4-Star – international challenger events
- 5-Star – major championship events
Since 2023 regulations provide separate pathways for men's and women's divisions as well as Masters (45+), Pro Juniors (U21) and Juniors (U18). The junior categories are intended to create a progression pathway toward elite competition.
2026 season
[edit]The 2026 WWT wave calendar includes events in Australia, Hawaii, Fiji,[6][7][8] Spain, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States and Chile. The announced calendar features 10 major four and five star events alongside lower tier regional competitions.
The season opened with the Margaret River event in Australia and continued with the Quatro Maui Pro at Hoʻokipa Beach Park in Hawaii, designated a 5-Star event and the first 5-Star contest of the season.[9]
In July 2026, the Gran Canaria GLORIA Windsurf World Cup was held at Pozo Izquierdo in the Canary Islands.[10] The event was classified as a 5-Star WWT event and formed part of the European leg of the season.[11][12]
The WWT's organisational leadership includes commissioner Simeon Glasson.[13][7] Major events have been broadcast through the WWT's digital channels, with selected competitions also carried by partner broadcasters including the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation.[14]
Notable athletes
[edit]The WWT and its preceding organizations have crowned world champions across multiple eras:[15]
- Robby Naish (USA): four time Aloha Classic winner, known as ‘The King’ and early pioneer of professional windsurfing.
- Bjorn Dunkerbeck (Denmark / Spain) - forty two time world champion
- Sarah-Quita Offringa (Aruba): multi-time World Wave Champion and one of the most decorated multi-discipline female windsurfers.
- Marcilio Browne (Brazil): Multi-time Wave World Champion known for radical jumping and wave-riding consistency.
- Morgan Noireaux (Hawaii): Four-time Aloha Classic winner.
- Bernd Roediger (Hawaii) - four-time Aloha Classic winner.
- Marc Paré Rico (Spain): Men's World Wave Champion representing the modern generation of wave sailors.
References
[edit]- ↑ SURF. "Surf schools and clubs: World Windsurf Tour wants to promote young talent with one-star events". SURF-Europas grösstes Windsurf-Magazin. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ "Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam Day 3". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ "Detail: PWA Windsurfing Worldtour". www.pwaworldtour.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ "2023 PWA IWT Unified Wave Tour - The biggest wave tour calendar in windsurfing history". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ "Seman reclaims her cloudbreak crown - Day 2 of the Fiji Surf Pro delivers big waves". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ "World Windsurf Tour's Fiji Surf Pro Day 1". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- 1 2 Nasokia, Waisea (2026-06-19). "Glasson: Fiji Surf Pro sets a new bench mark". Fiji Sun. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ SURF. "WWT/PWA Tour: Fiji Surf Pro in Cloudbreak becomes 4-star World Cup again". SURF-Europas grösstes Windsurf-Magazin. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ SURF. "Quatro Maui Pro in Hookipa: Big bang to kick off the 2026 World Cup season". SURF-Europas grösstes Windsurf-Magazin. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ "2026 Gran Canaria GLORIA World Cup - Day 1". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ "2026 Gran Canaria GLORIA World Cup - Day 5". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ "Gran Canaria GLORIA Windsurf World Cup is confirmed as a 2026 WWT 5-Star Major event". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ Rinehart, Robert E.; Sydnor, Synthia (2012-02-01). To the Extreme: Alternative Sports, Inside and Out. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-8714-3.
- ↑ "Puerto Rico". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 2026-08-14.
- ↑ Wiemar, Julian. "Aloha Classic 2025: The best pictures from the epic season finale on Maui". SURF-Europas grösstes Windsurf-Magazin. Retrieved 2026-08-14.