Robert Kelly Slater is an American professional surfer, best known for being crowned World Surf League champion a record 11 times. Slater is widely regarded as the greatest professional surfer of all time, and holds 56 Championship Tour victories. Slater is also the oldest surfer still active on the World Surf League, winning his 8th Billabong Pipeline Masters title at age 49.
Patrick Shane Dorian, or "Shane", is an American surfer from Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. He spent 11 years touring on the World Championship Tour as a professional surfer. Dorian quit competition surfing in 2003 to focus on big waves. He is currently a big wave surfer and one of the best in the world at big wave riding.
The World Surf League (WSL) is the governing body for professional surfers and is dedicated to showcasing the world's best talent in a variety of progressive formats. The World Surf League was originally known as the International Professional Surfing founded by Fred Hemmings and Randy Rarick in 1976. IPS created the first world circuit of pro surfing events. In 1983 the Association of Surfing Pros took over management of the world circuit. In 2013, the ASP was acquired by ZoSea, backed by Paul Speaker, Terry Hardy, and Dirk Ziff. At the start of the 2015 season, the ASP changed its name to the World Surf League. Sophie Goldschmidt was appointed as WSL CEO on 19 July 2017. Paul Speaker had stepped down as CEO on 11 January 2017, and Dirk Ziff acted as the interim WSL CEO until Goldschmidt's appointment.
Grant "Twiggy" Baker is a South African professional surfer. He is a 3-time world surfing champion, ocean conservationist and entrepreneur
Makuakai (Makua) Rothman is an American big wave rider, professional surfer and musician. On February 28, 2015, he was crowned the 2015 Big Wave World Champion in the World Surf League's (WSL) first sanctioned Big Wave World Tour (BWWT).
John "John John" Alexander Florence is an American professional surfer. He is known as "one of the most dominant pipe surfers of his era" and won back-to-back world titles on the 2016 World Surf League and 2017 World Surf League Men's Championship Tour. He is the first Hawaii-born surfer to win back-to-back world titles since the late Andy Irons. In 2019, Florence qualified to represent the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics in surfing. From 2018 he has been struggling with some knee injuries.
Peter Mel, is an American professional surfer. Mel began his surfing life in Capitola, California before moving on to Santa Cruz. He is known as a 'big wave' surfer and son of John Mel, a four time surfing National Champion.
Cori Schumacher is an American world champion surfer, social justice advocate, scholar, and former politician. Schumacher uses they/them and she/her pronouns. She has served as the political director for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 569 since June 2023.
Colin Patrick "Col" McPhillips is an American professional longboard surfrider and three times ASP Longboard World Champion.
Wayne "Rabbit" Bartholomew is an Australian world champion surfer, surf sports innovator, community advocate and politician. Bartholomew is the former CEO and president of the Association of Surfing Professionals and the creator of the Dream Tour format of professional competition surfing.
Sam Bleakley is a British surfer, travel writer, filmmaker, presenter and longboard contest commentator. His published books include Mindfulness and Surfing: reflections for saltwater souls (2016), The Longboard Travel Guide: a guide to the world's best longboarding waves (2015), Surfing Tropical Beats (2011) and Surfing Brilliant Corners (2010). He has been a multiple British and European longboard surfing champion. Sam holds a MA in Geography from Pembroke College, University of Cambridge and a PhD from University of the Arts London and Falmouth University entitled Surfing Haïti, and a new wave of travel writing.
The Association of Surfing Professionals Europe is the governing body for professional surfers in Europe and is dedicated to showcasing the continent's best talent in a variety of progressive formats. It is one of seven regions of the ASP World Tour.
Adriano "Mineirinho" de Souza is a Brazilian professional surfer and also the 2015 WSL World Champion. He has been competing on the World Surf League Men's World Tour since 2005.
Gabriel Medina Pinto Ferreira is a Brazilian professional surfer who won the 2014, 2018 and 2021 WSL World Championships. With 18 WSL Championship Tour (CT) event wins and 30 Final appearances under his belt, Medina is one of the most experienced surfers when it comes to producing the best surfing under pressure. Medina is 2nd only to Kelly Slater for the most World Titles among surfers currently on the men's CT.
Filipe Toledo is a Brazilian professional surfer who has competed on the World Surf League Men's World Tour since 2013. He’s a second-generation pro who grew up outside of Ubatuba, Brasil on the northeastern coast of the state of São Paulo. His father, and long-time coach, Ricardo, was a two-time national champion. In 2014, as his career took flight, Filipe convinced his entire family to move to San Clemente, California.
Women's surfing is thought to date back to the 17th century. One of the earliest records of women surfing is of princess Keleanohoana’api’api, also known as Kalea or the Maui Surf Riding Princess. It is rumored that Kalea was the trailblazer of surfing and could surf better than both men and women. A few centuries later in the mid-late 1800s, Thrum’s Hawaiian Annual reported that women in ancient Hawaii surfed in equal numbers and frequently better than men. Over the last 50 years, women's surfing has grown in popularity.
Justine Dupont is a French professional surfer.
MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal formerly known as MEO Pro Portugal, Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal or Rip Curl Pro Portugal is a professional surfing competition of the WSL World Tour. As of 2022, held every year in March at the Supertubos beach in Peniche, Portugal. The event was first founded in 2010 as Rip Curl Pro Portugal.
The 2019 World Surf League was the competition series hosted by the World Surf League, the global championship body for competitive surfing. The 2019 World Surf League consisted of the Championship Tour, the Qualifying Series, Big Wave Tour, Longboard Tour, Junior Tour, and other specialty tours and events such as the Vans Triple Crown.
