Alyssa Spencer from the USA and Alister Reginato from Australia have won the Bioglan Newcastle Surfest in Australia, beating the wildcard Ziggy Aloha Mackenzie from Australia and Kauli Vaast from Tahiti and Vieux Boucau surf club. It was the final stage of the Challenger Series (CS), the qualifying circuit for the Championship Tour (CT) 2026, the elite circuit of the World Surf League (WSL). Olympian Kauli Vaast not only secured his ticket to the top but also clinched the overall circuit title. In a historic double, young Tya Zebrowski from Tahiti, Hossegor SC, also emerged victorious in the general classification! The rookies for the CT 2026 will be Kauli Vaast, Luke Thompson from South Africa, Oscar Berry from Australia, and Mateus Herdy from Brazil for the men’s category. On the women’s side, a predominantly European contingent includes Tya Zebrowski, the Portuguese surfers Yolanda Hopkins and Francisca Veselko, the Basque surfer Nadia Erostarbe from Zarautz, and a first-time inclusion for Israel with Anat Lelior.
50th anniversary celebrations will kick off with the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach in Australia on April 1. The 2026 season will feature a Championship Tour with 12 stages, an increased number of women participants, elimination of non-elimination rounds, and world titles decided at the final event, the Pipe Masters in Hawaii in December. Notably, the WSL is leading the charge by being the first pro league to grant two wildcards for maternity reasons. Johanne Defay from Réunion and Tatiana Weston-Webb from Brazil, new moms, will make their comeback to the elite in 2027. In the meantime, Defay will release a book titled “Contre courant” at the end of April, published by Flammarion, detailing her journey, struggles, and joys.
The Pro Taghazout Bay is currently underway in Morocco this week. As an important Qualifying Series (QS) 4000 event, part of the pro surfing third division, this marks the final stage of the European QS 2025-26 circuit, which serves as a qualifier for the Challenger Series 2026-2027. Tiago Carrique, the Biarritz native who honed his skills on the Pacific waves in Costa Rica, is back in competition and in a good position to win overall. The competition will be fierce, with a variety of South African pros in attendance, as the event also counts towards the QS Africa circuit.
