WSL: CT GENTS

SEASON 2026

• 1-11 April: Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, Australia
• 16-26 April: Margaret River Pro, Australia
• 1-11 May: Gold Coast Pro, Australia
• 15-25 May: Raglan Pro, New Zealand
• 5-15 June: Surf City Pro, Salvador
• 19-27 June: Vivo Rio Pro, Brazil
• 8-18 August: Tahiti Pro, Tahiti
• 25 August – 4 September: Fiji Pro, Fiji
• 11-20 September: Lexus Trestles Pro, United States
• 14-18 October: Surf Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
• 22 October – 1 November: Peniche Pro, Portugal
• 8-20 December: Pipe Masters, Hawaii, United States

The Championship Tour 2026 is divided into three parts. First, a regular season of 9 stages with a full field of 36 men and 24 women; to advance to the next stage, the top 7 results out of these 9 stages are retained. All heats are held in a man-on-man format with direct elimination, and there is a first round reserved for lower-ranked competitors (men ranked 29–36 go through Round 1; women ranked 9–24 go through Round 1). Next is a post-season of 2 stages with a reduced field of 24 men and 16 women. Finally, everything concludes at Pipe Masters (Pipeline), where the full field (36 men/24 women) competes again for a last event that awards +50% points (victory at 15,000 pts vs 10,000 pts) and where the final season rankings are calculated based on the best 9 results out of 12 stages.

THE WORLD SURF LEAGUE

The World Surf League or WSL is an American company responsible for organizing all professional surfing competitions worldwide. Founded in 1976 as IPS (International Professional Surfers), then renamed ASP (Association of Surfing Professionals) in 1983, and WSL in 2015, it is notably in charge of organizing events comprising the world surfing championship (Championship Tour or CT) as well as those of the access league to the elite (Challenger Series and Qualifying Series). It also manages the Pro Junior (-18 years) and Longboard Pro circuit.
Tahiti has its own federation and is considered a “country” by the World Surf League; the French Surfing Federation records only the results and statistics of licensed surfers with the FFSurf. The same applies to Hawaii, which is independent of the USA according to the WSL.

THE CT CIRCUIT

The Championship Tour of the World Surf League constitutes the elite division of the professional world championship.

Only the top 32 surfers in the world qualify each season to compete in the dozen stages of the circuit. This field is made up of the top 22 surfers from the previous season’s CT joined by the top 10 surfers from the previous season’s Challenger Series circuit. This Top 32 is joined by two wild cards awarded yearly by the WSL to two deserving surfers. Two additional wild cards are awarded at each competition, creating a field of 36 competitors in each stage of the circuit.

All CT competitions have the same points and prize money.

American Kelly Slater holds the record for world titles: 11, and the record for the most CT wins: 55.

To date, 9 French surfers have made it to the CT: David Vetea (1989), Eric Rebière (2004), Micky Picon (2006 and 2008), Jérémy Florès (2007), Michel Bourez (2008), Tim Boal (2009), Joan Duru (2017), Maxime Huscenot (2022), and Marco Mignot (2025).

French surfers have won 7 CT victories: Jérémy Florès (4) and Michel Bourez (3).