Surf Athletes
We all like to think we are surfers who “could have” made it. These surf athletes actually are making it. From underground heroes to rising groms – this is where we lay bare the best talent in the country.
Finals Day for the Under 18s, 16s and 14s at the 2024 New Zealand Surfing Champs reveals an historic moment. This is the sharp end of the contest for the juniors, made even more incisive by the fact a win here gives you automatic entry into the New Zealand surfing......
Day Five of the 2024 New Zealand Surfing Champs sees a shakedown of the premier divisions as the circus moves back to the St Clair Esplanade. Day Five saw the contest move back to the comfort of St Clair with light winds and a new north east swell promising some......
Taranaki’s Daniel Farr and Raglan 15-year-old Maya Mateja win the 2024 New Zealand Surfing Champs held in Dunedin over the past week. An explosive final day of the 2024 National Surfing Championships has seen Taranaki surfer Daniel Farr claim his second national title by the closest margin in the history......
The 2024 New Zealand Surfing Champs is underway in Dunedin right now with a challenging forecast keeping organisers on their toes. There’s always a lot more to a surf comp than meets the eye. Especially when the swell, wind and tide combination is in a typical summer mode, with swirling......
The Backdoor Team of Billy Stairmand, Paul Moretti, Jay Piper-Healion, Caleb Cutmore, Taylor Hutchison and Darren Celliers immerse themselves in southern waves … and marathon sessions. Filmmaker Isaac Chadwick and photographer Derek Morrison are on hand to capture the antics, fin blows and air revs … and they hardly miss......
Kehu Butler and Billy Stairmand bow out of the 2023 Challenger Series with narrow Round of 64 exits at the final stop of the tour, the Saquarema Pro held in Brazil. More and more the Challenger Series is looking way closer to the Championship Tour than it is to any......
Very few surfers have had the weight of expectation heaped upon their shoulders quite like Taylor Hutchison. At 26, he’s come to terms with being born into a hard-working, surfing devoted family. We caught up with Taylor during one of his recent “work trips” to the Otago coastline. Back in......
Mount Maunganui-based Billie Scott has just come away with a record-equaling third place finish at the 2023 ISA World SUP & Paddleboarding Championship amidst a stacked field. NZSJ’s Isaac Chadwick caught up with her to see how she was feeling after a whirlwind few days. It was a tough road......
World Surf League announces the schedule for the 2024 Championship Tour (CT), with J-Bay and Surf Ranch dropped to make room for the Olympics, while Cloudbreak, Fiji, makes a welcome return. The calendar will continue to showcase a combined women’s and men’s schedule featuring nine regular-season events, with the mid-season......
Taranaki’s Paige Hareb has yet again shown her mettle with an outstanding performance at the 2023 Nias Pro QS5000, finishing second to her good friend, Phillipa Anderson. The defending event winner Paige opened her Nias Pro campaign on Day 3 in Lagundri Bay with a statement-making 8.50 with a critical......