At the start of the 22nd annual Molokaʻi-2-Oʻahu Paddleboard World Championships (M2O), presented by Kona Brewing, favorable winds appeared to be creating promising conditions for todayʻs racers, but the Kaʻiwi Channelʻs fickle personality created a puzzle board of mixed swell for athletes to navigate.
The first stop on the 2018 APP World Tour exploded out of the gates in the iconic city of London on July 7-8, 2018. This multi-tiered event, featuring Pro, Pro AM and Amateur racing for all levels of paddlers was showcased in two iconic locations around the city, including a 4km course on the historic Thames River, 200 meter sprint races and an 11km distance course held on the Royal Victoria Docks in East London.
After a frustrating week in Hossegor athletes traveled to Scharbeutz, Germany for a fresh start at the 2018 Mercedes-Benz SUP World Cup, the 7th stop of The Paddle League World Tour and week 9 of the EuroTour.
The paddle-battles raged. On Saturday, June 23rd, elite athletes and spectator crowds gathered at the Santa Monica Pier for the first day of Pier 360. The two-day ocean sports and beach festival delivered over 12 hours of events, music, and immersive activations, culminating in the crowning of this year's Overall Elite Champions in men's and women's SUP events.
Red Bull Heavy Water, arguably the most intense stand up paddling event in the world, is headed back to San Francisco, home to notoriously challenging weather and water conditions, as part of the 2018 APP World Tour circuit, with an event window from October 15th – November 2nd.
With a record field of 272 athletes across all divisions (kids, juniors, elite, amateurs) the 6th annual Iberdrola Bilbao World SUP Challenge in the Basque Country of Spain was the fifth stop of The Paddle League World Tour and week 7 of the 2018 EuroTour presented by Rogue.
A dozen of the world’s best paddlers stood on the start line alongside Japan’s finest, with grey skies and light rain greeting competitors Saturday morning after a week of blue skies and warm weather.
In a wet and stormy weekend on Maui the 10th Annual Olukai Ho’olaule’a took place in massive swells and rough conditions. The race was originally set to take place on Saturday but due to the conditions event organizers decided to hold off ’til Sunday in hopes that conditions would clean up a bit.
After another grueling year yet again on the Graveyard course at the Quiksilver Waterman Carolina Cup new champions were crowned among a record field of elite competitors in an exciting race that didn’t disappoint.
In a check-up interview with North Carolina Press Release, Anderson provides an update on her recovery and reveals an in-depth analysis including her predictions for 2018’s grueling 13-mile Graveyard Race.
The Paddle League has revealed “stage two” of its plan to help unify the sport, bringing together 41 regional events across 24 nations in a bid to provide a more stable foundation for the future of stand up paddling.
New champions were crowned and a new generation stood up at the Hoe Toa Paddle Championships in New Zealand on the weekend, where Penelope Strickland and Tara Hope earned national titles, Australia’s Lincoln Dews gatecrashed the party with a clean sweep and over 200 paddlers hit the water for a big two days of racing.