Surfing at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Surfing at the Summer Olympics will make its debut appearance in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.[1]
| Surfing at the 2020 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Governing body | ISA |
| Events | 2 (men: 1; women: 1) |
| Games | |
| |
| |
| Surfing at the 2020 Summer Olympics | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Qualification | ||
| Shortboard | men | women |
Setting
In 2018, the International Surfing Association (ISA) announced that surfing at the 2020 Summer Olympics would take place in the ocean, and not in an artificial wave pool.[2] The contest site for the 2020 Games was announced to be Shidashita Beach, or "Shida", located about 40 miles (64 km) outside of Tokyo in Chiba.[3] To ensure quality surf, the contest will feature a waiting period of 16 days. Once the event runs, it will take two days to finish the competition.[4]
Competition structure
The 2020 Summer Olympics will use a four-person heat structure,[5] Four athletes will compete at any given time. The best two of each heat will continue to the next round. Each heat will run for 20 to 25 minutes, with their top two scores being used.
Only one rider may ride a wave at any given time. Using a common surfing etiquette[6] rule where the surfer who is closest to the peak has right of way. Any interference with the surfer who has right of way, can incur a penalty and result in point deductions.
A panel of judges will determine each rider's performance from wave to wave, scoring from one to ten with two decimals. e.g. 8.51. Scores are based on the difficulty of manoeuvres performed. This includes speed, power, and flow of each manoeuvre.
Bid for inclusion
On September 28, 2015, surfing was featured on a shortlist along with baseball, softball, skateboarding, karate, and sport climbing to be considered for inclusion in the 2020 Summer Olympics.[7] On August 3, 2016 the International Olympic Committee voted to include all five sports (counting baseball and softball as a single sport) for inclusion in the 2020 Games.[8]
Number of participants
There will be 20 men, and 20 women competing in the 2020 Summer Olympics,[9][10] This is currently limited to high-performance shortboards only,[11] separated into categories of gender. If surfing is included in upcoming games such as Paris 2024 or Los Angeles 2028, other categories such as Longboarding, bodyboarding and SUP may be included.[12]
Qualification
Quota places will be allocated to the athletes at the following events:
- Host Country: Japan as host country is allocated 1 place in both men's and women's events. If at least one Japanese surfer has earned a qualification place through other events, the relevant Host Country Place(s) shall be reallocated to the next highest ranked eligible athlete at the 2020 World Surfing Games.
- 2019 World Surf League Championship Tour - the 10 highest ranked men and 8 highest ranked women will be awarded quota places.
- 2019 ISA World Surfing Games - the top finishers from each continent with the exception of the Americas will be awarded a quota place.
- 2019 Pan American Games - the top finisher in men's and women's events will be awarded a quota place.
- 2021 ISA World Surfing Games - the top 4 men and 6 women will be awarded quota places. If a NOC or National Olympic Committee qualifies more than the maximum number of athletes, the 2021 ISA World Surfing Games will prevail and any places earned from 2019 will be reawarded to the next highest finishing athlete(s).
There is a maximum of 2 men and 2 women per NOC. [13]
Timeline
| Event | Places (Men) | Places (Women) | Date | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host Country | 1 | 1 | ||
| 2019 Pan American Games | 1 | 1 | July 26 – August 11, 2019 |  |
| 2019 World Surf League | 10 | 8 | April – December, 2019 | various |
| 2019 ISA World Surfing Games | 4 | 4 | September 7–15, 2019 |  |
| 2021 ISA World Surfing Games | 4 | 6 | May 8–16, 2021 |  |
| Re-allocation of unused quotas | - | - | TBD 2020–21 | N/A |
Competition schedule
| H | Heats | QF | Quarter-Finals | SF | Semi-Finals | F | Finals |
| Date | Jul 26 | Jul 27 | Jul 28 | Jul 29 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's | R1 | R2 | R3 | QF | SF | F |
| Women's | R1 | R2 | R3 | QF | SF | F |
Medalists
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men's |
|||
| Women's |
References
- Holthus, Barbara; Gagné, Isaac; Manzenreiter, Wolfram; Waldenberger, Franz (2020-04-23). Japan Through the Lens of the Tokyo Olympics Open Access. Routledge. p. 61. doi:10.4324/9781003033905. ISBN 978-1-003-03390-5.
- "Surfing in the ocean at Tokyo Olympics: ISA president". France 24. 2018-05-22. Retrieved 2019-09-20.
- "Surf year opens for Olympic qualifying, equal pay". ESPN.com. 2019-04-03. Retrieved 2019-09-20.
- Dashel Pierson (2016-08-05). "10 Things You Should Know About Surfing in the Olympics". Surfline.com. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
- "Olympic Sports : Surfing｜The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games". The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Retrieved 2018-07-22.
- "Surfing Etiquette: How to behave in the surf". www.surfing-waves.com. Retrieved 2018-07-22.
- "Surfing and skateboarding make shortlist for 2020 Olympics". GrindTV.com. 2015-09-28. Retrieved 2016-08-08.
- Pablo Zanocchi (2016-08-03). "It's Official: Surfing Will Be in the Olympics". Surfline.com. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
- "10 Things You Should Know About Surfing in the Olympics". Surfline.com. Retrieved 2018-07-22.
- "Australian Surfer Julian Wilson grabs 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games Spot | Olympics 2020". Retrieved 2020-01-03.
- "Surfing in the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tokyo, Japan". Surf Nation. Retrieved 2018-07-22.
- "Fanning: Surfing can be regular Olympic sport". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2018-07-22.
- "Tokyo 2020 Qualification System - Surfing" (PDF). isasurf.org. 2018-03-16. Retrieved 2018-03-17.
- "Schedule - Surfing Tokyo 2020 Olympics". Olympian Database. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
- "Surfing Competition Schedule". Tokyo 2020. Retrieved 8 March 2020.