Out of an abundance of caution and concern for the safety of athletes, fans and staff, the WSL has made the decision to cancel all upcoming events in the month of March, including the opening of the 2020 Championship Tour on the Gold Coast of Australia.
The WSL is carefully considering the impact of these cancellations on our Tours and we will provide more information as it becomes available.
Due to the rapidly evolving situation with COVID-19 and out of an abundance of caution for the safety of our athletes, fans, and staff, the World Surf League (WSL) has made the decision to cancel all events yet to commence at all tour levels, worldwide for the remainder of March, including the opening event of the 2020 Championship Tour (CT) on the Gold Coast in Australia.
Additionally, we are canceling the Papara Pro Open Tahiti. This decision is based on guidance from the World Health Organization, who has declared that COVID-19 is now a global pandemic, as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, governments and local public health authorities where our events are being held.
“Coronavirus is having massive consequences for sporting events and gatherings of all kinds around the world, and we are no different,” said WSL CEO Erik Logan.
“We did not take this decision lightly as we are aware that it has a significant impact on the surfing community.
However, the health and safety of our athletes, fans, and staff are paramount. From the standpoint of social responsibility, we also take very seriously the role our events might play in accelerating the spread of the virus. We’ve been in close contact with our athletes and we feel strongly that this is the right thing to do right now.” “The fluid nature of this situation is forcing us to evaluate things day-by-day, and even hour-by-hour,” Logan said. “As this continues to evolve, we’ll continue to adapt, endeavoring to make the next right decision each day.”
Based on the information we have at this time, we are not currently canceling any additional events beyond this time frame. That said, the situation continues to evolve, and we are closely monitoring and evaluating the status of our upcoming events, including our next CT event at Bells Beach in Victoria, Australia.
The WSL is carefully considering the impact of these cancellations on our tours and we will provide further information in due course.
For all events currently in progress, we have implemented a range of safety protocols as well as protective guidelines for athletes and staff.
These include information on travel advisories and restrictions so anyone traveling can plan their travel routes to and from our events to best limit their potential exposure; additional hand-washing facilities and hand sanitizer at events; and minimizing surfer and fan interactions.
Papara Pro Open Tahiti, French Polynesia – canceled
Piha Pro Junior, New Zealand – postponed
Corona Piha Pro, New Zealand – postponed
Seat Pro Netanya, Israel – postponed
Barbados Surf Pro, Barbados – postponed
Corona Open Gold Coast, Australia – canceled
WSL Awards – postponed
Red Bull Airborne Gold Coast, Australia – canceled
Jack’s Surfboards Pro, USA – postponed
Longboard Pro Espinho, Portugal – postponed
Caparica Surf Fest Pro, Portugal – postponed
Central Japan Open, Japan – postponed
Krui Pro, Indonesia – postponed
