Some of the world’s most talented board riders will descend on Jeffreys Bay for the inaugural World Surf League (WSL) speciality competition, the J-Bay Classic presented by Corona.
The speciality event will take place at Supertubes from June 14-23.
The surfers include a plethora of talents from across the globe.
World champions, free surfers, elite competitors, retired pros and up-and-comers will converge at this event to showcase their surfing within a speciality format, as well as in a team division.
The main event will consist of two rounds of competition, where surfers will compete on twin-fin and thruster surfboard setups, showcasing how Supertubes can be surfed on alternative and high-performance surfboards, to earn points on the leader board.
The top four men and women will progress to finals day and the team division will feature six mixed teams, each competing in a 45-minute session.
Making the event even more special will be the appearances of former world champions Mark Occhilupo and Stephanie Gilmore from Australia.
The goofy-footer Occhilupo, who was crowned world champion in 1999, returns to the famed right-hand point break where he first grabbed the surfing world’s attention.
He won the 1984 Country Feeling Classic in J-Bay as an 18-year-old with a backhand attack that was unmatched.
He was the only goofy-footer to have won an event at Supertubes until Gabriel Medina broke through the ceiling at the Corona Open J-Bay in 2019.
“I’m really excited to head back to Jeffreys Bay and I’m honoured to be invited to the inaugural WSL J-Bay Classic,” he said.
“When J-Bay gets big it’s actually better to surf on your backhand.
“On a low tide, it gives you room to throw some big hacks. It’s one of the best waves in the world for sure.”
Eight-time world champion Gilmore, who has stepped away from the WSL Championship Tour (CT) in 2024 to take a break from the jersey, will make an appearance in this special event.
As the winner of the J-Bay event in 2018, Gilmore is undoubtedly one of the best to surf Supertubes.
Surfers looking to give her a hard time on the waves will be Alana Blanchard, Sally Fitzgibbons and Sierra Ho, among others, while the men’s section will feature the likes of Kelly Slater, Michael February, Jack Freestone and Steven Sawyer, to name just a few.
In a bid to expose locals to the challenge of surfing against the world’s best, a talented pool of surfers representing the WSL Africa Region will also engage in a trials competition of their own, with the winners, a man and a woman, earning the right to participate in the speciality event.
The field for the local event features various talented board riders including Sarah Baum, Zoe Steyn, Faye Zoetmulder and more, while the men’s field sees a number of familiar faces including Aboubakr Bouada, Joshe Faulkner, Daniel Emslie, Jordy Maree and Dylan Lightfoot.
HeraldLIVE
World-class surfers to compete in J-Bay Classic at Supertubes
Image: WSL/ED SLOANE
Some of the world’s most talented board riders will descend on Jeffreys Bay for the inaugural World Surf League (WSL) speciality competition, the J-Bay Classic presented by Corona.
The speciality event will take place at Supertubes from June 14-23.
The surfers include a plethora of talents from across the globe.
World champions, free surfers, elite competitors, retired pros and up-and-comers will converge at this event to showcase their surfing within a speciality format, as well as in a team division.
The main event will consist of two rounds of competition, where surfers will compete on twin-fin and thruster surfboard setups, showcasing how Supertubes can be surfed on alternative and high-performance surfboards, to earn points on the leader board.
The top four men and women will progress to finals day and the team division will feature six mixed teams, each competing in a 45-minute session.
Making the event even more special will be the appearances of former world champions Mark Occhilupo and Stephanie Gilmore from Australia.
The goofy-footer Occhilupo, who was crowned world champion in 1999, returns to the famed right-hand point break where he first grabbed the surfing world’s attention.
He won the 1984 Country Feeling Classic in J-Bay as an 18-year-old with a backhand attack that was unmatched.
He was the only goofy-footer to have won an event at Supertubes until Gabriel Medina broke through the ceiling at the Corona Open J-Bay in 2019.
“I’m really excited to head back to Jeffreys Bay and I’m honoured to be invited to the inaugural WSL J-Bay Classic,” he said.
“When J-Bay gets big it’s actually better to surf on your backhand.
“On a low tide, it gives you room to throw some big hacks. It’s one of the best waves in the world for sure.”
Eight-time world champion Gilmore, who has stepped away from the WSL Championship Tour (CT) in 2024 to take a break from the jersey, will make an appearance in this special event.
As the winner of the J-Bay event in 2018, Gilmore is undoubtedly one of the best to surf Supertubes.
Surfers looking to give her a hard time on the waves will be Alana Blanchard, Sally Fitzgibbons and Sierra Ho, among others, while the men’s section will feature the likes of Kelly Slater, Michael February, Jack Freestone and Steven Sawyer, to name just a few.
In a bid to expose locals to the challenge of surfing against the world’s best, a talented pool of surfers representing the WSL Africa Region will also engage in a trials competition of their own, with the winners, a man and a woman, earning the right to participate in the speciality event.
The field for the local event features various talented board riders including Sarah Baum, Zoe Steyn, Faye Zoetmulder and more, while the men’s field sees a number of familiar faces including Aboubakr Bouada, Joshe Faulkner, Daniel Emslie, Jordy Maree and Dylan Lightfoot.
HeraldLIVE
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