Surfing's WCT 2013: Title Preview and Schedule of Events

By Andrew Sachs

If you didn't already know, the ASP's Surfing World Championship Tour (WCT) is getting ready to kickoff for 2013!  The waiting period for the tour's first stop begins March 2.

                          

Check out the full schedule of events for 2013:

1. Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast – March 2 – 13, 2013
2. Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach – March 27 – April 7, 2013
3. Billabong Rio Pro – May 8 – 19, 2013
4. Volcom Pro Fiji – June 2 – 14, 2013
5. Billabong Pro Teahupo’o – August 15 – 26, 2013
6. Hurley Pro at Trestles – September 15 – 21, 2013
7. Quiksilver Pro France – September 27 – October 7, 2013
8. Rip Curl Pro Portugal – October 9 – 20, 2013
9. Billabong Pipe Masters – December 8 – 20, 2013  

The tour starts off in Queensland at Snapper with the first of two events Down Under.  It may be winter in the northern hemisphere but right now it's late summer in the southern hemi, making for the perfect atmosphere for the WCT season-opening event.  

The 2 event stretch of Fiji and Teahupo'o are the most exotic locations on the WCT and also have the potential for the biggest waves.  Teahupo'o was blowing up for last year and Cloudbreak was going off too - hopefully the same is true for this year. 

Kelly at Cloudbreak!

The WCT comes to the US when it sets up shop at Trestles in mid-September.  If you are looking for a reason to schedule a trip to California, you just found one.

Who will win the 2013 WCT Crown??

Here's the final 2012 WCT standings; Parko took the title back to Australia:

Parko, stoked on his title

1. Joel Parkinson (AUS)
2. Kelly Slater (USA)
3. Mick Fanning (AUS)
4. John John Florence (HAW)
5. Adriano de Souza (BRA)
6. Taj Burrow (AUS)
7. Gabriel Medina (BRA)
8. Josh Kerr (AUS)
9. Julian Wilson (AUS)
10. Owen Wright (AUS) 

It goes without saying that Parko, Kelly and Mick are all favorites for 2013 with their combined world title experience.  But outside of that crew, John John Florence is knocking on the door.  Last year in his first season on tour he had some huge results and was able to finish in 4th.  Imagine what he can do with a year of experience.

The Brazilians are also lurking and looking to make more noise (as they always do) this season.  Could one of the "next" guys like Jordy or Julian make a title push?  How about newcomer Sebastian "Seabass" Zietz, who killed it on the North Shore this winter? 



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ASP World Tour | The Dream Tour

ASP World Championship Tour: the Dream Tour

The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour pits the world's 34 best surfers in competition against one another across 10 events for the right to be crowned world surf champion.  Established in 1982 by Ian Cairns, the World Tour has developed into a global competition, featuring competitors from all over the world and competitions across continents.  Because it is the pinnacle of professional surfing, it is commonly referred to as the "Dream Tour."

Since Tom Carroll won the first ASP World Championship back in 1983, there have only been 12 different winners of the championship in 29 years.  The biggest reason there have been so few winners is because of the dominance of Kelly Slater, who has won the championship 11 times, including 5 straight championships from 1994-1998.  Other repeat winners include Tom Carroll (2x), Tom Curren (3x), Damien Hardman (2x), Andy Irons (3x), and Mick Fanning (2x).  Every year, new stars stake their claim to the championship, but Kelly Slater or Mick Fanning has won the championship every year since 2004. 

Some of the events on the tour calendar change from year-to-year so that the surfers can surf new breaks and expose different parts of the world to the "World Tour experience."  This year, the tour includes stops in Australia, Brazil, Fiji, Tahiti, the United States, France, Portugal, and Hawaii.  Other notable stops in recent years included Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Long Island, New York. 

So far this year, the tour has completed 4 events: Gold Coast and Bells Beach, Australia, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Tavarua, Fiji.  Taj Burrow took the win at the Gold Coast, Mick Fanning was first at Bells, John John Florence won at Rio, and most recently, Kelly Slater came out on top at Tavarua.  After those 4 events, Mick Fanning is number 1 in the tour standings, followed closely by Kelly Slater, Joel Parkinson, Adriano de Souza, and Taj Burrow.  To make sure that each event maxes out the opportunity to get great waves, the time for each tour event is about a two week window.  Early on every day during those two weeks, contest organizers check the surf conditions and swell forecasts to determine whether the conditions are right to run the contest.  If it's flat, or if they see something better coming in the forecast, the organizers will call a "lay day", temporarily postponing the contest until the waves arrive.  As any surfer knows, this can be a tough decision.

The next tour event won't be for another 2 months, when the Billabong Pro Teahupoo kicks off in Teahupoo August 16 through August 27.  Notorious for having the heaviest waves and barrels around, this event is sure to produce an equal share of epic rides and massive wipeouts, both fan favorites.  Like all the events, the Billabong Pro will be streaming live online - don't forget to check it out!  In the meantime, check out the highlights from the final day of the Fiji Pro.

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