The premier men’s and women’s division made their first appearance at the National Championships presented by Trust Tairawhiti in Gisborne today (Wednesday 14th January).
While conditions were clean all day, the surf was only just contestable at Makorori Beach, however that did not deter New Zealand’s best surfers as they navigated the early rounds of the event.
The girls enjoyed the early morning conditions and it was 2024 champion Maya Mateja of Raglan that looked extremely sharp on her forehand. The 17 year old spent much of 2025 based in Mexico and return two weeks ago to spend the summer in New Zealand.
Mateja posted a 13.57 point heat total to advance through her round in the hunt for a second title.
Auckland surfer Liv Haysom at 22 years of age is the oldest of the surfers to advance to the final 12 surfers today. The natural foot surfer posted the highest heat score of 14.84 points in the round to advance.
New Zealand Junior Surfing Team members Leia Millar (Piha), Lola Groube (Pau) and Poppy Arkle (Piha) all advanced through to the next round as they hunt maiden titles.
“It would be really nice to have a national title in the Open Women’s, I’m feeling good and I want to keep the momentum going from the Worlds,” said Millar who finished seventh at the 2025 edition held in December last year. Millar has moved out of the age group divisions for the first time and has her first international events of the year lined up in both Australia and Indonesia.
In the early rounds of the Open Men’s Division, it was defending champion Alexis Owen that set the pace from the first heat with a 15.60.
“It is warm up here, unlike home so it is easy to surf and the waves are fun and it looks like it could get better, so you can’t ask for too much more,” said the Dunedin surfer.
“It is always good to come against surfing legends so we will see how I progress through the draw and if I get the chance to surf against them, that would be pretty cool,” added Owen on the prospect of surfing against the likes of Maz Quinn and Matt Scorringe who won senior age group divisions last year along with a number of returning surfers that amass 21 combined titles.
A surfer that holds eight titles alone is Billy Stairmand (Rag) and at the halfway mark of the first round, Stairmand had already notched up the top score of the day – 16.20 out of a possible 20.
Today’s conditions will be a stark contrast to the waves he will encounter in a week’s time when he returns to Hawaii to contest the WSL Challenger series at the famous Pipeline break.
A number of young surfers took their chances in the small waves today. They included Indica Corcoran, Vitor Bauermann, Jaxon Pardoe, Haru Marsden, Zeke Pragert and Tyler Stenzel who all advanced to the second round.
The surf is expected to remain small on day 5 (Thursday 15th January) with light winds forecasted.
Day 5 will comprise the premier Open Men’s Division in the afternoon but the day will kick off with the Under 16 Boys Division and Under 14 Boys and Girls Semifinals.
Just under 400 entries across 28 divisions have been confirmed. The event features competition across shortboard, longboard, stand up paddleboard (SUP), Kneeboard bodyboard and adaptive disciplines, with divisions spanning from Under 14s through to Over 70s.
Special awards at the event include the title of the top boardrider club in the nation as well as the Peter Byers Trophy awarded to the surfer with the most outstanding performance across the week.
The event marks the first of eight national events around the New Zealand coastline as part of the Epic Break summer campaign showcasing surfing talent and celebrating the surfing community between January and April.
The 2026 event is hosted by Gisborne Boardriders Club alongside Trust Tairawhiti. They are joined by event partners Neighbourhood Cantina, Chris Fougere Orthopaedics, Kiwi Holiday Insurance, ACC and Sun Bum.
Competition runs daily from 8.00am to 5.00pm, with the Open Men’s and Women’s finals expected to take place on Saturday 17th January.
Surfing Timetable
Day 5 – Open Men and Women, Junior Boys and Girls
Day 6 – Open Men and Women, Junior Boys and Girls, Kneeboard
Day 7 – Open Men and Women, Junior Boys and Girls, Adaptive
Social Calendar
Thurs 15th Jan, Nias Surf Movie Night, The Dome / Neighbourhood Cantina Night
Fri 16th Jan, Coast Kids Surf Day / Ambrose Golf Team Tournament (3pm)
Sat, 17th Jan, After Party, Smash Palace – Hitman Johnny Gibbs, Flaxxies and The Butlers (7pm)
The 2026 National Surfing Championships commences both the domestic NZ Surf Series, NZ Grom Series and NZ Longboard Series with events scheduled around the country this summer.
Further Information
For further information on the 2026 National Surfing Championships please contact Surfing New Zealand’s Ben Kennings on 021 2278732 or email benkennings@surfingnz.co.nz.
Imagery
High resolution action images of the surfing will be available to media free of charge upon request.
Social Media
Keep up with all the action by following @surfingnz on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Use the hashtag #Nats2026 and #EpicBreak to follow the story.
Surfing New Zealand is proudly partnered by:
Sport NZ
ACC
Sun Bum
Kiwi Holiday Insurance
Ends