New Zealand Team Selection Policy
We are pleased to publish our upcoming season of events across our three major series – the NZ Surf Series, NZ Grom Series and NZ Longboard Series. More detail on each series and individual events will be released in the coming weeks.
Along with the event dates announcement, we can share some exciting changes to the NZ Grom Series and amendments to the New Zealand Team selection policy.
We have been through a full calendar year under the new policy, selecting five national teams in the process. These selections have allowed us to review the policy and adjust where required.
Our approach of having an objective and transparent selection policy continues. This philosophy aligns with qualification for the WSL and Olympics which are both based on rankings and results from individual ISA events and WSL event series.
The policy has worked well for teams selected to represent New Zealand at ISA events. The policy did not work well for the ANOC Beach Games (which was ultimately cancelled), as the event fell outside ISA events outlined in the policy.
Key Amendments
- Deleting references to ISA events and ISA team quotas with the understanding that the policy can be used to select all New Zealand Teams
- Extending the WQS quality control from top 25 to 35 for males and from top 20 to 30 for females
- Adding that Olympic qualified athletes must attend ISA World Surfing Games in Olympic years and hence they become Quota 1
- Extending the quality control for WSL Pro Juniors from top 10 to 20 for males and females
- Changing the stand-alone longboard qualification event from the National Champs to the NZ Longboard Festival
- General tightening of clauses and sentences
Our overriding intention is for our teams to be selected from athletes competing at a high level internationally. The balance here is to have a quality control that is achievable but not so low where an athlete can qualify with limited international success. Our previous quality controls were based on 2019 and 2021 results and rankings and we believe they were too high.
Extending the WSL Pro Junior (Under 20) quality control from 10 to 20 highlights that our Under 18 athletes can compete on this series potentially with limited success despite being three years under the age bracket, and still qualify for the New Zealand Team.
Qualification through the National Championships is retained. Succeeding at major events like the National Championships simulates success at international events. This option allows athletes to qualify for teams early in the year and potentially pursue other goals such as international competition. It also gives Kiwis based overseas the opportunity to come to New Zealand to qualify for teams without the demand of staying all summer.
We believe the depth of Kiwi athletes is large enough that the National Champion and top athletes on the rankings can represent New Zealand successfully.
Webinars
In conjunction this update, we will be holding two webinars to provide further information and discussion:
Webinar 2 Wed 1st Nov 7pm – NZ Teams, selection policy and international pathways
Click Here to join the webinar
Event Dates
Below are the dates for all New Zealand events.
All event permits have been submitted and most have been approved by councils.
All dates and events subject to change.
NZ Surf Series
Jan 7-13 – National Surfing Championships, Dunedin (11-13 Jan), SNZ3000
Mar 2-3 – New Zealand Women’s Surf Festival, Pauanui (female only), SNZ2000
9-10 – Seventh Wave Women’s Canterbury Champs, Sumner, Christchurch (female only), SNZ1000
16-17 – Rip Curl Pro Raglan, Manu Bay, Raglan, SNZ3000
29 Mar – 1 April – Te Kaika South Island Surfing Championships, Dunedin, SNZ2000
April 6-7 – Aotearoa Surf Pro, Te Arai Beach, Auckland, SNZ2000
April 26-28 – Exit Surf Men’s Canterbury Championships, Christchurch (male only), SNZ2000
May 3-5 – Backdoor King and Queen of the Point pres by Quiksilver, SNZ3000
NZ Longboard Series
Jan 7-13 – National Surfing Championships, Dunedin (9 Jan),
Feb 17-18 – New Zealand Festival of Longboarding, Papamoa
Mar 2-3 – New Zealand Women’s Surf Festival, Pauanui (female only)
Mar 9-10 – Seventh Wave Women’s Canterbury Champs, Sumner, Christchurch (female only)
Mar 22-24 – Ray White Duke Festival of Surfing, New Brighton, Christchurch
29 Mar – 1 April – Te Kaika South Island Surfing Championships, Dunedin
April 13-14 – Gathering of Stoke, Gisborne
April 26-28 – Exit Surf Men’s Canterbury Championships, Christchurch (male only)
Other Key Events
Feb 22 – 2 March – ISA World Surfing Games, Puerto Rico
Mar 9-10 – Hurley New Zealand Club Championships, Whangamata
Mar 19-20 – New Zealand School Tag Team Festival – (location tbc)
July 26 – 11 August – Paris 2024 Olympics (surfing 27-30 July, back up 31 July – 5 Aug)
Sept 16-24 – ISA SUPP World Championships, Denmark
Sept 28-29 – Sticky Johnson Primary School Champs pres by Skullcandy
Oct 7-11 – National Scholastic Championships, location TBC
Oct 26-27 – Aotearoa Maori Surfing Titles, location TBC
