El Salvador Surf. Photo by Once again, the Surf Tournaments in El Salvador are bringing attention to the excellent Salvadoran surfing spots and the Surf City El Salvador project. In 2024, the country hosted six top-level international surfing competitions.
As of December 3, 2024, only one tournament has been announced for El Salvador for 2025, which is the WSLSurf City El Salvador Pro scheduled for April at Punta Roca Beach. This page will be updated in January.
| Org | Event | Date | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| WSL | Surf City El Salvador Pro | Apr 2-12 “2025” | Punta Roca Beach |
| ▼ 2024 Completed ▼ | |||
| ALAS | Surf City Pro Tour | Nov 27 to Dec 1 | El Sunzal Beach |
| ISA | World Masters Surfing Championship | Oct 17-24 | El Sunzal Beach |
| WSL | Surf City El Salvador Longboard Championship | Oct 9-12 | El Sunzal Beach |
| WSL | Surf City El Salvador Pro | Jun 6-15 | Punta Roca Beach |
| ISA | World Junior Surfing Championship | May 3-12 | La Bocana & El Sunzal |
| ISA | World Longboard Championship | Apr 19-25 | El Sunzal Beach |
SEE ALSO: El Salvador Tourism: A Journey Through Pristine Beaches, Colorful Towns, and Enchanting Parks
2024 Completed Surf Tournaments in El Salvador
ALAS Surf City Pro Tour
The 2024 Surf City El Salvador ALAS Pro Tour wrapped up as the final major surfing event in the country for the year. Here are the winners from each division.
Under 14 Division
In the Under 14 divisions, Peru dominated with impressive performances. In the Women’s category, Brianna Barthelmess claimed first place and Sofía Artieda secured second, highlighting Peru’s strong young talent.
In the Men’s division, Peru’s Lorenzo de Osma took first, while Brazil’s Nicolas Oliveira earned second.
Under 18 Division
In the Women’s Under 18 division, Peru’s Sofía Artieda claimed an impressive first-place victory, with Costa Rica’s Rachel Agüero taking second.
Meanwhile, in the Men’s Under 18 division, Costa Rican Tomas Pathenay Olivari earned the top spot, followed by Argentina’s Thiago Passeri in second.
Longboard Division
In the Longboard divisions, exceptional talent was on display. In the Women’s category, Brazil’s Atalanta Batista claimed first place, with Costa Rica’s Lia Díaz securing second.
In the Men’s division, Mexico’s Jonathan Melendres took the top spot, followed by the United States’ Tony Silvagni in second, highlighting the diversity and skill in international longboarding.
Open Division
In the Open divisions, top surfers delivered thrilling performances. In the Women’s category, Peru’s Brianna Barthelmess secured first place, while the United States’ Kirra Pinkerton claimed second.
In the Men’s division, Costa Rica’s Ethan Hollander emerged victorious, with Peru’s Gabriel Vargas earning a strong second place, showcasing exceptional talent across nations.
ISA World Masters Surfing Championship
The ISA World Masters Surfing Championship ended at the well-known El Sunzal beach in El Salvador, with Brazil securing first place in the team competition, followed by Hawaii in second and Australia taking third.
Women’s Divisions
In the Masters Women’s 40+ division, Hawaiian Melanie Bartels took first place, while Australian Serena Brooke finished second.
Hawaiian Rochelle Ballard secured first in the Grand Masters Women’s 50+ division, with South Africa’s Heather Clark placing second.
Finally, in the Kahunas Women’s 60+ division, Becky Benson from Hawaii claimed first place, followed by Brazil’s Roberta Borges in second.
Men’s Divisions
Brazilian Diego Rosa claimed first place in the Masters Men’s 40+ division, with Costa Rican Gilbert Brown finishing second.
In the Grand Masters Men’s 50+ division, Australian Scott Schindler took the top spot, while Brazilian Jojó de Olivença came in second.
Lastly, in the Kahunas Men’s 60+ division, France’s Eric Graciet captured first place, with Australian Rodney Baldwin securing second.
WSL Surf City El Salvador Longboard Championship
The Surf City El Salvador Longboard Championship concluded with Rachael Tilly of the United States securing the victory in the women’s division. At the same time, Taylor Jensen, also from the United States, claimed first place in the men’s division.
Almost 10 years after winning his first title in China, California’s Rachael Tilly was crowned world champion after defeating her fellow American surfer, Soleil Errico, at El Sunzal Beach.
In the men’s division, Taylor Jensen claimed his fourth world title by defeating Hawaiian surfer Kai Sallas. Jensen secured first place in the rankings, becoming world champion and tying the record of four world titles set by his father-in-law, Nat Young, in 1990.
World Surf League Surf City El Salvador Pro
The 2024 World Surf League (WSL) Surf City El Salvador Pro competition just concluded with Hawaiian John John Florence’s taking first place in the men’s division.
Hawaiian surfer Florence, currently ranked World No. 1, defeated Brazilian Yago Dora, solidifying his place in the WSL Finals to compete for a third World Title.
Surfer Caroline Marks, representing the United States, took first place in the women’s division, earning back-to-back wins at the Punta Roca surf competition.
The now back-to-back champion defeated Hawaiian surfer Gabriela Bryan at the iconic cobblestone point break of Punta Roca, securing a spot in the finals to compete for the world title and defend her crown.
ISA World Junior Surfing Championship
The 2024 ISA World Junior Surfing Championship Surf City El Salvador concluded with Australia taking first place in the team competition. Hawaii ended in Second place, and France in Third.
Australian Dane Henry clinched first place in the under-18 boy’s division, while his compatriot Fletcher Kelleher secured second, and Brazil’s Rickson Falcão took third.
Spanish surfer Dylan Donegan won first place in the under-16 boy’s division, followed by England’s Lukas Skinner in second and Argentina’s Thiago Passeri in third.
In the girl’s under-18 division, Vaihiti Inso from Hawaii took first place, with Tya Zebrowski of France in second and Sara Freyre from the USA in third.
In the girl’s under-16 division, Ziggy Mackenzie from Australia secured first place. Clémence Schorsch from France earned second place, and Louise Le Pront from South Africa finished third.
ISA World Longboard Championship
The Surf City El Salvador ISA World Longboard Championship concluded with Hawaiian surfers dominating the competition. Hawaii secured a complete victory in the men’s and women’s divisions.
Hawaiian’s Honolua Blomfield and Kai Sallas claimed the women’s and men’s gold medals respectively, which earned Hawaii the team gold medal as well.
In the women’s division, gold went to Hawaiian Honolua Blomfield, silver to Rachael Tilly from the USA, and bronze to Natsumi Taoka from Japan.
Kai Sallas from Hawaii won the gold, Silver went to Taka Inoue from Japan, and Rodrigo Sphaier from Brazil got the silver.
The triumph of Honolua Blomfield and Kai Sallas in their respective divisions secured gold for Hawaii in the team competition. Japan earned the silver medal, while France took home the bronze.
The surf tournaments in El Salvador are held at some of the best surf spots in El Salvador and Central America, such as Punta Roca, El Sunzal, La Bocana, Las Flores, and El Zonte. These beaches are part of the Surf City El Salvador project and are some of the best beaches in El Salvador.
