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Raglan In, J-Bay Out: Surfing's 2026 Championship Tour Heads to a New Left
The World Surf League has swapped the iconic right of Jeffreys Bay for the long lefts of Raglan, New Zealand, on the 2026 Championship Tour — a new proving ground, and a new destination for traveling surfers.
By ZealZag Team
VIVO Rio Pro 2026: Yago Dora Reigns, Lindblad Claims First CT Win
Brazil's Yago Dora triumphed on home turf at Saquarema with a 15.00 finals score as American Sawyer Lindblad broke through for her maiden Championship Tour victory at the 2026 VIVO Rio Pro.
By ZealZag TeamFifteen Years Old in a CT Final: Zebrowski and Lindblad Set the Rio Pro Women's Stage
Tya Zebrowski — 15, a rookie, never in a Championship Tour final before today — faces Sawyer Lindblad at Praia de Itaúna in what is the most unlikely women's final the VIVO Rio Pro has ever produced. Conditions are forecast clean. The question now is who converts Saquarema's winter swell into history.
By ZealZag TeamJeffreys Bay: How a South African Pointbreak Became Surfing's Holy Grail
J-Bay's right-hand point at Supertubes is the wave every serious surfer has referenced in conversation, even if they've never been. How the Eastern Cape town became part of surfing mythology, what the wave actually delivers, and what the Championship Tour's annual return says about the sport's geography.
By ZealZag TeamVIVO Rio Pro 2026 Mid-Event: The Brazilian Storm Returns at Itaúna
The 2026 VIVO Rio Pro reaches the Round of 16 at Saquarema — Brazilian fans are in full voice on the Itaúna sand, Ferreira holds the CT lead, and the swell window has delivered the kind of right-hander conditions this venue was built for.
By ZealZag TeamZebrowski vs Lindblad: The Rookie Women's Final That Reshapes WSL 2026
The VIVO Rio Pro women's final is set: Tya Zebrowski (France, 15) against Sawyer Lindblad (USA) — two surfers in their first or second CT seasons, contesting a final that neither Carissa Moore nor Caitlin Simmers nor Caroline Marks reached. Finals Day next call is 6:45 AM BRT on June 24.
By ZealZag TeamSaquarema Finals Day: Rookie Wave, Brazilian Decider, and the Heats That Define 2026
The VIVO Rio Pro calls Finals Day at Praia de Itaúna — Tya Zebrowski and Nadia Erostarbe guarantee a rookie women's finalist, Yago Dora lines up against Miguel Pupo in an all-Brazilian men's semifinal, and the Championship Tour's season storyline sharpens with every heat.
By ZealZag TeamItaúna Opens: Chianca's Home Stage and the WSL's Brazilian Showdown in Saquarema
The WSL VIVO Rio Pro calls on at Saquarema's Praia de Itaúna, putting João Chianca in the water at his near-home break and Sally Fitzgibbons on the scoreboard early with a 14.50. Stop 6 of 12 on the 2026 Championship Tour is underway.
By ZealZag Team
Surf Saquarema: Complete Guide to Brazil's WSL Championship Tour Wave
Saquarema's Praia de Itaúna hosts the WSL VIVO Rio Pro and opens year-round to visiting surfers. Full guide: Southern Hemisphere swell windows, board selection, getting from Rio, accommodation, and the local surf culture that makes Brazil's surfing capital unlike anywhere else.
By ZealZag TeamVIVO Rio Pro 2026 Day 1: Brazilian Storm Opens at Saquarema's Itaúna
The WSL VIVO Rio Pro 2026 opens at Praia de Itaúna with 6ft+ winter groundswell, a Brazilian-dominated leaderboard, and the Championship Tour's most electric home crowd. Nine days in Saquarema begins now.
By ZealZag TeamFioravanti Finally: Italy Gets Its First CT Win at Punta Roca as Moore Goes Back-to-Back
Leonardo Fioravanti claimed Italy's first-ever WSL Championship Tour victory at Punta Roca, posting a 15.33 to overpower ratings leader Italo Ferreira in the final. Carissa Moore completed back-to-back CT wins with a 15.10 to 13.84 victory over Tyler Wright.
By ZealZag TeamBryan Opens with 8.33, Fioravanti Posts 9.00: WSL El Salvador Pro Finals Day Field Report
Finals Day Yellow Alert at Punta Roca delivered the bracket the Surf City El Salvador Pro window had been pointing at — World No. 1 Gabriela Bryan opened with an 8.33 over Anat Lelior, Leonardo Fioravanti added a 9.00 over Marco Mignot to set up a Semifinal against Kanoa Igarashi, and Caroline Marks vs Molly Picklum went buzzer-beater to the wire.
By ZealZag TeamSurfing Punta Roca: Why La Libertad's Right-Hand Point Is on the Championship Tour
Punta Roca is a long, hollow right-hand point that breaks 25 minutes from San Salvador's international airport and roughly 35 km from the capital. A guide to the wave, the season, La Libertad as a surf town, and how the WSL Championship Tour event is changing how the Salvadoran coast gets visited.
By ZealZag TeamEl Salvador Pro 2026: The Olympic Gold Showdown — Finals Day at Punta Roca
After Thursday's lay day, Punta Roca's quarterfinals launch at 6:30 a.m. CST Friday with the event's defining heat — Ítalo Ferreira vs Kauli Vaast, two Olympic gold medalists, on the wave that suits both of them. Medina, Moore, and Silva are also in the draw.
By ZealZag TeamPunta Roca Pauses: Quarterfinals Set as El Salvador Pro Takes a Lay Day
A lay day called Thursday at Punta Roca puts the Surf City El Salvador Pro on hold with the quarterfinal draw fully set — Medina through after beating Robinson, Ferreira advancing injured, and the women's bracket producing four loaded matchups before Friday's 6:30 a.m. CST competition call.
By ZealZag TeamPunta Roca: How El Salvador's Right-Hand Point Actually Works
Punta Roca in La Libertad is the WSL Championship Tour's most technically distinct right-hand point — a cobblestone-bottom break with three distinct sections, a swell window aligned to the Southern Pacific, and a performance ceiling that shows itself only when the conditions match. A guide for surfers who travel to compete.
By ZealZag TeamMignot Beats the World Champion on the Best Swell of the Week
On Day 4 of the El Salvador Pro, French-Mexican rookie Marco Mignot produced another Punta Roca buzzer-beater — this time over reigning world champion Yago Dora — as the swell climbed toward its biggest pulse of the event window. Day 5 brings the quarterfinals with the forecast in the eight-to-ten-foot range.
By ZealZag TeamQuarterfinals at Punta Roca: WSL El Salvador Pro Day 4 and the Bracket That Got Us Here
The 2026 WSL El Salvador Pro reached its quarterfinals on Day 4 at Punta Roca with clean overhead surf and the bracket nobody expected after the Day 1 upsets. The eight heats that decided the semifinals, and the men's and women's draws heading into Day 5.
By ZealZag TeamWSL Surf City El Salvador Pro 2026: Day 3 at Punta Roca — Hanneman's Masterclass and Lelior's Upset
Day 3 at the WSL Surf City El Salvador Pro delivers: Eli Hanneman posts a 16.16 two-wave total, rookie Anat Lelior upsets 8x World Champion Stephanie Gilmore, and Ramzi Boukhiam announces his candidacy at perfect Punta Roca.
By ZealZag TeamPunta Roca Holds as El Salvador Pro Day 2 Bracket Takes Shape
The swell held at six feet and the El Salvador Pro bracket is forming: Hanneman's 16.16 leads the conversation, Ferreira fights to defend his title lead, and Girmay eyes a deep run as Round 2 completes at Punta Roca.
By ZealZag TeamLelior Topples Gilmore as Punta Roca Delivers Its Best Opening Day Since 2022
Israeli rookie Anat Lelior eliminated eight-time world champion Stephanie Gilmore in El Salvador's most significant women's result in years, while Eli Hanneman posted the day's best heat score on his Championship Tour debut. Day 1 at Punta Roca rewarded everyone who had been waiting for a proper swell.
By ZealZag Team
Competition Opens at Punta Roca on the Best Swell El Salvador Has Seen
The WSL contest director called competition at dawn on June 5, and Punta Roca delivered: six-to-eight-foot faces, clean lines, the best opening conditions in the event's history. Italo Ferreira arrives at CT Stop 5 wearing the yellow jersey and a target.
By ZealZag Team
Perfect Swell Loading at Punta Roca: El Salvador Pro Opens June 5
Italo Ferreira arrives in La Libertad wearing the yellow jersey with Brazilians holding the top four CT spots. The swell forecast is the best Punta Roca has seen since the event debuted — waves won't drop below six feet all week.
By ZealZag TeamWSL El Salvador Pro 2026: Ferreira Leads into Punta Roca Showdown
Italo Ferreira carries the WSL Championship Tour yellow leader jersey into Punta Roca as the Surf City El Salvador Pro opens with clean 4–6 foot rights peeling the full length of the cobblestone point.
By ZealZag Team