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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 TeamNazaré: How a Portuguese Fishing Town Became the Capital of Big-Wave Surfing
Nazaré existed before 2011 as a beach town with a funicular and a seafood economy. Then Garrett McNamara rode a wave measured at 78 feet, a photograph went viral, and a submarine canyon became the most consequential piece of seabed in big-wave surfing.
By ZealZag TeamHow Portugal Became Big-Wave Surfing's Most Important Address
In 2011, an American surfer and a Portuguese canyon nobody had surfed changed everything. A decade later, Nazaré hosts the world's most-watched big-wave contest and Portugal claims the heaviest beach break on the CT calendar. Here is the story of how it happened.
By ZealZag Team
Surfing Saquarema: The Complete Guide to Brazil's Itaúna Beach
The WSL's favourite Brazilian playground and how to plan a surf trip — from Itaúna's powerful left-hander to logistics, accommodation, and when to time your visit to Saquarema.
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 TeamEast of Saquarema: Rio de Janeiro State's Winter Surf Road Trip
The WSL comes to Saquarema for one week each year. The coast east of Itaúna — Arraial do Cabo, Cabo Frio, Búzios — runs for another 80 kilometres and offers a range of surf environments worth extending a Brazil trip around. Practical guide to the road, the breaks, and what to do when the WSL packs up and the swell keeps coming.
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 TeamSurfing Florianópolis: Brazil's Southern Wave and Santa Catarina's Surf Coast
Florianópolis sits 800 kilometres south of Saquarema on the same Atlantic swell window — with more consistent beach breaks, colder water, a deeper local surf culture, and none of the WSL event traffic. The complete guide to surfing Floripa.
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 TeamThe Rio Coast Road Trip: Surfing Beyond Saquarema from Maricá to Búzios
The 180-kilometre stretch of Atlantic coast east of Rio de Janeiro holds nine surf breaks, two national parks, and one of the most consistent winter swells in South America — all accessible from a single base in the Região dos Lagos.
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 TeamSaquarema: Brazil's Power Barrel Capital and the Break Behind the WSL's VIVO Rio Pro
Praia de Itaúna hosts the WSL every year for good reason. This is Brazil's most consistent beachbreak power surf, an hour east of Rio de Janeiro, and the destination to visit if you want to see — or surf — the same rights that define the Championship Tour's Brazilian stop.
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 TeamLand Training for Surfing: How to Arrive at a Surf Trip Physically Ready
Most of surfing — arguably 60-70% by time in the water — is paddling. The rest demands explosive hip mobility, rotational strength, and the ability to absorb wave energy through your legs for hours. When you are not near a beach, these things can be trained. Here is what actually carries over and what doesn't.
By ZealZag TeamPunta Roca, El Salvador: How to Surf the J-Bay of Central America
The right-hand point break that stopped the WSL Championship Tour last week isn't hard to reach, but it does require some preparation. A practical guide to surfing Punta Roca and basing in La Libertad.
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 TeamSupertubos and Peniche: Portugal's Championship Tour Wave, for Everyone Else
Peniche is 85 kilometres north of Lisbon on a peninsula surrounded by Atlantic on three sides. Supertubos — the beach on its south flank — has hosted the WSL Rip Curl Pro since 2009 and produces one of Europe's most powerful beach break barrels in autumn swells. What the town actually offers beyond the competition window.
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 Team