The ISA World Stand Up Paddle and Paddleboard Championship is an annual event organised by the International Surfing Association (ISA), in which paddlers compete for their countries to chase both individual and team medals. The ISA World Champs combine stand up paddle races (both short and long distance) with SUP surfing and prone paddleboarding events.
The first ever ISA Worlds were hosted in Peru in 2012 and won by the mighty Team Australia. The Aussies have since gone undefeated, claiming the 2014 title (again hosted in Peru) before making it a three-peat at the 2014 ISA Worlds in Nicaragua. Other strong nations include the United States and France, while the paddling powerhouse of Hawaii (a separate nation from mainland USA in ISA events) has yet to make an appearance.
The 2015 ISA World SUP Championship will be hosted in Sayulita, Mexico.
In the meantime you can get the latest news about the event below…
Great interview with everyone’s favourite viking, Casper Steinfath, looking ahead to the 2015 season and beyond.
Some interesting comments about the ISA, the Olympics and unity among the athletes. I believe this last point in particular is hugely critical right now. The sport entering a new phase of growth that could bring a lot of excitement and potential but also the risk of splintering groups taking the sport in differing directions. → READ MORE
As the march towards Sayulita gathers pace, more and more teams are announcing their lineups for the 4th annual ISA World Stand Up Paddle and Paddleboard Championship.
This week it was Team Canada’s turn in the spotlight, with the Great White North announcing a full squad battle it out in Mexico way from May 10-17. And the lineup looks mighty competitive… → READ MORE
There were a lot of SUP races this year. We had over 400 listings on the Rogue Race Calendar. We sent 137 race results to the Results by Riviera archive. You couldn’t go a week without your Facebook feed being flooded with photos of SUP races here, there and everywhere.
Some of those races were fun, local events. Some were grand, international spectacles. Most fell somewhere in between. And that’s just fine. Most races don’t need to be grand to be successful, they just need to be well organised, encourage a few extra people to give the sport a try and offer everyone a fun day on the water.
But some races push the boundaries a little more than the average. Some races attract, either through deliberate marketing or incidental brilliance, a disproportionately large amount of attention and elite talent. Quite simply: Some races are a lot more competitive than others. Click through to see the full list and read my overly-thorough analysis… → READ MORE
Last week Mexico hosted its annual championship event, with a year’s worth of bragging rights and an all important spot on the national team up for grabs.
Mexico is of course host for the 2015 ISA World Stand Up Paddle and Paddleboard Championship, which gives extra significance to these results. This is a rare chance for paddlers to represent their nation while playing host to the rest of the paddleboarding world at the same time. → READ MORE
Boss Man’s note: Japan is one of the new frontiers in the world of stand up paddling. They have a fast-growing, super stoked paddling community that features some serious talent. I predict 2015 will see a lot of elite international talent heading to the Land of the Rising Sun to compete…
On the weekend it was the locals’ turn to shine, as we saw the national titles and a spot on Team Japan for the 2015 ISA SUP World Championship in Mexico up for grabs. Here’s a recap and photos thanks to the event organisers. → READ MORE
After months of speculation we finally have confirmation: The 2015 ISA World Stand Up Paddle and Paddleboard Championship will be held in Sayulita, Mexico from the 10th-17th May.
That gives us exactly 181 days to prepare for one of the grandest events on the racing calendar. 181 days to see if any nation can stop Australia from winning a fourth straight title. 181 days to see just how crazy of an after-party the Mexican team can throw on their home turf. → READ MORE
The 2014 French SUP Racing Championships are happening this weekend, with a spot on Team France and a ticket to the 2015 ISA World SUP Championship up for grabs.
UPDATE: We’ve just wrapped up the second and final day of competition, with Arthur Arutkin making it a clean sweep of the event. The 17-year-old took out both yesterday’s long distance event and today’s course race. Click through for full results/recap/photos… → READ MORE
Brandvlei Dam, one hour out of Cape Town, hosted the final race in a series of six counting towards the coveted SUPSA South African Race Championship title.
Dylan Frick and Ethan Koopmans were tied on points, so the winner of this event would be crowned champ whilst Mishka Steyn’s Ladies title was in the bag if she completed the race. The SA Champs winners would also become eligible for selection for the SA Team to the ISA Worlds. Click through to see how it all went down… → READ MORE
The French National SUP Racing Championship (aka the Championnats de France de SUP Race) is happening this weekend. And I’m excited about this event.
The ‘Championnats’ is the first part of the selection process for Team France 2015, the squad that will wear the red berets at next year’s ISA World SUP and Paddleboard Championship. So why am I so excited about this event? Three things… → READ MORE
Fernando Stalla has taken out the latest round of the Mexico SUP Tour, finishing ahead of Bicho Jimenez in what looked to be a pretty scenic race.
The latest round of the Tour was held in Zihuatanejo, with Mexico’s two highest-ranked holding off the field of challengers. The duo have now further staked their claim for a spot on Team Mexico at next year’s ISA Worlds… → READ MORE
In a further sign that he’s one of the best ambassadors our sport has, the International Surfing Association (ISA) today announced Casper Steinfath as their new Vice-President
At the organisation’s Annual General Meeting in Peru (where the ISA 50th Anniversary World Surfing Games are currently happening), Casper was voted in as a Vice President along with five-time Olympic windsurfer and International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Barbara Kendall, while the charismatic, energetic, bow-tie-wearing Fernando Aguerre was re-elected as President.
I caught up with the humble young champion on Skype moments ago to find out exactly what being an ISA Vice President actually means. Click through for the full interview… → READ MORE
Full results from the 2014 Australian SUP Titles, which was held this week at the paddling mecca of Currumbin on Queensland’s Gold Coast.
With a mix of course and distance racing, this week’s top performers will score an invite to the 2015 ISA Worlds. Click through to see who was in form… → READ MORE
Saw an interesting press release today from the SUP Athletes Association (SUPAA), which describes their recent collaboration with the International Surfing Association (ISA).
Long story short: SUPAA and its President Chase Kosterlitz have been working with the ISA over the past couple of months to get its World Championship event running at a higher standard. After a couple of meetings in San Diego earlier in the year, the ISA liked what they saw from SUPAA and invited the group to Nicaragua to help ensure a well run World Championship event.
It’s not like the ISA Worlds were lacking for experience before this: Barrett Tester (same guy who runs the Battle of the Paddle) has been the race director for all three annual editions, while the event has the largest budget of any SUP race in the world fueling it. However this is an event with big ambitions (being a “World Championship”) that’s working toward an even bigger goal (getting into the Olympics), so the ISA is gonna need all the help they can get. → READ MORE
Australia’s Shakira Westdorp was the best all-round athlete at the ISA Worlds in Nicaragua. No question. An amazing performance, where she scored four medals across both surfing and racing, showed just how strong this humble paddler is and what could be in store if Shak ever wanted to take racing seriously.
After reaching the final of her preferred SUP surfing, the Aussie defied expectations to claim silver in the distance and then go one better in both the short course and team relay. As Shak said in her own words: “I came here to win the surfing but ended up winning the race… Can’t believe it!”
So now how about the Battle of the Paddle? → READ MORE
And that’s a wrap.
The 2014 ISA World StandUp Paddle and Paddleboard Championship has officially come to a close. Congratulations to Team Australia for making it three in a row, though everybody who competed this week deserves a round of applause. Massive event and a lot of fun here in Nicaragua.
As exciting as it was to watch the powerhouse nations put on a show, it was just as good to witness how many emerging paddleboard nations there are. Over 200 athletes from 27 nations came to Nicaragua, and as ISA President Fernando Aguerre point out after the event, this is quickly becoming the ISA’s biggest event in terms of countries competing. It’s a very good sign for the future of the sport.
Thank you for the hospitality Nicaragua. See you somewhere next year… But in the meantime here’s a full recap, results and pics of the final day, plus my takeaways from the event in general. → READ MORE
And suddenly it’s all over…
Take a look back at the 2014 ISA World StandUp Paddle and Paddleboard Championship (aka the ISA Worlds), with a video recap from each day of competition.
From the sands of La Boquita to the grueling distance race around Lake Nicaragua to the frantic course racing action… → READ MORE
Holy shit… what a race.
Day 7 saw the men’s distance event here at the 2014 ISA World Stand Up Paddle and Paddleboard Championship. After the women’s race gave us a glimpse of this unique and exotic course, I had the feeling we could be in for a classic showdown today. And the guys certainly didn’t disappoint…
With a deep field of talent lining up at 9am for the 18km grind around Lake Nicaragua, and with the wind blowing strong enough to become a major factor, conditions were set for an intense battle. Click through for a full recap, results and pics of the action… → READ MORE
Well that was a tough race…
Friday, day six, saw the women’s distance event here at the 2014 ISA World SUP and Paddleboard Championship. Both the SUP and prone women hit the water at 9am to begin the 18km trek around the ‘Isletas de Granada’ to the finish line. It was always going to be tough but the conditions were particularly brutal today. Even in the early morning, the sun was blazing hot and the wind was blowing strong across Lake Nicaragua, which produced a stiff headwind for the first few kilometres.
I was fortunate to be sitting on the lead camera boat, which gave me a privileged insight into a race that was held on a distant, exotic and very unique course. So click through for a full race recap, results and pics and then tune in tomorrow morning for the men’s distance race. → READ MORE
Day five of the 2014 ISA World SUP and Paddleboard Championship was meant to be a slow day. The qualifying heats for the SUP course race, prone course race and team relays were on the schedule, with the favourites expected to cruise around the course and do just enough to qualify while saving their energy for the big final. But somebody forgot to tell that to the favourites…
Despite the generous cut-off point meaning all the big names were always going to safely qualify for Sunday’s final, both of the men’s SUP course race qualifying heats were run at a very solid pace. That was particularly the case in heat #1, which was stacked with talent and that saw some interesting tactics as the paddlers tested each other out. It looked like there were a few mind games going on, with a bit of pride and ego forcing the competitors to throw out their “play it safe and conserve” strategy and go for broke on the final lap.
It wasn’t what we expected to see but certainly made for an entertaining day at the Lake. → READ MORE
After the SUP surfing contest wrapped up yesterday and with the three favourites – Australia, France and the USA – holding almost identical points atop the overall team standings leaderboard, it’s time to get down to the business end of the 2014 ISA Worlds. The racing.
Over the next four days we’ll see the course race, distance race and team relays in the host city of Granada on Lake Nicaragua. The action starts tomorrow (Thursday) morning at 9am with the course race qualifying heats. We’ll have the whole thing webcast live her eon SUPracer.com, so check out the schedule to see when it’s all going down… → READ MORE
