Ensuring Women Have the Same Opportunities as Men in the Sport of Surfing

The movement for equality in surfing is to increase the awareness of competitive women surfers.  This group of surfers are not currently well recognized in the sport. The movement is taking place all over the world and is gaining traction. A few of the more prominent locations where the movement is growing are California, Hawaii, Brazil, and South Africa. Surfing is an international sport and global recognition is important in order for the movement to succeed. Sexism in surfing is not new and can be recognized as far back as the 1960s. Dr. Abalone wrote an article about the movement titled “The Fight for Gender Equality in Surfing” on February 24th, 2019.  He states that women surfers are portrayed as sex symbols rather than as athletes. It was thought that women were too emotional to handle the stress of competition surfing and as a result, they were not allowed in big surfing competitions. During the 2018 World Surfing League World Championship Tour the men competed for a $607,800 award while the women competed for a $303,900 award. This competition had 36 male surfers versus 18 female surfers even though the ratio of male to female surfers is roughly equal in the world. The push for equality for women in surfing aims to provide the same level of respect to women that men are given. Dr. Abalone identifies that equality and diversity in the surfing community will only enhance the enjoyment of surfing. Women who surf big waves are fierce competitors who deserve to be recognized. Everyone who heads out into the water is taking a risk, regardless of gender.  The ocean does not discriminate and, therefore, surfing leagues should not either. With more professional woman surfers joining the sport than ever before, there is a demand for equal pay and participation. Organizations have formed to combat the inequality.  Some of these are the Committee for Equity in Women’s Surfing (CEWS), the Brown Girl Surf and the Surfrider Foundation.