Jordy Qualifies for Olympics
Tuesday 8 October 2019 Jordy Smith has officially been named as a qualifier for selection to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, pending approval of South African’s National Olympic Committee.
NEW LOOK: Jordy Smith has trimmed down and is looking super fit. Photo WSL / Sloane
Smith qualified through the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT) after his performance at the Quiksilver Pro France guaranteed that he will finish inside the Top 10 on the rankings.
Smith, 31 from Durban, South Africa, is a two-time world title runner-up with six CT wins under his belt since he joined the elite tour in 2006.
Surfing will make its Olympic debut in Tokyo in 2020 and the 2019 WSL CT, the elite year-long tour that crowns the World Champions each season, will be an important qualification pathway for the world's best surfers.
Following the final CT events of 2019 (the Hawaii Pro from November 25 to December 6, 2019 and the Billabong Pipe Masters from December 8 to 20, 2019), the WSL rankings will determine the first 18 eligible Olympic qualifiers (10 men and 8 women), subject to all qualified surfers meeting the ISA’s and IOC’s eligibility requirements and being selected by their respective National Olympic Committee.
LOUD RINGING NOISE: Jordy Smith lacerates a Bells Beach wall into shards. Photo WSL / Dunbar
There is a maximum of two men and two women for each country that can qualify for the 2020 Games so this year’s CT sees surfers not only battle for the World Title and requalification for the tour but also to finish as one of the top two ranked surfers from their nation.
The remaining 22 places are being determined through the 2019 and 2020 ISA World Surfing Games, the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, and a single slot (each for men and women) for the host nation, Japan.
BALLI SLASHER: Jordy has improved his game in big and small, left or right. Photo WSL / Dorsey
CT Olympic selection based on the current WSL Rankings
USA - Kolohe Andino, John John Florence, Carissa Moore, Lakey Peterson
Australia - Owen Wright, Julian Wilson, Sally Fitzgibbons, Stephanie Gilmore
Brasil - Gabriel Medina, Filipe Toledo, Tatiana Weston-Webb, Silvana Lima
Japan - Kanoa Igarashi
South Africa - Jordy Smith
France - Michel Bourez, Jeremy Flores, Johanne Defay
Costa Rica - Brisa Hennessy
The WSL CT is currently in France for the Quiksilver Pro and Roxy Pro , which holds a competitive window from October 3 - 13, 2019. The next event on the CT is the MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal (October 16 - 28). Both events will be broadcast LIVE on WorldSurfLeague.com , the WSL App and Facebook.com/WSL.
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