The World Windsurf Tour (WWT) is the professional windsurfing competition circuit that operates a unified five-tier event and ranking system in partnership with the Professional Windsurfers Association (PWA). The system ranges from 1-Star local events to 5-Star major championships.
History Professional windsurfing has been organised through successive competitive structures. The Professional Windsurfers Association (PWA) was established in 1995 as an athlete led organisation. The International Windsurfing Tour (IWT), which developed from the earlier American Windsurfing Tour, built a wave focused circuit with events outside Europe.
In 2023, the PWA and IWT announced a unified structure for wave events and rankings under a common five-star hierarchy. The resulting circuit now operates under the unifying World Windsurf Tour name. Early unified calendars included events in Japan, Chile, Fiji, the Canary Islands, Peru, Germany and Hawaii.
Competition structure The WWT uses a five-tier event classification:
1-Star – local-level events 2-Star – national-level events 3-Star – regional or qualifying events 4-Star – international challenger events 5-Star – major championship events
Since 2023 regulations provide separate pathways for men's and women's divisions as well as Masters (45+), Pro Juniors (U21) and Juniors (U18). The junior categories are intended to create a progression pathway toward elite competition.
2026 season The 2026 WWT wave calendar includes events in Australia, Hawaii, Fiji, Spain, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States and Chile. The announced calendar features 10 major four and five star events alongside lower tier regional competitions.
The season opened with the Margaret River event in Australia and continued with the Quatro Maui Pro at Hoʻokipa Beach Park in Hawaii, designated a 5-Star event and the first 5-Star contest of the season.
In July 2026, the Gran Canaria GLORIA Windsurf World Cup was held at Pozo Izquierdo in the Canary Islands. The event was classified as a 5-Star WWT event and formed part of the European leg of the season.
The WWT's organisational leadership includes commissioner Simeon Glasson. Major events have been broadcast through the WWT's digital channels, with selected competitions also carried by partner broadcasters including the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation.
Notable athletes The WWT and its preceding organizations have crowned world champions across multiple eras:
Robby Naish (USA): four time Aloha Classic winner, known as ‘The King’ and early pioneer of professional windsurfing. Bjorn Dunkerbeck (Denmark / Spain) - forty two time world champion Sarah-Quita Offringa (Aruba): multi-time World Wave Champion and one of the most decorated multi-discipline female windsurfers. Marcilio Browne (Brazil): Multi-time Wave World Champion known for radical jumping and wave-riding consistency. Morgan Noireaux (Hawaii): Four-time Aloha Classic winner. Bernd Roediger (Hawaii) - four-time Aloha Classic winner. Marc Paré Rico (Spain): Men's World Wave Champion representing the modern generation of wave sailors.
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