The World Surf League says its controversial new mid-season cut, which prompted high drama during an emotionally charged week at the Margaret River Pro, made for compelling viewing and remains an integral part of the WSL’s efforts to increase engagement and viewership of the sport.
The brutal new Champions Tour rule, which sees the men’s field cut from 36 to 24 and the women’s from 24 to 12 at the halfway point of the season, resulted in the high-profile relegations of Sally Fitzgibbons and Owen Wright to the second tier Challenger Series.
The pair, both veterans at the elite level who represented Australia at the Tokyo Olympics, will now have to work their way back to the top echelon of professional surfing, although in Wright’s case, he may opt for retirement instead.
Fitzgibbons, who is coming to terms with dropping off the Champions Tour for the first time in 14 years, was among several surfers to break down in tears following the round of 16 at the event in Western Australia. But WSL CEO Erik Logan said the heightened drama had the desired effect.
“The redesign has been met by the industry and fans with genuine excitement and we are already seeing significant increases in engagement and viewership,” Logan told Guardian Australia.
“In redesigning the tours and competition framework, we focused on optimising the competition structures to create a dynamic, compelling and long-term sustainable format to compliment the incredible talents of the world’s best surfers.
“The mid-season cut is a cornerstone of the new framework and allows us to ensure that post-cut events can run in one optimal swell cycle, create a dynamic season-long narrative and drive fan engagement – all of which allow us to drive more revenue so we can continue to invest in the platform of the world’s best surfing.”
The move has been met with criticism in some quarters. Kolohe Andino, who made the cut and will continue on the main tour, said earlier this week “no one really likes” the new rule and that “it just seems like it’s a TV show a little bit, like drama all the time”.
But opinions among athletes appear to be split, with a pragmatic Stephanie Gilmore, who also survived despite having been in danger of being cut at Margaret River, acknowledging that changes are sometimes needed to keep a sport relevant in a crowded media landscape.
“The sport is growing at alarming rates but at the same time I don’t think the viewership is where it should be,” Gilmore told AAP. “The cut coming at the middle of the year like this, it really keeps the viewership up for an event like Margaret River, which maybe didn’t have great viewership in the past. It was the middle of season. It wasn’t as exciting. No one fell off. It was sort of like that. It’s just, I guess, business at that point.”
Logan said the WSL is open to feedback and that it would continue to work with its athletes in an effort to improve the future of professional surfing.
