Surfing Australia Apologises to Noosa Malibu Club and Reaffirms Stance on Equal Prize Money

Surfing Australia has apologised to Noosa Malibu Club after the club was wrongly accused of breaching prize money equality. Noosa did not breach any rules & Surfing Australia incorrectly claimed that the club had run both men’s & women’s longboard events with unequal prize money. Noosa in fact had run an open loggers event (open to men, women & juniors), women’s logger & an Open Old Mal (open to men, women & juniors). These are three separate divisions.

Surfing Australia CEO, Chris Mater said that he regrets making any comments that may have caused confusion and created backlash against the club and Surfing Queensland.

Mater said: “I would like to offer my sincere apology to Noosa Malibu Club, its members and wider community. I would also like to retract that I issued a ‘first and final warning’ and threatened to expel the club. The information I had at the time was wrong & I discovered that the club did not breach our rules.”

He reaffirmed Surfing Australia’s commitment to equal prize money for male and female competitors.

“Surfing Australia is committed to women’s surfing and supporting our female athletes. Two years ago, we updated our rule book to ingrain equal prize money and continue to strive towards a more inclusive women’s surf culture. Our national rulebook covers all Surfing Australia, Surfing States, Boardrider clubs and any affiliated promoters of surfing events.”

Surfing Australia’s Rule Book 2023 states that:

Equality in Sport
Surfing Australia and our State organisations acknowledge the following values to accelerate gender equality:

• In surfing competitions where there is prizemoney allocated, we require equal prizemoney and investment for both Women and Men’s surfing divisions.
• In all appropriate programs promote equal economic opportunities for Women and Girls.

A full copy of the rules can be found HERE.

Image: Melissa Hoareau Photography