For the first time, surfing will receive funding from UK Sport, as part of its plans to invest in the Olympic and Paralympic games.
The £352million investment by UK sport is being awarded to 43 Olympic sports with surfing being included for the first time along with climbing and skateboarding. The award of £1.35 million to surfing is part of a new Progression investment which supports the long-term medal potential of new sports to uncover champions of tomorrow as part of a 12-year approach to delivering success.
This is an unprecedented opportunity to give British Surfers the support and infrastructure they need to compete on the global stage. We hope this is just the start of an exciting journey that will see GB surfers competing for Olympic medals in the future.
Dave Cove, Chair of British Surfing “This is a historic day for the sport of surfing. We are delighted or should I say ‘stoked’ to receive grant funding from UK sport. We have an exciting future; we are charged with building talent and a world-class performance programme and I’d like to thank everyone for all their hard work in getting us where we are today.
Ben Powis, CEO of Surfing England “This is a game changing level of investment and opportunity for surfing. It feels like we have some magic ingredients coming together; incredible talent emerging through the competitive ranks, world class training facilities with The Wave and other surf lakes in development and now the opportunity to bring them together with a properly funded, long term performance programme.”
The organisation responsible for receiving and managing the funding is British Surfing, who are committed to working in partnership with Surfing England and the other Home Nation Federations to deliver the world class programme the funding has been awarded to create.
Many reading this will be stoked by the news surfing is getting this game changing support and will be keen to understand how the different organisations involved will be working together. The following breaks down the different roles of each organisation and gives an idea of what the next steps will be:
UK Sport, the organisation making the funding award, which has a very clear remit. It makes strategic investments to enable British Olympic and Paralympic sports and athletes to reach their full medal winning potential. They are focused at the very top end of elite sport, working with athletes competing to be the best in the world. You can read the full funding statement here.
British Surfing is the umbrella National Governing Body for surfing across the UK with a focus on selecting, supporting and managing elite surfing athletes representing Great Britain at international competitions such as the Olympics. It is currently composed of a board with 1 representative from each Federations (Channel Islands, England, Scotland, Wales) plus an independent director and independent chair.
Surfing England is the National Governing Body for Surfing in England, responsible for growing and supporting the development of surfing for all participants, including the start of the performance journey for talented athletes. It has an established board and operations team that deliver national events, elite national teams, surf school, club and coach affiliation and a range of grass roots initiatives.
Home Nations / Federations: The collective group of National Governing Bodies that make up Great Britain, which are Surfing England, Channel Islands Surfing Federation, Scottish Surfing Federation and the Welsh Surfing Federation
Next Steps
The funding from UK Sport will come with conditions and British Surfing will be discussing those with UK Sport in the New Year. As those conditions become clear, British Surfing will reach out to the federations and competitive surfers to discuss what the world class programme will look like and how to start delivering on the ground and in the water.
At Surfing England we are fully committed to working closely with British Surfing and the other federations to ensure the funds are used effectively in developing the elite surfing infrastructure that they are intended to support. We want to see the highest standards of governance and leadership from British Surfing and a pathway for talented athletes, no matter their federation of origin.
Surfing England will be issuing updates as we receive information from British Surfing, keeping our members and athletes up to date on progress. For anyone wanting to get more involved, our AGM will be on the 4th February, to which all our members are invited. Keep an eye on our website for full details.
About Surfing England:
Surfing England are the National Governing Body for the sport of surfing in the country of England, as recognised by Sport England and the International Surfing Association.
Our remit is English surfing, from grassroots participation to the elite surfers competing as part of Team England. Within our remit are the disciplines of bodysurfing, bodyboard, shortboard, longboard, and stand-up paddleboard. Our mission is to develop and support all English surfers at all levels, and to share the stoke of surfing with all.
We are a not-for-profit limited company, and our funding is currently derived from our corporate partners and our members. Every membership to Surfing England makes a difference to English surfing. To stay up to date with all the latest news, and support English Surfing, join us here.
