The Olympics of Surf Coming to Costa Rica
By: Costa Rica Pages (Original here)
The Billabong ISA World Surfing Games 2009 will be hosted in Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica this August 1-8, 2009. The event, which will bring together the best surfers in the world in an Olympic-style competition, is set to be the biggest surfing championship ever held in Central America. The honor of hosting the 8th ever World Surfing Games is expected to solidify Costa Rica’s reputation as one of the world’s best up and coming surf destinations.
Last year’s competition, which took place in Costa de Caparica, Portugal, saw a turn out of more than 200 competitors from 28 countries. The Costa Rican team shined with their highest ranking ever, coming in 5th place at the event. The number of surfers and skill level is expected to increase for this year’s competition, which was scheduled to correspond with Hermosa’s peak surf season with waves ranging from four to eight feet with perfect barrels. The team to beat is four-time ISA Surfing Games champion, Australia, who racked up Gold medals in the last three consecutive events.