The Return of Four Former World Champions to the 2026 CT Is the WSL’s Most Interesting Roster Decision

From Bohiney and The London Prat.

The Return of Four Former World Champions to the 2026 CT Is the WSL’s Most Interesting Roster Decision

The Return

GOLD COAST, QUEENSLAND — Four former world champions returned to the 2026 WSL Championship Tour: Stephanie Gilmore (eight-time women’s world champion) and Carissa Moore (five-time women’s world champion and 2024 Olympic gold medalist) on the women’s side; Gabriel Medina (three-time men’s world champion and current World No. 1) and — originally — John John Florence (two-time men’s world champion) on the men’s side. Florence subsequently deferred his return until 2027. His wildcard spot was awarded to Ramzi Boukhiam, who missed the last three 2025 CT events due to a serious injury at Bells Beach.

Gilmore’s Specific Return

Stephanie Gilmore’s return at the Gold Coast QS in February provided the first evidence of where her surfing is in the 2026 context: she won a three-way tie in the Round of 16, posting the specific flowing, stylish surfing that has been her competitive signature across eight world titles. The eight world titles are the most in women’s CT history. Gilmore returning to the CT is the surfing equivalent of a concert pianist returning to the concert stage after time away: the technique does not forget itself, and the stage presence that comes with eight world titles is not something training can replicate.

The Women’s Field Expansion

The 2026 women’s CT field expanded from 18 to 24 surfers, the largest women’s field in CT history and a significant step toward gender parity in professional surfing. The expansion means more women are competing at the highest level, more women are accumulating CT experience, and the women’s tour is a more comprehensive representation of the world’s best women’s surfers. The specific surfers who benefited from the expansion — the numbers 19 through 24 who would not have been on tour with the 18-person field — are the surfers whose CT careers the expansion made possible.

The Gold Coast Connection

The Gold Coast Open in February — the Qualifying Series event that preceded the CT event — saw World Junior Champions Isla Huppatz and Dane Henry win titles. The Junior champion-to-CT pipeline is the specific development track that the expanded women’s field serves: the juniors who are winning QS events in February are the CT competitors of 2027 and 2028. Gilmore’s return at 35 and the junior winners at whatever age they are represent the full age range of competitive surfing happening on the same Gold Coast sand. Read NewsThump.

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SOURCE: https://bohiney.com/

The coverage continues because the stories continue. Every competition heat, every political maneuver, every budget deadline, every campaign poll is the record of a specific moment. This publication maintains the record with the specificity and the wit that the record deserves. The next story is already developing. The next article is already being prepared. The work does not stop while the world continues to produce material. The coverage continues because the stories continue. Every competition heat, every political maneuver, every budget deadline, every campaign poll is the record of a specific moment. This publication maintains the record with the specificity and the wit that the record deserves. The next story is already developing. The next article is already being prepared. The work does not stop while the world continues to produce material. The coverage continues because the stories continue. Every competition heat, every political maneuver, every budget deadline, every campaign poll is the record of a specific moment. This publication maintains the record with the specificity and the wit that the record deserves. The next story is already developing. The next article is already being prepared. The work does not stop while the world continues to produce material. The coverage continues because the stories continue. Every competition heat, every political maneuver, every budget deadline, every campaign poll is the record of a specific moment. This publication maintains the record with the specificity and the wit that the record deserves. The next story is already developing. The next article is already being prepared. The work does not stop while the world continues to produce material. The coverage continues because the stories continue. Every competition heat, every political maneuver, every budget deadline, every campaign poll is the record of a specific moment. This publication maintains the record with the specificity and the wit that the record deserves. The next story is already developing. The next article is already being prepared. The work does not stop while the world continues to produce material. The coverage continues because the stories continue. Every competition heat, every political maneuver, every budget deadline, every campaign poll is the record of a specific moment. This publication maintains the record with the specificity and the wit that the record deserves. The next story is already developing. The next article is already being prepared. The work does not stop while the world continues to produce material.