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ISA Stand Up Paddleboarding World Championship

The ISA World Stand Up Paddle and Paddleboard Championship (or as I call it, the “ISA Worlds”) is an annual event hosted by the International Surfing Association (ISA).

Nations compete as teams in SUP racing, SUP surfing and prone paddleboarding, with individual medals and overall team points awarded. Australia won the first three ISA Worlds in Peru (2012, 2013) and Nicaragua (2014), before Team USA swept the 2015 Worlds in Sayulita, Mexico. The Aussies reclaimed their title at the 2016 ISA Worlds in Fiji and defended it in Denmark 2017 and again in Hainan, China in 2018, each time narrowly edging out a strong French contingent.

The 2019 ISA Stand Up Paddleboarding World Championships were controversially held in El Salvador late in the year after teams were given just six weeks notice. The event was largely seen as a political move against the International Canoe Federation (ICF), which has been trying to muscle the ISA out of the Olympic bid for stand up paddling.

The 2020 and 2021 ISA Worlds were cancelled due to covid, returning in 2022 with Puerto Rico as host.

November 13, 2025
by Betsy Ray

SUP Racing starts today in Surf City, El Salvador. Will Maricarmen double her record 3 world titles in a matter of days? Who are the favourites to win in El Sunzal?

     
July 10, 2023
by Christopher Parker (@wheresbossman)

There's something about cheering for someone who wasn't expected to win that day. The dark horse. The underdog. The surprise packet. Perhaps it's as simple as upset victories often being what keeps a sport exciting, or maybe the mentality that comes with being an outsider is emotionally appealing to an audience. Whatever it is, there's something about Blue Ewer.

   
April 23, 2023
by Christopher Parker (@wheresbossman)

With all the buzz building ahead of next weekend's big double header in Carolina and Spain, let's not forget that another important event is happening right now... The Pan American Surfing Games - sort of like the "ISA Worlds of the Americas" - are being held in Panama this week as a second-chance qualifier for the 2023 PanAm Games in Santiago, Chile - sort of like the "Olympics of the Americas"

   

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