Indian squad announced for World Surfing Games 2023

The mega event will be the second qualifying event for the Paris Olympics 2024.

India for the first time is set to participate in the World Surfing Games which is set to be held in El Salvador in 2023. The Surfing Federation of India President Vasu recently announced the squad of four surfers -

1. Ramesh Bhudial
2. Ajeesh Ali
3. Sivaraj Babu
4. Sanjay

The 13 athletes were selected in the open section for choosing the final team and then after rigorous high-performance camps and competition, the federation came up with the final list. 

Ramesh Bhudial along with Ajeesh Ali has been performing well in the domestic circuits for the past year. Ramesh Bhudial was crowned the champion at the Indian Open surfing and also stood first in the final qualifying event for the World Surfing Games held in Pondicherry. The squad was selected after the final qualifying round which was held in Pondicherry on 17th and 18th December 2022.

Ajeesh Ali came close to winning the Indian Open but won the Kovelong Classic in the open section. He was one of the few athletes to be sent to the Maldives for an exposure trip. The most important thing is that the World Surfing Games is part of the qualifying event for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Games will also serve as the second qualifying event for Paris Olympics 2024 with the first qualifying event held in 2022.

Many top surfers are set to participate here and the Indians can make full use of this tournament to gain valuable experience and exposure.

The event at El Sunzal and La Bocana, El Salvador will offer eight places at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, as well as ISA world titles. The country on the Pacific Coast also staged the World Surfing Games in 2021 and the World Junior Surfing Championships in 2022. Four continental quotas for the Paris Olympics 2024 will be on offer for the top-ranked men's and women's surfers from each zone except the Americas.