A strong contingent of local surfers will be among more than 200 competitors when the 2026 Thermos Australian Longboard Titles are held on the Tweed Coast from 24 to 30 July.
The championships, Australia’s longest-running national longboard surfing event, will see competitors from every Australian surfing state contest junior, open and masters divisions at locations between Duranbah Beach and Hastings Point.
Among the local surfers chasing national titles are Heidi Van Leest, Alan Morrison, Myra Pritchett, Jacob Pritchett, John Murray, Craig Jones, Julia Magliano, Freya Abbott, Mahli Abbott, Emma Perrier, Anne Duncan, Judy Robson, Amy Main , Louise Tiernan, Suki Alford, Nick Pearson, Claire Perryn, Archy Bemrose, Ben Proudfoot, Brett Sarandoglou, Matthew Anderson, Wendy Stevenson, Jay Carter, Scott Durrough, Ron Timothy, Mal Mckay, Tony Rae and Paul Guthrie, who will compete across a range of divisions throughout the week.
The event brings together surfers from the Under-18 division through to the Over-70s, making it one of the few national championships where multiple generations compete at the same event.
Australian titles are not the only prize on offer. The Open Men’s and Open Women’s champions will also earn selection in the Irukandjis, Australia’s national surfing team, and qualify for the ISA World Longboard Championships.
Defending Open champions Emma Perrier (NSW) and Josh Constable (Qld) will return after claiming national titles in 2025.
Perrier said the standard of competition continued to rise each year.
“Being a defending champion doesn’t mean too much when there are so many amazing women surfing and it feels like each year everyone is getting better and better. I’ll just keep doing my thing and hopefully can do well again,” Perrier said.
“The atmosphere is always really special. It’s cool to represent your state and have everyone behind you. It’s different to other competitions.”
Constable said competing alongside his family made the event unique.
“I’m really looking forward to getting back to the Tweed Coast. It’s such a great time of year with a great variety of waves,” Constable said.
“These events are really special because I get to travel with my wife, Anna, and watch my son Jive compete in the Under-18s and chase his goal of becoming Australian Junior Champion. Hopefully I can defend my Open title and, together, we can become the first father and son to hold the Australian Open and Under-18 titles at the same time. That would be something really special to share as a family.”
The championships will be contested at venues between Duranbah Beach and Hastings Point, with competition locations selected according to surf conditions throughout the event.
With more than 200 surfers competing across seven days, the event is expected to attract many of Australia’s leading longboarders while providing local competitors with the opportunity to contest national titles on home breaks.
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