USA Surfing Gets Financial Backing in Recertification Bid

USA Surfing Executive Director Becky Fleischauer told The Associated Press on Wednesday the organization has secured millions in endowments as it continues to work to be recertified as the sport’s national governing body by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee.

The Associated Press reports that USA Surfing has struck multiyear deals for financial backing from Kamaka Responsible Development, which builds housing communities, and with Orange County-based surf company Resin Services.

“We have a new board, new leadership and we’ve been delivering more value to our surfers than has ever been provided in the past,” Fleischauer told The Associated Press. “There’s a lot of energy. This investment is a declaration of confidence in the future of surfing from those who know it best.”

USA Surfing is reapplying to be the NGB, but the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Federation also applied to manage the Olympic surf team.  The USOPC is evaluating both groups’ filings. USA Surfing has the backing of the International Surf Association and World Surf League plus U.S. Olympic gold medalists Caroline Marks and Carissa Moore were among several top surfers who submitted letters of support for USA Surfing.

USA Surfing voluntarily decertified as the sport’s national governing body in December 2021, although it remained the American representative to the International Surfing Association. USA Surfing has kept operating without funding from the USOPC since its decertification, staging competitions and aiding American surfers in their preparation for international events. The body has made changes to its leadership, appointing Fleischauer and adding several members to its board of directors in January 2024.

The USA Surfing Championship are ongoing at Lower Trestles, the surf break near San Clemente, California, that will also host the Los Angeles Olympics surfing competition in 2028.

“Trestles is our backyard,” Fleischauer said. “It’s where our surfers train. It’s where our coaches coach. It’s really a global hub for surfing, and we reside right here, so that puts us in a really strong position to know our surfers, know our break, and to be able to lift up the entire community by having the Olympics here.”