VICTORIA BAY, George, Western Cape, South Africa (Thursday, March 20, 2025) - The World Surf League (WSL) Qualifying Series (QS) returns to the Garden Route this weekend for the Vic Bay Surf Pro QS 1,000. Partnering with George Municipality, this year Vic Bay hosts Stop No. 5 of the WSL Africa QS 2024/2025 season, offering competitors a chance to fight for qualification for the 2025 Challenger Series (CS).
George is the vibrant hub of the spectacular Garden Route in the Western Cape, and offers fantastic beaches, world-class golf courses, breathtaking mountain trails and a booming arts and culture scene. Situated right at the bottom of the valley, Vic Bay is the iconic righthand pointbreak that molded the superior backhand surfing of local hero Bianca Buitendag, the Tokyo Olympic Silver medallist and a former winner of the previous QS here in 2019.
As a fellow goofy-foot surfer, Louise Lepront will get to showcase her powerful backhand surfing with less pressure on her shoulders after her win at the SA Open of Surfing saw her increase her lead at the top of the WSL Africa QS rankings.
Only two women will qualify for the Challenger Series, so the Vic Bay Surf Pro will prove to be crucial for the likes of Anastasia Venter, Jessie Van Niekerk and Natasha Van Greunen.
As the former men's winner in 2019, and fresh off a third-place finish at last weekend's SA Open of Surfing, Scottburgh's Slade Prestwich is elated to return to Vic Bay and will be one of the top contenders to watch.
"I can't explain to you how excited I am to come back and compete at the Vic Bay Surf Pro this weekend," said Prestwich. "Vic Bay is definitely one of my favourite waves in South Africa, it has been since I was a kid. Not only is the wave great, but if you look to the left you see lush forest, you look to the right you see pristine beaches. There's a lot of wildlife, it's beautiful, and it's a really good time of the year, and I'm happy to be back."
Luke Thompson has an insurmountable lead at the top of the WSL Africa QS rankings, but it's a nail-biting battle for the remaining three spots to qualify for the Challenger Series with Adin Masencamp, Connor Slijpen, Thomas Lindhorst and Luc Lepront breathing down each other's necks.
The Vic Bay Surf Pro will run from 22-23 March 2025. The first call will be on Saturday, 22 March 2025 at 7:30 a.m. GMT+2.
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