The Association of Professional Bodyboarders (APB) has confirmed that the 2016 APB World Tour will feature a stage in Teahupoo, Tahiti.
The Sparkgreen Tahiti Challenge will run from April 8th through May 2nd in one of the most challenging surf breaks in the world - Teahupoo, also known as "The End of the Road." The world's best bodyboarders didn't visit the spot since 2004.
"By returning to Teahupoo, it will enable us to showcase the sport in its best light by putting the best bodyboarders in the world in the heaviest waves in the world. The bodyboard was built for thick, heavy slabs with steep faces and Teahupoo provides just that," explains Alex Leon, CEO at APB.
"The tour has suffered without Teahupoo the past 12 years by not being able to really show the potential of this amazing sport, so it is vital we get waves like Teahupoo back on the world tour."
The three-star contest will feature the top 30 athletes, as well as 18 trialists and wildcards. Tahurai Henry, Angelo Faraire, Davis Blackwell, Jason Finlay, and Jake Stone have already been confirmed.
Interestingly, Teahupoo was "discovered" by Mike Stewart and Ben Severson, who surfed it and spread the word back in 1986. Precisely 30 years ago. However, the first surfer to ride Teahupoo was Tahitian Thierry Vernaudon, in 1985.
The Sparkgreen Tahiti Challenge 2016 is the second stop on the Men's APB World Tour. The organization has two weeks to run the show, but it should be finished in four days of competition.