Competitive surfing can be divided into five different eras. From crowning the first world champion in 1964 until now, there have been several tours.
The history of surfing is also made of champions - athletes who, in a judge-based action sport, surfed better than their opponents in the decisive heat.
They're the most famous surfers of all time, not only because they've had an impact on their generation but also because they won titles.
So, who won what in the long history of pro and amateur surfing? It all started with the creation of the International Surfing Association (ISA).
The world governing body for the sport of surfing was founded in 1964 by Eduardo Arena, and it is the only top-level surf organization recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Between 1964 and 1973, the ISA was named the International Surfing Federation (ISF). They were the first entity to crown world champions.
Today, the institution headquartered in La Jolla, California, crowns its world champions in one-off events held yearly at a different location.
So, the first-ever surfing events were the ISF World Surfing Championships (1964-1972).
They paved the road for a new way of watching and selling the sport to brands and spectators.
Then, in 1969, Fred Hemmings, a former pro surfer and event promoter, brought the Smirnoff World Pro-Am Surfing Championships.
The first contest was held in Santa Cruz, California, but the competition moved to Oahu's North Shore one year later, where it remained until 1977.
In 1976, Fred Hemmings and Randy Rarick created the International Professional Surfers (IPS).
Together, they developed a small circuit of contests in Hawaii, Australia, and South Africa named IPS World Circuit.
The IPS World Circuit was the first tour to introduce the man-on-man heat format and decent total prize money for male and female surfers.
However, a revolt led by Ian Cairns resulted in the creation of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) in 1983.
The ASP was the longest and most successful pro surfing organization in the history of the sport.
It increased the prize money, helped build media visibility, and introduced surfing to the Internet age.
Despite all the controversies and setbacks, the ASP World Tour created the first global surf stars, surf legends, and role models.
Between the 1990s and the 2000s, surfing became an incredibly popular water sport, and the surf industry lived its golden years.
In 2013, ZoSea purchased the ASP World Tour and renamed it the World Surf League (WSL). The new insignia took over in 2015.
You could ask: what is the difference between the International Surfing Association (ISA) and the World Surf League (WSL)?
ISA regulates the sport, certifies surf instructors and surf schools, develops adaptive surfing, makes the bridge between national governing bodies and the Olympic movement, and runs the World Surfing Games.
The World Surf League (WSL) organizes and runs the professional surfing tour, a circuit featuring multiple venues around the world.
WSL crowns shortboard, longboard, and big wave surfing champions in both male and female divisions.
Now, let's take a look at the complete list of world surfing champions and corresponding tour names:
ISF World Surfing Championships | Winners
1964: Bernard "Midget" Farrelly (AUS), Phyllis O'Donnell (AUS)
1965: Felipe Pomar (PER), Joyce Hoffman (USA)
1966: Nat Young (AUS), Joyce Hoffman (USA)
1968: Fred Hemmings (HAW), Margo Godfrey (USA)
1970: Rolf Aurness (USA), Sharon Webber (USA)
1972: Jimmy Blears (HAW), Sharon Webber (USA)
Smirnoff World Pro-Am Surfing Championships | Winners
1969: Corky Carroll (USA), Margo Godfrey (USA)
1970: Nat Young (AUS)
1971: Gavin Rudolph (RSA)
1972: Paul Neilsen (AUS)
1973: Ian Cairns (AUS)
1974: Reno Abellira (HAW)
1975: Mark Richards (AUS)
1976: Mark Warren (AUS), Jericho Poppler (USA)
1977: Reno Abellira (HAW), Jericho Poppler (USA)
IPS World Circuit | Winners
1976: Peter Townend (AUS)
1977: Shaun Tomson (RSA), Margo Oberg (HAW)
1978: Wayne Bartholomew (AUS), Lynn Boyer (HAW)
1979: Mark Richards (AUS), Lynn Boyer (HAW)
1980: Mark Richards (AUS), Margo Oberg (HAW)
1981: Mark Richards (AUS), Margo Oberg (HAW)
1982: Mark Richards (AUS), Debbie Beacham (USA)
ASP World Tour | Winners
1983/1984: Tom Carroll (AUS), Kim Mearig (USA)
1984/1985: Tom Carroll (AUS), Freida Zamba (USA)
1985/1986: Tom Curren (USA), Freida Zamba (USA)
1986/1987: Tom Curren (USA), Freida Zamba (USA)
1987/1988: Damien Hardman (AUS), Wendy Botha (RSA)
1988: Barton Lynch (AUS), Freida Zamba (USA)
1989: Martin Potter (UK), Wendy Botha (RSA)
1990: Tom Curren (USA), Pam Burridge (AUS)
1991: Damien Hardman (AUS), Wendy Botha (RSA)
1992: Kelly Slater (USA), Wendy Botha (RSA)
1993: Derek Ho (HAW), Pauline Menczer (AUS)
1994: Kelly Slater (USA), Lisa Andersen (USA)
1995: Kelly Slater (USA), Lisa Andersen (USA)
1996: Kelly Slater (USA), Lisa Andersen (USA)
1997: Kelly Slater (USA), Lisa Andersen (USA)
1998: Kelly Slater (USA), Layne Beachley (AUS)
1999: Mark Occhilupo (AUS), Layne Beachley (AUS)
2000: Sunny Garcia (HAW), Layne Beachley (AUS)
2001: C. J. Hobgood (USA), Layne Beachley (AUS)
2002: Andy Irons (HAW), Layne Beachley (AUS)
2003: Andy Irons (HAW), Layne Beachley (AUS)
2004: Andy Irons (HAW), Sofia Mulanovich (PER)
2005: Kelly Slater (USA), Chelsea Georgeson (AUS)
2006: Kelly Slater (USA), Layne Beachley (AUS)
2007: Mick Fanning (AUS), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
2008: Kelly Slater (USA), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
2009: Mick Fanning (AUS), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
2010: Kelly Slater (USA), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
2011: Kelly Slater (USA), Carissa Moore (HAW)
2012: Joel Parkinson (AUS), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
2013: Mick Fanning (AUS), Carissa Moore (HAW)
2014: Gabriel Medina (BRA), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
World Surf League | Winners
2015: Adriano De Souza (BRA), Carissa Moore (HAW)
2016: John John Florence (HAW), Tyler Wright (AUS)
2017: John John Florence (HAW), Tyler Wright (AUS)
2018: Gabriel Medina (BRA), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
2019: Italo Ferreira (BRA), Carissa Moore (HAW)
2020: Canceled Due to Covid-19 Pandemic
2021: Gabriel Medina (BRA), Carissa Moore (HAW)
2022: Filipe Toledo (BRA), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
2023: Filipe Toledo (BRA), Caroline Marks (USA)