The Surfing Federation of India (SFI), the governing body for the sports of surfing and stand-up paddling in India, announced the fifth edition of the Indian Open Surfing (IOS) on Monday.

Recognized by the International Surfing Association, this premier surfing competition will be hosted by the Mantra Surf Club at the tranquil Sasihithlu Beach in Mangalore, Karnataka, from May 31 to June 2, 2024. The three-day surfing competition will feature participation from all the top-ranked surfers in India. The Karnataka government has extended its support to the event for the fifth time in a row. The competition will include four categories: Men’s Open, Women’s Open, Groms (U-16) Boys and Groms (U-16) Girls.

Indian Open of Surfing will be the 2nd stop of the National Championship series of the 2024 calendar year, following the International Surfing Festival Kerala 2024, held in March at the beautiful cliff beach of Varkala. The IOS will feature intense rivalry between surfers from the east and west coasts, as these championships carry important ranking points that will determine the surfers” standings at the end of the season.

“We are happy to extend our support to the organizers of Indian Open of Surfing – Surfing Swami Foundation and Mantra Surf Club under the aegis of Surfing Federation of India. They are doing a fabulous job of promoting the lesser-explored coasts of our state and boosting our tourism economy. Hosting a national-level competition in such a beautiful and serene part of the state can attract more visitors from different parts of the country”, said Mullai Muhilan MP, IAS, Deputy Commissioner, Dakshina Kannada, Government of Karnataka.

In the first championship of the calendar year (International Surfing Festival, Kerala), Ramesh Budihal and Kamali P emerged victorious in the Men’s and Women’s Open category respectively while Kishore Kumar won the Groms 16 and Under Boys with a high score of 14.73.