California’s high performance Mecca, Lower Trestles, will host the Olympics in 2028. Photo: WSL//Kenneth Morris
Lower Trestles has been confirmed to host the surfing competition at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. In an April 15 announcement that included 19 Olympic venues, LA28 revealed that the cobblestone A-frame in San Clemente, California will host surfing’s third Olympic showing. The other venue in the running was Huntington Beach, which wasn’t awarded any Olympic events in today’s announcement.
“Synonymous with California-culture is surfing, which will be held at Trestles Beach in San Clemente, Calif. where athletes will enjoy the best and most consistent waves for competition in Southern California,” the announcement reads.
When reached via phone call, International Surfing Association (ISA) President Fernando Aguerre said that his phone has been ringing nonstop since the announcement. He stressed that the foremost reason for selecting Trestles over Huntington Beach was the “quality and consistency of the wave.”
It was a sentiment that Aguerre echoed in his statement released by the ISA.
“Following the amazing success of surfing in Teahupo’o, and in talking to many of the world’s athletes, we knew that any solution for LA had to feature the best performance waves, and there is no doubt that location is Trestles,” said Aguerre.
“This decision furthers the existing trajectory of hosting Olympic Surfing in iconic ocean waves,” he added. “The perfect peak at Lowers offers a high-performance canvas like no other in Southern California. We are so excited to see the world’s best battling it out for Olympic glory on its venerated cobblestones.”
Aguerre downplayed any worries about the infrastructure – or lack thereof – at Trestles, adding that there likely will be a satellite Olympic village somewhere south of Los Angeles, making the commute to the venue shorter for the athletes who choose the village as their lodging option.
As far as the dates that the surfing competition will take place, there is no set window yet, but Aguerre says that if the past editions of the Games are any indicator, it will happen towards the beginning of the Olympics.
Lower Trestles was first included as part of the WSL (then ASP) Championship Tour in 2000, most recently deciding the world champions as the venue for the Final 5 from 2021 to 2024.
The ISA was hoping that longboarding would be added to the LA28 competition as a separate medal event, but the IOC shot that idea down, instead giving the few available athlete slots to three-on-three basketball and sport climbing.
In December, the ISA disclosed at its annual general meeting that the venues had been narrowed down to Lower Trestles and Huntington Beach. The next big announcement in surfing’s path to LA 2028 will be the qualification system and format, which Aguerre said he is unable to comment on at this time.
