WSL Heads to West Indies for First-Ever Martinique Event

The World Surf League is thrilled to announce the addition of the Martinique Surf Pro, a Men's QS3000 event, to the Qualifying Series (QS) for 2015. An exciting new stop on the European leg, this inaugural event will bring some of the world's most talented surfers to Basse-Pointe on the idyllic island of Martinique, in the Caribbean.

"The Martinique Surf Pro is a project that has been in planning for over two years with the WSL and it is with great pleasure we are able to announce the event confirmation on our schedule and invite all the surfers to visit this amazing part of the world," said European Tour Manager Rob Gunning.

Set up halfway between Barbados and Guadeloupe, Martinique enjoys tropical weather year-round and boasts 300 km (about 186 miles) of coastline that receives swell from multiple directions, producing quality waves all around the Island. The Basse-Pointe area which will host this event sits on top of the island facing northwest and offers a long, powerful righthander. It can handle any size swell to deliver world class action.

The opening event of 2015 European QS series, the Martinique Surf Pro will give surfers a unique chance to warm up before the first major QS competition of the year, at California's infamous Lower Trestles. With 3,000 rankings points on offer for the winner and a prize purse of $100,000, surfers will fly in from all over the globe to compete in the first-ever WSL event in the French West Indies.

"The event will be on both the European and North American regional schedule of events," Gunning said. "This will ensure that the event will be attended by a strong number of surfers from these two regions as well as surfers from nearby South America and visiting international competitors."

More than just a surfing event, the Martinique Surf Pro will feature numerous side-activities including music acts on a central scene, to attract crowds to the secluded area of Basse-Pointe. Backed up by the tourism and local government offices to further develop the reputation of Martinique as a surfing destination, this event will also be eco-friendly in an effort to preserve its pristine environment for future generations of local surfers and travelers alike.