It’s mid-August, and it’s time to take a closer look at the SUP World Rankings and get an overall pulse check on international SUP racing activities. The second half of the year starts with a highly decentralized SUP race scene. While we’ve seen many races, most have had primarily local significance, with predominantly one and two-star ratings.
For example, the Planet Baltic SUP Race, the 109th SWR-rated race this year, received a two-star rating, as did the KAPP Danyang Race, which was the 111th rated race this year. The last 3-star race was the Nanxun Ancient Town SUP OPEN in China, which attracted 362 participants, while the last 5-star race was in Barcelona.
The consequence of such a decentralized sport is that we’re not able to see our favorite athletes on a regular basis. This is reflected in the shifts within the top ten world rankings. Most top athletes were very active at the beginning of the year, accumulating their points, but we haven’t seen much of them lately. This is particularly evident in the women’s long-distance rankings. Let’s take a closer look at these rankings one by one.
Women Longdistance
This list might best illustrate the current state of international SUP racing. The world’s top women have largely been taking an extended break. The excitement this week comes from the Copa America, where Juliette DuHaime defeated Mariecarmen Rivera. Unfortunately, race times weren’t available, which would have been interesting to see.
Kimberly Barns, the Florida mom who gained significant attention after her fantastic win in Namur, moved up one spot after her victory at the Flying Fish Summer Challenge. The other seven women have been quiet for a while. We hope to see them all racing in Denmark at the ISA, and hopefully also at the ICF in Sarasota. As of now, only three of the top ten women are listed for Sarasota: Juliette DuHaime, Iona Rivet, and Kim Barnes. (In this update, we are neglecting the average points count for once.)
| Rank | Name | Nation | Points | Races | Last Result | Change |
| 1 | Mariecarmen Rivera | PUR | 1511.75 | 5 | 2. Copa America | → |
| 2 | Juliette DuHaime | ARG | 1435.54 | 7 | 1. Copa America | ↑ 2 |
| 3 | Cecilia Pampinella | ITA | 1316.41 | 8 | 1. Campiona Italiano FISSW | ↓ 1 |
| 4 | Esperanza Barreras | ESP | 1298 | 4 | 1. Arnoia SUP Challenge | ↓ 1 |
| 5 | Susak Molinero | ESP | 1036.42 | 6 | 1. Nordhausen | → |
| 6 | Kimberly Barnes | USA | 1016.6 | 6 | 1. Flying Fish Summer Challenge | ↑ 1 |
| 7 | Claudia Postiglione | ITA | 991.61 | 8 | 3. Namur SUP Race | ↓ 1 |
| 8 | Duna Grodillo | ESP | 795.6 | 4 | 2. Naumr SUP Race | → |
| 9 | Iona Rivet | FRA | 780.05 | 5 | 2. Pornichet Glisse Trophy | → |
| 10 | Alba Frey | ESP | 707.71 | 3 | 3. Barcelona | → |
Men Longistance
The top three athletes haven’t been racing for a while, and the same goes for most of them. However, a smaller SUP race in Sweden has impacted the SWR rankings, allowing two athletes to climb into the top 10.
First, there’s Joep van Bakel, a paddler from the Netherlands. Joep has been busy, and with 10 races under his belt, he’s now jumped into the top ten since our last update. His recent performances include a 2nd place at the Planet Baltic, a 3rd place at Lago di Alpi, and a 5th place in Namur, just to name a few.
Also new to the top 10 is Kjell De Bruyn, whose name has come up quite a bit lately, thanks to his results in Poland and his title as the Belgian SUP Champion.
Finally, an old and well-known name has clawed his way back into the top ten: Daniel Hasulyo. Currently residing in Thailand, Daniel has been very active racing in Asia and took full advantage of the newly founded Korean SUP Tour, where he easily secured first place.
| Rank | Name | Nation | Points | Races | Last Result | Change |
| 1 | Donato Freens | NED | 4224.03 | 11 | 1. Naumr SUP Race | → |
| 2 | Rai Taguchi | JPN | 2679.67 | 7 | 1.Trump P.S. Crescent- Beach | → |
| 3 | Shuri Araki | JPN | 2279.6 | 4 | 1. Barcelona | → |
| 4 | Joep van Bakel | NED | 2255.71 | 10 | 6. Skrea Strand Paddlerace | NEW |
| 5 | Filippo Mercuriali | ITA | 2250.57 | 8 | 3. Campione Italiano FISSW | ↓ 1 |
| 6 | Ole Schwarz | BRD | 2178.07 | 10 | 2. Lago Di Alpi | ↑ 1 |
| 7 | Blue Ewer | UK | 2163.4 | 7 | 1. Falmouth Bay Open | ↓ 2 |
| 8 | Aaron Sanchez | ESP | 2055.97 | 5 | 3. Namur SUP Race | ↓ 2 |
| 9 | Kjell De Bruyn | BEL | 1859.4 | 8 | 2. Skrea Strand Paddlerace | NEW |
| 10 | Daniel Hasulyo | HUN | 1748.4 | 5 | 1. KAPP Danyang | NEW |
Women Tech. Race
The last Technical Race update was a month ago, so we’re seeing some changes. However, if you look at the top 10, most of the results are from quite a while back. The most recent Technical Races were the Planet Baltic and Skrea Strand events. The Planet Baltic in Poland attracted many regional paddlers, which has brought some new names to the list that we haven’t seen before.
Juliette DuHaime’s win at the Copa America solidifies her top spot over Esperanza.
| Rank | Name | Nation | Points | Races | Last Result | Change |
| 1 | Juliette DuHaime | ARG | 1292.5 | 4 | 1. Copa America | → |
| 2 | Esperanza Barreras | ESP | 924.35 | 3 | 1. Barcelona | → |
| 3 | Cecilia Pampinella | ITA | 856.75 | 4 | 1. Campione Italiano FISSW | → |
| 4 | Marta Apanasewicz | POL | 783.49 | 5 | 4. Planet Baltic SUP Race | ↑ 3 |
| 5 | Linda SYROVÁTKOVÁ | CZE | 464.68 | 5 | 10. Planet Baltic SUP Race | NEW |
| 6 | Kyriaki Logotheti | GRE | 399.7 | 2 | 1. ECA EURO SUP | → |
| 7 | Paris Katniss | USA | 431.77 | 2 | 2. Spring SUP Race | ↓ 2 |
| 8 | Kyriaki Logotheti | GRE | 399.7 | 2 | 1. ECA EURO SUP | ↓ 2 |
| 9 | Malgorzata Cieplinska | POL | 391.8 | 2 | 5. Planet Baltic SUP Race | NEW |
| 10 | Lemekha Vira | UKR | 391.01 | 3 | 4. Campiona Italiano FISSW | ↓ 2 |
Men Tech. Race
Just like in the women’s rankings, there hasn’t been an update for a while, but with the Copa America and a few other races over the past month, we’re seeing some movement. Notably, Itzel Delgado, with his victory at the Copa, now has the world’s top spot within reach. One more strong result, and he should be able to catch up with Filippo Mercuriali. Another impressive move comes from Christian Andersen, who won the Skrea Strand Race in Sweden. In fact, these two are the only athletes who have competed recently.
| Rank | Name | Nation | Points | Races | Last Result | Change |
| 1 | Filippo Mercuriali | ITA | 1863.3 | 5 | 5. Campione Italiano FISSW | → |
| 2 | Itzel Delgado | PER | 1729.35 | 4 | 1. Copa America | ↑ 3 |
| 3 | Rai Taguchi | JPN | 1514.8 | 3 | 1. TRUMP Paddle Sessions | ↓ 1 |
| 4 | Sergio Cantoral | ESP | 1464.26 | 5 | 4. Pornichet Glisse Trophy | ↓ 1 |
| 5 | Donato Freens | NED | 1415.32 | 4 | 2. BP Battle of the Bay | ↓ 1 |
| 6 | Paolo Marconi | ITA | 1314.43 | 4 | 2. Campiona Italiano FISSW | → |
| 7 | Christian Andersen | DEN | 1280.19 | 4 | 1. Skrea Strand Paddlerace | ↑ 3 |
| 8 | Filippo Alberti | ITA | 1206.4 | 5 | 9. Campiona Italiano FISSW | ↓ 1 |
| 9 | Cameron Tripney | RSA | 1121.94 | 3 | 6. Barcelona | ↓ 1 |
| 10 | Ivan De Frutos Ruiz | ESP | 1024.3 | 4 | 2. XI SUP Race Playas Campello | ↓ 1 |
Men Sprint
The last time we reviewed sprint races was quite a while ago, but with the Planet Baltic SUP Race and the KAPP Danyang event, we now have five new names on the list. There are no changes at the top, as Cameron Tripney is still holding on to first place. We haven’t seen him race in a long time, but we hope to see him at the ISA in Denmark and the ICF in Florida.
| Rank | Name | Nation | Points | Races | Last Result | Change |
| 1 | Cameron Tripney | RSA | 1236.3 | 2 | 2. The Lake Rocks | → |
| 2 | Andrey Kraitor | BUL | 1100.8 | 2 | 1. ECA EURO SUP | → |
| 3 | Filippo Mercuriali | ITA | 981.62 | 3 | 1. Pescara Beach Race* | → |
| 4 | Mikolaj Majdan | POL | 896.89 | 4 | 2. Planet Baltic SUP Race | NEW |
| 5 | Ruslan Huseinov | POL | 866.82 | 5 | 12. Planet Baltic SUP Race | NEW |
| 6 | Samuel Peska | CZE | 794.36 | 3 | 1. Mistrostvi Race | ↑ 2 |
| 7 | Petrak Ondej | CZE | 787.52 | 3 | 2. Paddle Fest Machac | ↓3 |
| 8 | Matej Smida | SVK | 751.29 | 2 | 3. Planet Baltic | NEW |
| 9 | Christian Taucher | AUT | 723.6 | 2 | 4. KAPP Danyang | NEW |
| 10 | Linus Karlsson | SWE | 710.92 | 3 | 1. Planet Baltic SUP Race | NEW |
Women Sprint
The movement in the women’s rankings comes from the Planet Baltic SUP Race, where Marta Apanasewicz gained a solid lead over the rest of the field. Swiss athlete Sabe Fischer also had a strong result in Korea, moving up one spot. The Falmouth Bay Open in England, which took place a few weeks ago, was SWR-ranked and gave Holly Pye the opportunity to enter the women’s top ten. Additionally, Poland’s Hanna Kaminska secured a third-place finish at the Planet Baltic race, earning her a spot in the women’s sprint top ten.
| Rank | Name | Nation | Points | Races | Last Result | Change |
| 1 | Marta Apanasewicz | POL | 1024.07 | 6 | 1. Planet Baltic SUP Race | → |
| 2 | Linda Syrovatkova | CZE | 652.98 | 6 | 4. Planet Baltic SUP Race | ↑ 6 |
| 3 | Claudia Postiglione | ITA | 616.95 | 3 | 5. ECA EURO SUP | ↓ 1 |
| 4 | Kyriaki Logotheti | GRE | 443.12 | 2 | 2. ECA EURO SUP | ↓ 1 |
| 5 | Esperanza Barreras | ESP | 442.5 | 1 | 1. The Lake Rocks | ↓ 1 |
| 6 | Sabine Fischer | SUI | 397.66 | 3 | 5. KAPP Danyang | ↑ 1 |
| 7 | Cecilia Pampinella | ITA | 385.5 | 1 | 1.Spring SUP Race* | ↓ 2 |
| 8 | Holly Pye | GBR | 343.1 | 2 | 2. Falmouth Bay Open | NEW |
| 9 | Hanna Kaminska | POL | 335.68 | 3 | 3. Planet Baltic SUP Race | NEW |
| 10 | Susak Molinero | ESP | 308.4 | 1 | 2. Spring SUP Race* | ↓ 4 |
Conclusion
Looking at the races over the past weeks and months, it’s clear that competitive SUP is very fragmented. While the sport seems to be in good health, this fragmentation is evident. The only central point where all the athletes converge is the virtual space of the SUP World Rankings and Stand Up Magazin, where we keep track of statistics and monitor changes throughout the year. In doing so, we continue Chris Parker’s legacy of maintaining the scores. However, one might question whether this makes sense as the sport becomes increasingly decentralized.
Some argue that what SUP needs isn’t just standout characters but mass participation, similar to marathons. While this is true, with so many races on offer, it’s hard to decide which ones to attend. For example, recent races in Poland had decent participation, but it was far from what we’d consider mass participation. We saw top athletes in Sweden and Poland, but rarely in both. While boosting participation is essential, we also need key figures who can drive that participation. Imagine if Connor Baxter came out of retirement to race—this would attract more people and elevate the event’s status. Taking it further, if both Kai Lenny and Connor Baxter showed up for a “Legends of the Sport” competition, the turnout would be massive.
High participation numbers go hand in hand with having key figures in the sport. This isn’t just true for SUP; it’s the case for basketball, tennis, golf, surfing, and many other sports. At some point, we need to consolidate the race schedule, focusing on quality rather than quantity. This will drive participation numbers and provide aspiring athletes with a platform to showcase their talent. It will also give sponsors a valuable stage to promote their brands and the media something substantial to cover.
The races to look forward to now are the ISA Worlds and the ICF Worlds—these are the two events where we’ll see significant participation and all the top names. The ISA will feature many top athletes, as participants must qualify, while the ICF will attract both elite and amateur paddlers since it’s open to everyone. Another race worth mentioning is the Agios Nikolaos SUP Race, which is also an ICF World Cup event. Traditionally, it has had a large turnout, drawing many of the sport’s top names. It remains to be seen whether their date change will benefit them or not.