Kanoa Igarashi and Shino Matsuda qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games
The eight-day 2023 Surf City El Salvador ISA World Surfing Games’ in El Salvador recently came to an end. This year, in addition to the WSG medals, this was an important event for the selection of athletes for the 2024 Paris Olympics and the 2023 Pan American Games.
The 2023 Surf City El Salvador ISA World Surfing Games will qualify the highest ranked male and female athlete from each of the four continents – Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania – for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
With all other Asian quota athletes eliminated Kanoa Igarashi was awarded the top men’s Asian slot after coming in 4th place, qualifying for the Paris 2024 Olympics. Kanoa said after the final, “It’s a real honour to win. It seems like only yesterday that I was at the Tokyo Olympics. I have so many great memories of that event, that moment. The Olympics changed my life. To be in a position to represent my country again and win another medal means a lot to me.”
In the women’s, Shino Matsuda secured her spot in the Paris Olympics in surfing, after securing the best finish among Asia’s women surfers, on the condition that she competes in the World Surfing Games next year in 2024. This was somewhat of a redemption for Matsuda, who was set to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics only to miss out at the June 2021 World Surfing Games, also held in El Salvador.
Image: Thanks to infobae.com