As the Sport of Surfing Continues to Grow, the Olympics is Supporting Aspiring African Athletes with Surf Programs

Behind the worldwide broadcast, newfound superstars, and millions of dollars in funding- an African surf development program in Senegal has taken place as part of the Olympic’s efforts to wide-reaching reverberations of surfing’s Olympic inclusion.

The program included mentor sessions, heat drills, functional movement sessions, lessons on judging criteria, breath work, athlete profiling and physical fitness, and video analysis. Senegal is becoming a hub for sport in Africa and a hotspot for surfing, boasting quality waves and young surfing talent, and these programs yield the hopes of blossoming surf programs all around Africa.

This year, the ISA recruited 10 coaches and 20 youth surfers in Dakar, Senegal to create a foundation for the continent’s next generation. The African surf development program helps to develop Olympic sports in countries lacking resources and opportunity.

“Not every country has the opportunity to fly and travel,” said Senegal’s Oumar Seye, one of the program experts and president of the newly-founded African Surfing Confederation. “It’s important for these kids from different parts of Africa to exchange culture and surfing with other African surfers and understand that it’s possible to make it as a surfer in Africa.”

This program aligns with EpicSurf’s EPIC Promise mission which embodies inclusion and diversity, democratizing the sport of surfing. The surfing industry is continuing to grow and is reaching communities all around the world.

“The program was amazing and an incredible opportunity for up-and-coming kids from Africa,” said Joshe Faulkner, a South African surfer who represented his country’s national junior team on multiple occasions. “A lot of the kids have never been outside their country or surfed with guys like me and Cherif Fall (African professional athlete ambassador). It was a really good opportunity to give back and show them what they can reach one day.”

In addition to their work developing the Olympic programs, Mbengue and Seye’s team was able to train on EpicSurf back in 2022 in Upstate, NY prior to the Olympic Qualifier ISA World Surfing Games.

“The opportunity to train and practice on EpicSurf before competing in California is an honor for my team” said Souleye Mbengue, “This has been such a memorable experience surfing in New York during my first visit to the USA.” Mbengue accepted the challenge of the surfing machine and admitted that it was a fun experience, however, he is the only member of the Federation that is not a surfer. He shared, “I’m a manager – not a surfer, I keep things organized.”

In contrast, Mbengue’s VP counterpart, Omaur Seye, is a well-known surfer. In fact, Seye was the first sponsored professional African surfer. He shared, “this machine will help train and develop surfers in many ways, like building leg strength for turns.”

Seye is committed to developing the burgeoning surf industry in Senegal and hopes to add a stationary wave to his mix of lifestyle businesses in Dakar.

EpicSurf is the first stationary surf wave of its kind manufactured in the USA, making real surfing possible anytime, anywhere. Waves shaped and finetuned to match every surfer’s skill level, ability, and choice of surf, skim, or bodyboard. For aspiring surfers, to experts preparing for competition, EpicSurf is the ultimate cross-training platform to improve turns, maximize reps, master maneuvers, and build strength.