Puaiohi DeFries of Kamehemeha Schools-Kapalama, winner of the 2025 Honua Finals: Girls Longboard
Hawai‘i High School Surfing Goes Statewide: HHSAA Surfing State Championship Set for 2026
BY HSRN STAFF
PUBLISHED SEPT 23, 2025
HONOLULU – Hawai‘i high school surfing is taking a historic step forward. The Hawai‘i High School Athletic Association (HHSAA) has announced that beginning in Spring 2026, all five high school leagues across the state will field both boys and girls surfing teams.
Even bigger news: at least three of the leagues will officially recognize all three surfing disciplines — shortboard, longboard, and bodyboarding.
First-Ever HHSAA Surfing State Championship
The inaugural HHSAA Surfing State Championship will run May 1–2, 2026, at Ho‘okipa, Maui, with Kahului Harbor set as the backup venue. The two-day state surfing tournament will crown individual boys and girls state champions in each discipline, marking the first official high school surfing titles in Hawai‘i history.
Leadership and Recognition
Longtime surf advocate Dave Kazama has been named state coordinator for the event. HHSAA Executive Director Chris Chun credited Kazama and his daughters, Sunny and Maia, for their grassroots advocacy that helped get surfing sanctioned as a high school sport. Kazama also brings experience from his work with the Honua Finals, often called the “World Cup of Interscholastic Surfing.”
Continuing HHSAA’s Tradition of Emerging Sports
With more than 36,000 student-athletes participating during the 2024–25 school year, HHSAA continues to be a leader in supporting culturally unique and emerging sports. Hawai‘i was the first state to sanction girls wrestling and one of the early adopters of girls flag football. Adding interscholastic surfing further cements Hawai‘i’s place as a pioneer in high school athletics.
This expansion is made possible by strong community and financial support. The Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA), led by trustee Dan Ahuna, contributed the largest one-time financial gift in HHSAA history to help launch the surfing championship.
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