East Coast Junior Surfers Secure Final Spots at the 2026 Rip Curl GromSearch National Final at Atlantic Park Surf
OCEAN CITY, New Jersey (August 2026) — The 2026 Rip Curl GromSearch North America Tour wrapped its qualifying season in Ocean City, New Jersey, on August 22–23, bringing some of the East Coast’s top junior surfers together for the final opportunity to qualify for the National Final.
The Ocean City surf community showed up in full force throughout the weekend, supporting competitors on the beach before coming together Saturday night for the New Jersey premiere of Rip Curl’s latest surf film, Sketchy, in partnership with Heritage Surf Shop.
A crowd of nearly 150 gathered at the Ocean City Community Center for the free premiere, which featured live music, food, giveaways, and an evening celebrating surf culture alongside competitors, families, and the local community.
Competition remained strong throughout the weekend as surfers battled for the final qualifying spots of the 2026 season. With New Jersey marking the last stop before the National Final, the weekend officially completed the qualifying field for Atlantic Park Surf.
The 2026 Rip Curl GromSearch National Final is set for October 8 at Atlantic Park Surf in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where the season’s top qualifiers will come together to compete for national titles.
U14 Girls
- Keira Soleau
- Sky Leavins
- Athena Staros
- Lilly Parker
U14 Boys
- Tristan Edginton
- Ras Menelik Lewis
- Dean Rendell
- Benj Davis
U16 Girls
- Athena Staros
- Keira Soleau
- Charlie Gallo
- Gemma Kohles
U16 Boys
- Finn Law
- Sebastian Peters
- Luke Lopez
- Cash Souter
One of the weekend’s standout moments came in the U16 Boys Final, where Ocean City local Finn Law took the win in front of a hometown crowd. A familiar face at 7th Street, Law’s victory drew an incredible reaction from the beach as the local community celebrated the hometown win.
Sebastian Peters finished runner-up in the U16 Boys division and earned the Lost High Heat Total Award, while third-place finisher Luke Lopez took home the Banzai Bowls Best Maneuver Award.
The weekend also saw strong performances from Athena Staros and Keira Soleau, who each earned Top 4 finishes in both the U14 Girls and U16 Girls divisions. Staros claimed the U16 Girls title and finished third in U14 Girls, while Soleau won U14 Girls and finished second in U16 Girls.
The Top 4 finishers in each division secured qualification to the Rip Curl GromSearch National Final at Atlantic Park Surf in Virginia Beach on October 8, while all division champions received $500 prize checks from Rip Curl.
For 27 years, the Rip Curl GromSearch has served as a proving ground for emerging surfing talent, helping young athletes develop their competitive skills through one of surfing’s most established junior series.
The 2026 Rip Curl GromSearch North America Tour is proudly presented by title sponsor Flexfit and supported by associate sponsors Sun Bum, YETI, FCS, Banzai Bowls, Ritual Vision, Hawaiian Airlines, and Lost Surfboards.
With the 2026 qualifying series officially complete, the Rip Curl GromSearch North America Tour now heads to Atlantic Park Surf, where the season’s top qualifiers will come together to compete for National Final titles on October 8.
For more information on the Rip Curl GromSearch, visit the Rip Curl GromSearch Blog.
Photographer credit: @rob.waves & @what.sue.seas
