URBIZTONDO BEACH, San Juan, La Union, Philippines (Wednesday, January 14, 2026) – Today, the world’s best surfers aged 20-and-under competed in lully but fun two-to-three-foot conditions at The Point at Urbiztondo Beach to officially set the Semifinal matchups of the 2025 World Surf League (WSL) World Junior Championships Philippines Presented by Purefoods and Magnolia.
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The next call will be tomorrow, Thursday, January 15 at 7:30 a.m. for a possible 8:05 a.m. start.
From Opposite Sides of the Draw, Australia’s Huppatz and Kerr Set the Pace
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For the third day running, Isla Huppatz (AUS) proved to be the standout of the women’s draw, today posting a 15.57 heat total. The number, which included an excellent 8.07 and 7.50, comes second only to her own Opening Round two-wave total that featured the highest single wave score of the event so far. A back-and-forth battle against Challenger Series competitor and 2025 Asia Junior Champion Anon Matsuoka (JPN) saw Huppatz, the reigning Australia/Oceania Junior Champion, staying patient to find the waves that allowed her to attack multiple critical sections down the line. Finding crucial end-section hits on each, the 18-year-old was able to put Matsuoka on the ropes and leave the Japanese looking for a large score for the final third of the heat.
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“[Anon Matsuoka] is such an amazing surfer and a really good competitor,” Huppatz said. “She’s been on the Challenger Series for a bit, so I was a bit nervous coming up against her. Glad I could get the job done. I was just staying focused on my own game and the conditions and my own plan and stuff. The conditions, they’re pretty slow. There’s some 20-minute lulls, but then it kind of flows and then there’s a few sets, so you’ve just got to wait for your moment to then go. But when they come, they’re pretty fun.”
Quarterfinal 3 saw the two most-decorated surfers in the draw, 2023 World Junior Champion Sierra Kerr (AUS) and 2025 Championship Tour (CT) Rookie Bella Kenworthy (USA), face off. The all-star match-up was all about the Australian however, as Kerr started strong and built consistently, earning an excellent 8.00, along with two rides in the 7-point range, while Kenworthy struggled to break out of the 5’s. Largely sticking to the rail, Kerr was able to drift the tail to close out a three-turn combo to collect her high number. 18-year-old Kerr now moves into her third World Junior Semifinals in her fourth appearance, continuing her campaign to be the first woman to claim a second World Junior Title.
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“It was my first proper heat with Bella [Kenworthy], so it was fun,” Kerr said. “It’s funny, she was at my house in Australia for the past ten days. We traveled here, we were just eating brekkie together, at dinner last night, just like, ‘Oh, I wish it could have happened later.’ I love having heats with my friends. It’d be sick [to meet Isla Huppatz in the Final]. We’re both Aussies, we do the Pro Juniors together, QS’s together. We’ve had some heats, and yeah, we’re super good friends, so it’d be sick fun to meet in the Final and yeah, see who gets it.”
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The two Australian regular-footers will each meet goofy-footers in the Semifinals, with Huppatz coming up against Vaihitimahana Inso (HAW) and Kerr taking on Janire Gonzalez Etxabarri (EUK). The two more experienced competitors, Inso and Gonzalez Etxabarri, held court over younger rivals in the opening and closing Quarterfinals. The Hawaiian claimed her win in a low-scoring affair over 14-year-old Carla Morera De La Vall (ESP), while the Basque eliminated 16-year-old Catalina Zariquiey (PER) with an excellent 8.17.
Australian Sweep Sees Smith, Henry, and Vincent Move Into Semifinals
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Despite fighting sickness, Lennix Smith (AUS) returned to the Semifinals for the second consecutive year after taking out a tight heat over Rickson Falcao (BRA). As with his Round of 16 showing, Smith opened strong, picking up an 8.17 within the first three minutes, but today struggled to find a back-up. Meanwhile, Falcao, the last remaining men’s goofy-footer, continued to build throughout the heat, eventually landing the event’s first full rotation air reverse under priority to earn a 7.17 and take the lead from the Australian. Needing a 5.23 with less than two minutes remaining, Smith finally found a wave that allowed multiple turns, providing him with a 6.57 and the win.
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“I thought I butchered it, giving him that wave,” Smith said. “I had priority and I was like, ‘Far out, what have I done?’ But the little one came at the end and I did a few little wiggles and managed to get a 6. Pretty chuffed on that one, I was kind of delirious out there.”
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A second battle of the powerhouse surfing nations also went the way of Australia when Dane Henry (AUS) eliminated Gabriel Klaussner (BRA), setting up an all-Australia first Semifinal between Henry and Smith. Though not posting the highest numbers of the event, Henry has won each of his heats with confident performances, today earning his personal best number of the event, a 7.83. A third Australian, Winter Vincent (AUS) moved into the Semifinals for the second year in a row, following his runner-up finish in 2024. Vincent overcame Ikko Watanabe (JPN) in a close heat that saw just over half a point separating their final totals.
Representing Israel and Costa Rica, Attar Delivers Breakthrough Semifinal Run
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Representing Israel by way of his home in Costa Rica, Nadav Attar (ISR) claimed a major victory for both nations when he moved into the Semifinals of his first WSL World Juniors. Attar utilized an exceptionally mature use of priority and smart wave selection to find the best options to attack the few critical sections on offer in his Quarterfinal match against Oliver Zietz (NDL). Though Zietz held the higher single wave score for much of the heat, Attar stayed consistently ahead, before a 7.57 from the Israeli placed a larger requirement on the Dutch that he was ultimately unable to meet despite a last-minute attempt coming close.
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“Oliver [Zietz] is a great surfer. I knew the conditions were tricky and grindy, so him having that 7 the whole heat when I had a 6.5 as my highest score, it was super sketchy for sure,” Attar said. “I knew that if he’s on a good one, he’s gonna get the score, so I’m super happy. I’m just trusting the process, all the training I’ve been doing before this event, not just now, the past few years. I know it’s my time right now, and I knew it for that heat too. I was just trusting that and I left it to the nature.”
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Women’s Elimination Round Results:
HEAT 7: Vaihitimahana Inso (HAW) 12.53 DEF. Stella Green (AUS) 6.43
HEAT 8: Catalina Zariquiey (PER) 12.66 DEF. Maria Salgado (POR) 11.10
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Women’s Round of 16 Results:
HEAT 1: Carla Morera De La Vall (ESP) 11.40 DEF. Arena Rodriguez (PER) 10.33
HEAT 2: Vaihitimahana Inso (HAW) 12.93 DEF. Talia Swindal (USA) 12.07
HEAT 3: Isla Huppatz (AUS) 13.50 DEF. Annette Gonzalez Etxabarri (EUK) 10.16
HEAT 4: Anon Matsuoka (JPN) 10.40 DEF. Mirai Ikeda (JPN) 8.20
HEAT 5: Bella Kenworthy (USA) 14.00 DEF. Luara Mandelli (BRA) 9.17
HEAT 6: Sierra Kerr (AUS) 12.84 DEF. Reid Van Wagoner (USA) 10.46
HEAT 7: Catalina Zariquiey (PER) 13.66 DEF. Laura Raupp (BRA) 12.23
HEAT 8: Janire Gonzalez Etxabarri (EUK) 12.70 DEF. Zoey Kaina (USA) 10.00
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Women’s Quarterfinals Matchups:
HEAT 1: Carla Morera De La Vall (ESP) vs. Vaihitimahana Inso (HAW)
HEAT 2: Isla Huppatz (AUS) vs. Anon Matsuoka (JPN)
HEAT 3: Bella Kenworthy (USA) vs. Sierra Kerr (AUS)
HEAT 4: Catalina Zariquiey (PER) vs. Janire Gonzalez Etxabarri (EUK)
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Men’s Round of 16 Results:
HEAT 1: Lennix Smith (AUS) 16.16 DEF. Lukas Skinner (GBR) 11.93
HEAT 2: Rickson Falcao (BRA) 13.97 DEF. Ryan Kainalo (BRA) 12.94
HEAT 3: Gabriel Klaussner (BRA) 14.10 DEF. Keoni Lasa (EUK) 10.56
HEAT 4: Dane Henry (AUS) 14.14 DEF. Willem Watson (AUS) 12.90
HEAT 5: Winter Vincent (AUS) 14.83 DEF. Hugh Vaughan (AUS) 10.16
HEAT 6: Ikko Watanabe (JPN) 13.33 DEF. Will Deane (USA) 12.64
HEAT 7: Oliver Zietz (NLD) 13.94 DEF. Conor Donegan Dos Santos (ESP) 13.43
HEAT 8: Nadav Attar (ISR) 15.16 DEF. Lucas Cassity (MEX) 12.00
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Men’s Quarterfinals Matchups:
HEAT 1: Lennix Smith (AUS) vs. Rickson Falcao (BRA)
HEAT 2: Gabriel Klaussner (BRA) vs. Dane Henry (AUS)
HEAT 3: Winter Vincent (AUS) vs. Ikko Watanabe (JPN)
HEAT 4: Oliver Zietz (NLD) vs. Nadav Attar (ISR)
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The 2025 WSL World Junior Championships Philippines will be held at The Point at Urbiztondo Beach, San Juan, Philippines, from January 11-18, 2026.