2023 Special Olympics Florida State Surfing and SUP Championships

Get ready to be inspired!  The Special Olympics Florida State Stand Up Paddle Championship will be held on August 18-19, with the State Surfing Championship scheduled for August 25-26.  These events have come a long way since their humble beginnings, and Ron Jon Surf Shop is proud to have collaborated with Special Olympics Florida to make these sports available to their athletes.

The Special Olympics Florida Surfing program caught its first wave June 2010.  After six weeks of lessons at the Ron Jon Surf School in Cocoa Beach, the group of trailblazers, comprised of eight Brevard County SOFL athletes, had their first competition.  The program quickly grew and expanded to include athletes from Duval and Martin Counties. By the time the next surfing competition happened in October 2010, the program had more than tripled in size with 25 competitors from three regions.  This year when the State Surfing Championship comes to Alan Shepard Park in Cocoa Beach on August 25-26, there will be 90 athletes competing across 4 skill levels from counties all around the state.

In 2014 following the success of the surfing program, Special Olympics Florida expanded their board sports offerings by adding stand up paddleboarding to their line-up.  The program started with 40 competitors and has flourished to 150 athletes expected to participate in 2023.  These athletes compete in short and long-distance SUP events as well as traditional and unified relays.  The Florida State Stand Up Paddle Championship will take place August 18-19 at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota.

Ron Jon Surf Shop is proud to partner with Special Olympics Florida and Surfing’s Evolution & Preservation Foundation to present the SOFL State Surfing and Stand Up Paddle Championships.  Good luck to all competitors!