Australia’s world surfing champion Molly Picklum feels the sport’s new Olympic qualification rules have been “shoved in our face a little bit”.
The 23-year-old was crowned world champion last year, joining an exclusive club of Australians to have reached the summit of global surfing.
Picklum has started the 2026 season in fine form and sits second in the World Surf League (WSL) standings behind Hawaii’s Gabriela Ryan after a strong start to the season at her home events at Bells Beach and Margaret River.
Watch every round of the World Surfing League (WSL) live on Kayo Sports
The surfing world has undergone some change in recent months, with WSL scrapping the high stakes one-day finals format for a cumulative points system over the course of the season.
“We’re really happy that it’s gone back to somewhat the old format,” said Picklum, speaking to news.com.au last month.
“I really appreciate the format that it is sitting at this year. It makes me really excited.
“I just feel that it is a little unfair if you have such a steady year and then it can all be taken away one event at the end of the year. That’s a tough pill to potentially swallow and I’m happy that it’s changed.”
Surfing has been a hugely popular addition to the Olympic program at the past two Games, with Australia’s Owen Wright claiming bronze in Tokyo and Jack Robinson snagging silver at the Paris Olympics.
But there has been some backlash about the new Olympic qualifying criteria for surfing, including from Australia’s two-time world champion Tyler Wright.
Earlier this year it was announced that of the 48 surfers competing at the LA Olympics, only five men and five women will secure their place via the WSL championship tour rankings.
At the Paris Olympics, 10 men and eight women qualified through the WSL.
The new criteria has been implemented by the International Surfing Association (ISA) as the International Olympic Committee’s recognised surfing body — but there are concerns some of the world’s best surfers will missed out competing at the Olympics.
The ISA’s World Surf Games and continental qualifiers will now play a greater role in qualification.
‘The main noise around that is just because the Olympics, it’s about the best athletes in the world going for gold,” a candid Picklum said.
“It is about fairness and integrity and all of those great things and inclusivity of all the countries around the world.
“WSL and the surfing world is all decided on our platform and we have the stage of the world’s best surfers, so to only take a handful from that, it just feels like it’s been shoved in our face a little bit.
“We’ve fought so hard and done so much time to try and get ourselves in a position to be recognised as the world’s best surfers and then to not be is tough.
“Nonetheless you still a control your fate in your hands in that way. You’re still allowed to go in the competition to qualify for the Olympics. It’s not like they’ve just ruled us out so.
“If you want the medal … where there’s a will, there’s way, I think, is the attitude you kind of got to take to the new format that ISA has created to qualify for the Olympics.”
Picklum, who represented Australia at the Paris Olympics at Teahupoʻo, said competing for Olympic gold was a huge goal for the world’s best surfers.
“That’s a huge one for us. Obviously LA 28’s right around the corner,” she said.
“There’s definitely focus and building into that. By then that I will have so much experience behind me. It’s something I want to do and I will trust even more in my abilities and my competitive brain to just lean on that and go for gold as they say and quite literally just go and do it.
“It’s a really big dream of mine to bring home a gold medal for Australia at all, but then if the story writes that it happens in 2032 in Brisbane, that would just be magical.”
Picklum was the toast of Australian when she won the world title last year, but the youngster from NSW’s Central Coast believes she can take her surfing to even great heights.
“I am really excited for this year. There’s been so much time and life lived that it’s not hard to find a new motivation or find a bit of fire for the year,” Picklum said.
“For my actual surfing, I have certain things I want to improve on in my surfing and competitive kind of life and no better place to do it other than in the jersey and travelling, finding the best waves in the world.”
“My technical surfing, like you can never surf a wave perfectly, but you can always improve certain aspects, whether it’s your power riding or your turns or airs,
“It’s just never ending. That’s the pursuit of just like finetuning a craft really.”
This year the season finale returns to Pipeline on the North Shore of Oahu in Hawaii. Aussie surfing fans can catch every round of the WSL live on Kayo Sports with Fox Sports Australia and the WSL continuing their long-term partnership.
Kayo SPORTS customers will also continue to enjoy WSL-produced feature shows and event highlights, in addition to LIVE surfing.
