Queens Classic in Biarritz Makes Case for Most Fun Surf Contest in the World

“We wanted to have an event that represented surfing in the purest way possible and that represented everyone with all the inclusivity it takes” Margaux said, “so myself, my sister and one of my childhood best friends from Biarritz co-created the festival. We all come from the Côte des Basques, we saw the beach evolve so much and we really felt that it was important to give women a place in surfing. We found it difficult to even recognize ourselves in the larger surf industry. We started to think about this idea, at first we really just wanted to have a small village near the beach and after the first year it just grew. We had created a monster!”

Margaux told Vans ahead of the festival. “Queens is here to show representation and hope.” 

The event ran for the first three years as a longboard contest, but this year they mixed up the format and invited shortboarders to compete alongside the loggers. In what has got to be one of the most unique ways to structure a competition, surfers were split into teams of four, some loggers some shortboarders, and then competed in eight person heats, each surfer with a member of their team in the same heat. Overall team scores were counted from a single highest scoring wave each and teams with the highest total from each round progressed through until two teams battled it out in the final. Then, as well as a winning team, the overall Queen was crowned for the highest scoring wave over the event. This year taking it out was California’s Karina Rozunko. 

The depth of talent in the field of surfers was marked, with shortboarders like Holly Wawn and Le-Ann Curren managing to find some flow in the tiny conditions along with Mexico’s Lola Mignot, daughter of Rob Machado, Macy, and France’s former Duct Tape winner Ambre Victoire Damestoy. Along with the heavyweights, to ensure the inclusive nature of the event surfers invites were given to surfers who embodied the spirit of the Queen but didn’t necessarily have a depth of competitive experience. This made the competitive side playful, with surfers working together to help each other get strong scores in each heat. 

On land, the deep pulse of dance music reverberated out across the Atlantic, with DJs from France and Spain along with dancers sending it late into the night. During the day there were skate lessons and a skate comp on a mini ramp set up by the beach, a live podcast recording and a whole suite of other activities to get the punters involved. The event was wild and designed to make anyone and everyone, no matter who they are, feel safe and included.