The Duke Kahanamoku Invitational Surfing Championship is named in honor of the "Father of Modern Surfing",
Duke Paoa Kahinu Mokoe Hulikohola Kahanamoku. The contest began in 1965 by invitation only at
Sunset Beach on the
North Shore of
Oahu
Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O ...
until it was replaced by the
Billabong Pro
The World Surf League (WSL) is the governing body for professional surfers and is dedicated to showcasing the world's best talent in a variety of progressive formats. The World Surf League was originally known as the International Professional ...
in 1985. The championship was the first surfing event to be broadcast on a regular basis by
ABC's ''
Wide World of Sports''.
Two dozen of the best surfers in the world attended the first championship with
big-wave surfers like Greg Noll and Fred Hemmings as competitors. Surfer
Jeff Hakman was only seventeen when he claimed his first title.
Noll's streamlined,
Semigun surfboard
design
A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design' ...
became the board of choice for contestants riding the Sunset Beach waves, with Ricky Grigg riding a Semigun to victory.
Duke Kahanamoku handed out golden "Duke" statues to the winners for the first three years before he died on January 22, 1968.
The first
native Hawaiian
Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands.
Hawa ...
to win the championship was Clyde Aikau, in 1973, followed in 1977 by his older brother,
Eddie Aikau
Edward Ryon Makuahanai Aikau (Kahului, Hawaii, May 5, 1946 – March 17, 1978) was a Hawaiian lifeguard and surfer. As the first lifeguard at Waimea Bay on the island of Oahu, he saved over 500 people and became famous for surfing the big Hawaii ...
.
Winners. 1960
Awards from 1965 to 1984:
*1965
Jeff Hakman
*1966
Ricky Grigg
*1967 Jock Sutherland
*1968
Mike Doyle Michael, Mick or Mike Doyle may refer to:
Politics
* Michael Doyle (Irish politician), Irish Farmers' Party politician from Wexford, TD from 1922 to 1927
*Michael Doyle, alleged member of the Molly Maguires
*Mike Doyle (American politician) (born ...
*1969 Joey Cabell
*1970 Jeff Hakman
*1971 Jeff Hakman
*1972
James Jones
*1973
Clyde Aikau Clyde may refer to:
People
* Clyde (given name)
* Clyde (surname)
Places
For townships see also Clyde Township
Australia
* Clyde, New South Wales
* Clyde, Victoria
* Clyde River, New South Wales
Canada
* Clyde, Alberta
* Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...
*1974
Larry Bertleman
*1975
Ian Cairns
*1976 James Jones
*1977
Eddie Aikau
Edward Ryon Makuahanai Aikau (Kahului, Hawaii, May 5, 1946 – March 17, 1978) was a Hawaiian lifeguard and surfer. As the first lifeguard at Waimea Bay on the island of Oahu, he saved over 500 people and became famous for surfing the big Hawaii ...
*1978
Michael Ho
*1979
Mark Richards
*1980
Mark Warren
*1981
Michael Ho
*1982
Ken Bradshaw
*1983
Dane Kealoha
Dane or Danes may refer to:
People Pertaining to Denmark
* Dane, somebody from Denmark
* Danes, an ethnic group native to Denmark
* Danes (Germanic tribe)
Other people
* Dane (name), a surname and a given name (and a list of people with the name ...
*1984 Derek Ho
References
External links
www.hawaiianswimboat.comwww.surfline.com
Surfing competitions in Hawaii
Recurring sporting events established in 1965
Recurring events disestablished in 1985
1965 establishments in Hawaii
1985 disestablishments in Hawaii
Sports in Oahu
{{Hawaii-sport-stub