Kelly Slater, 11-time world champion surfer, cut from the 2023 elite world tour
The winningest surfer of all time has been knocked out of the World Surf League tour while competing in Australia.
The 51-year-old surfing great, Kelly Slater, faced the cut during a World Surf League event in Western Australia Friday. The disappointment comes as Slater was hoping to qualify through World Surf League rankings to represent the U.S. at next year's Olympics in Teahupoo, Tahiti.
The Florida native who turned pro in 1990, could continue competing with "wild card" spots for the rest of the season and accumulating points on the Challenger Series to possibly qualify for the Olympics.
Slater holds 56 Championship Tour victories and won the last of his 11 world titles in 2011.
During a post-heat interview, Slater said, "It is what it is. Everyone is surfing good on this tour, everyone knows how to surf a heat." And Slater's future plans, "I want to get really barrelled, there's a big wave … We'll see how things turn out," he said.
The 2023 Western Australia Margaret River Pro competition takes place April 20 – 30.