By Bev Mortimer, 3 May: Steven Sawyer, aka Stevie, won the WSL Longboarding Championship again this year after taking the title in 2025 – to huge applause from the beach…
And while seven months pregnant, wife Crystal (née Hulett) from St Francis Bay, came third yesterday in the WSL Finals. She also made the South African Championship final for the Open Women’s. She has one more heat today.
In the dying minutes moments of the Final Stevie got his 8,67, but started strong with the 7,9 and was looking for a second wave throughout the heat as the waves were so slow. The heats were 25 min long but Stevie got his second wave with 3 min left!
Stevie got two 10-point rides one in his semi & one in his quarter-final. His performance was text-book surfing with the judges rewarding him.
He provided some phenomenal nose-riding to highlight, perching 10 toes over the nose through out most of the wave. A true stand out performance!
Stevie is taking a sabbatical off tour now. He has been on tour for 10 years and with baby coming he and Crystal will be home this year. Stevie did make the top 10 so he automatically does qualify for back on tour.But this year 2026 he is giving his tour spot to Sam Christianson, who came second in the final.
In general about the event.. The conditions were all time logging/longboarding and it was the best to showcase SA’s top surfers. The wind was light the entire day yesterday and the the waves did slow down in the finals due to the high tide.
Asked their reaction wife Crystal (nee Hulett) said: “They were waiting for scores. Stevie got that wave in the last three minutes, and then he paddled straight back out for another wave, and he got the score (in both of the waves). there was a huge crowd of JBay locals crowding him, and just waiting for the scores.
“So the celebration as he came out the keyhole (he was just waiting there) was huge, like a complete uproar from the locals! I am so proud of Stevie and his performance! It was really nail-biting because the waves were just so slow on the high tide.
“The overall crowd and the family vibe with so many generations there to see it all, completed the longboard champs for Stevie. It’s just really such an incredible event- and there’s so much camaraderie just for South African longboarding.
“The crowd’s been super cool. People get so excited to watch and support, and we’ve had such great support from local businesses as well – just getting behind these contests to make sure we can run those extra days. Wonderful support and they deserve praise – even surfers and their businesses, who have been donating money to the event, just to keep it running!”
Crystal , who is on maternity leave also spoke about her participation this year. “There was a safety concern owing to my pregnancy. Steven is taking a year off this baby year. I did compete in the heat and I made it all the way through to the finals!
“I surfed four heats yesterday in total in my seventh month of pregnacy! This was quite something for me to even be making those heats.
“I’ve got one more heat today, another final, so I made the WSL final and the South African Championship final for the Open Women’s. And Stevie in the Open Men’s final won the (final for the WSL. It was it’s supposed to be one male and one female qualifying for the World Longboard tour!
“I came third yesterday. I just needed waves, and there just weren’t any waves – but that’s just how it goes, and I’m just super grateful you know to have had the opportunity, and to be surfing at the level while surfing pregnant.”
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