Eleven days after Rod Laver and Margaret Court won the 1962 Australian championships for tennis, now known as the Australian Open, a handful of surfers from the Torquay Lifesaving Club held their first surfboard rally on Australia Day, 1962 at Bells Beach.
Just seven years later, the brand Rip Curl was born in the same town of Torquay by founder Doug Warbrick, an original member of Surfing Australia, who is credited for getting the Rip Curl Pro – now an annual Easter carnival – onto the professional surfing circuit.
Bells Beach, the home of the world’s oldest professional surfing event.Credit: Eddie Jim
This year celebrates the 60th running of the world’s oldest professional surfing event, with two years missed not due to war but to COVID-19, and its place on Victoria’s sporting calendar is as fixed as any.
It’s not the most dangerous or daring event on the tour – far from it – although the final scene of the cult 1991 film Point Break, where Keanu Reeves allows Patrick Swayze to surf to his death (sorry for the spoiler), would have you think the Bells bowl is the most frightening in the world. Another spoiler: the scene was not actually filmed at Bells.
What makes the Rip Curl Pro so special is its history, steeped in the sport from the illustrious list of winners to the famed trophy, surfing’s most coveted prize.
Andrew Stark, Asia-Pacific’s general manager of the World Surf League, describes the tournament as surfing’s version of Wimbledon.
“It’s certainly got a lot of history, and it’s an iconic event,” Stark said.
“It’s a great moment to celebrate 60 years, and certainly no surfing events internationally can lay claim to that, but also, there are not many sporting events of this stature at the highest level of any sport that have been around for 60 years, so it’s something we’re all really proud of.
“It’s got that really strong history about it, and not only the wave at Bells Beach, but Torquay was the birthplace of Rip Curl as a surf brand internationally and Quiksilver as a surf brand.”
Melbourne is undoubtedly one of the sporting capitals, if not the sporting capital, of the world, boasting one of just four tennis majors, Australia’s only Formula 1 grand prix, one of horse racing’s most prized cups, and the largest sporting stadium in the southern hemisphere – home to the AFL grand final and Boxing Day Test.
Ringing the bell: Tyler Wright and Felipe Toledo blitzed it at Bells Beach last year.
But Victorian government support has ensured the Rip Curl Pro not only features prominently on its sporting and major events calendar, but also provides the world with a billboard of what regional Victoria has to offer. The other major event in the region is the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, but that event is less than a decade old.
Surf Coast Shire mayor Liz Pattison says the Rip Curl Pro attracts between 35,000 and 40,000 attendees each year, and delivers more than $8 million into the economy. But outside of Easter, tourism remains strong thanks to the images broadcast around the world, and the town’s links to surfing.
“It’s more than just the dollars because it cements Torquay as the surfing home in Australia,” Pattison said.
“There’s a real cultural and tourism lens that it puts on our region, and then that spills over to other times of the year. When people come to the Great Ocean Road, they want to come into Torquay, because of Torquay is the home of surfing, and that’s because of the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach.”
Jack Robinson, world No.1, took a look at the honour roll before taking to Thursday’s heats, where he faced one of the sport’s greatest surfers, Kelly Slater, a four-time winner at Bells.
Despite being from Margaret River, where the only other WSL event is held in Australia, Robinson said there was something special about Bells Beach.
“I think it’s super exciting, just because there’s a lot of history here and all the really great surfers have all won here,” Robinson said, moments after winning his heat.
“I was actually looking at the board this morning of the past winners, and it’s pretty much all Australians, so that’s pretty crazy. I think we get all get excited as Aussies coming back.”
World No.1 Jack Robinson says Bells Beach holds a special place in surfing history.Credit: Eddie Jim
Tyler Wright is defending her title this year, as her brother Owen competes in his swansong event on the tour. As kids, the siblings made the Easter pilgrimage to Torquay from Culburra Beach in NSW every year, and it remains a “really special place” for both of them.
“I love it here,” Wright said.
Asked if her motivation had changed after winning the Bell last year, Wright said: “Nup, I want to win more.
“For me, I’ve won world titles, but it’s nothing like winning at home. I think last year solidified that for me in my mind,” she said.
“There are a few big moments you want out of your career, and I had one last year, and I want to win more of those here.”
Other past winners of the event include four-time winners Mick Fanning and Mark Richards, 1998 winner Mark Occhilupo and triple world champion, the late great Andy Irons. On the women’s side, Layne Beachley won three times, and Stephanie Gilmore has won four.
Prizemoney is worth $US80,000 ($120,000) to each winner this year. But the trophy is something the surfers can’t put a price on.
“It’s definitely one of the most coveted trophies in international surfing, that’s for sure,” Stark said.
“Bells Beach over the years has had some pretty big surf, and we’re certainly in the right time of the year to get some decent swells, but it’s not a death-defying wave like Pipeline or Tahiti. It’s more user-friendly, so I think the iconic nature about it is more based on the history and the fact that it’s been going for 60 years, and it’s always been at Easter and the list of legends that have won it.
“It’s just one of those trophies that all the surfers desperately want to win and form part of people’s career highlights.”
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