The APP has just announced that the Carolina Cup, presented by Kona Brewing Co, will become the Opening stop for the 2021 APP World Tour after the cancellation of the Hawaiian Grand Slam due to Covid-19.
The APP World Tour was forced to cancel its Hawaiian Grand Slam last week, due to the escalation of the Covid-19 Delta Variant in the area. Whilst this was disappointing, the Carolina Cup provides a very fitting replacement for the opening leg of the Tour, as one of the longest standing and most high-profile events in the US.
Organized by the Wrightsville Beach Paddle Club, the Carolina Cup is a four-day festival of events featuring seven races, seminars, and clinics by the pros from 4th-7th November. The mesh of top-level performance racing with amateur and entry-level participation opportunities is completely in line with the ethos of the APP’s drive for inclusive participation for all.
1. Carolina Cup, USA: 4th – 7th November
2. Gran Canaria Pro-Am, Spain: 19th – 21st November
3. Paris SUP Open, France: 3rd – 5th December
4. World Championship Tour Finals: 8th – 10th February
APP World Tour CEO, Tristan Boxford said:
“Disappointment is replaced with excitement, as the cancellation of the Hawaiian leg due to Covid-19 has led to the establishment of one of the longest standing events in the US as the World Championship Tour Opener for 2021. The APP and the Carolina Cup are aligned and committed to bringing the global paddle community back together on US soil. Having worked together in previous years with the event as an official qualifier for the APP World Tour, the whole Team is excited to bring the Tour to this vibrant East Coast Community in 2021. Although Covid-19 is still maintaining its grip across the world, the APP is committed to delivering a legitimate and comprehensive Tour that maintains its presence in the Americas, Europe and the East to crown the Women’s and Men’s World Champions for both SUP Racing and Surfing and build to what will be a ground-breaking year in 2022.”
You can find more information on the Carolina Cup here and register for all the APP events on PaddleGuru:
https://paddleguru.com/races/CarolinaCup2021
The Carolina Cup’s signature race, the brutal 13-mile Graveyard Race, will count as the distance discipline of this US Stop for the APP World Tour. The APP will then introduce its unique Sprint Racing format into the weekend of Racing to provide more action and excitement for Racers and Spectators alike.
Discipline Champions for the distance and sprint racing components of the Carolina Cup will be crowned as well as the overall Champion for the 1st stop of the 2021 APP World Tour.
Given the challenges with global travel and to provide the opportunity to make up for a bad result, athletes will be able to discard their single worst distance and sprint results from across the 2021 APP Racing World Tour to determine the Overall World Champions and final leaderboard. This means that each athletes best 3 Sprint and Distance Results from the 2021 Season will count towards the Overall.
For more information, visit www.appworldtour.com
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