Lluís Perotti: A breakout name rising through the European SUP League

It was a defining season for the European SUP League (ESL), which completed its second consecutive year as the official stand-up paddle circuit sanctioned by the European Surfing Federation. Committed to increasing the visibility of the circuit and creating opportunities for athletes at all levels, the European SUP League has also played an important role in uncovering emerging talent. From junior athletes making the transition into the open category to paddlers competing alongside some of the sport’s leading names, the circuit has become a valuable platform to gain experience, build confidence and aim higher.

One young athlete who has embraced that opportunity is 19-year-old Lluís Perotti, a Palma de Mallorca-based paddler, 2024 ISA Junior World Championship silver medallist and NSP Team Rider, who has been steadily building his presence on the European circuit, training under Manolo Simoncelli at Port Adriano Mar Balear as he continues to gain valuable experience and grab the spotlight.

Lluís is among the young athletes emerging on an increasingly competitive SUP scene, standing out with a refreshing attitude: “If you treat this sport as a hobby, you won’t achieve results at the level the sport is at today.” He understands all too well the commitment required to make a successful transition from the junior ranks to the Open division.

Perotti delivered a series of strong performances throughout the European SUP League season, including 2nd in the Technical Race and 3rd in the Long Distance at the Big Paddle Festival in Zurich. He continued that form at the final ESL stop in Sesimbra, Portugal, taking 2nd in both the Long Distance and Technical Race. His consistent results saw him finish the season inside the top 10 of the overall standings and among the leading athletes in the series.

Fresh off a silver medal in the Long Distance race at the European Surfing Federation EuroSUP 2026 in Melilla, we caught up with Lluís to reflect on his season, his progression from the junior ranks and his rise through the European SUP circuit. With the European SUP League firmly on his calendar for 2027, he also shares his thoughts on the value of racing in a structured European circuit and his ambitions for the seasons ahead.

Hi Lluís, welcome to TotalSUP and congratulations on a really strong season on the European SUP League circuit! Which event or race from the season stands out most for you, and why?

Hi, thank you very much. I wasn’t able to complete the entire European SUP League circuit but I took part in three of the events: Alicante, Zurich and Sesimbra. If I had to highlight one of them, it would be the World SUP Festival in Santa Pola.

I arrived at that event without being in my best shape, but I still managed to get good results. That motivated me to train harder and approach the following ESL events with even more motivation.

How can a structured circuit like the European SUP League help young SUP athletes develop and progress in the sport?

The European SUP League circuit has been a great help for me, and I think for most athletes as well, since it offers the possibility of bringing more professionalism to the sport, as well as providing extra motivation.

Apart from the national and world championships, having a circuit that gives you the opportunity to compete frequently definitely provides extra motivation.

You’ve already had success as a junior, including a World Championship Silver in Technical Race. When did you start to believe you could compete at the front of the senior field?

The ISA World SUP Championships in Copenhagen was a very important turning point in my sporting career, where I finished second.

After my first year of training in a much more disciplined way, qualifying for the ISA and being able to win a silver medal for the team gave me the push I needed to move up to the senior category, with the motivation and discipline required to compete in such a demanding field.

You’re a versatile paddler and also surf – how do those different disciplines influence each other?

Surfing has always been part of my life as much as possible. I live on an island where the amount of waves is limited, and paddleboarding became a solution for those moments when surfing wasn’t possible.

Little by little, paddleboarding stopped being just a hobby or a pastime and became part of my daily life.

I believe that having a surfing background always gives you an extra advantage when facing a beach race or tougher sea conditions. It makes you a more versatile athlete, and luckily, I’ve been able to develop that surfing background.

What has changed in your paddling since your junior days?

With experience come confidence and knowledge. If I had to highlight the biggest change in me as an athlete since moving from the junior to the senior category, it would definitely be sporting maturity and mindset.

I think that is a fundamental part of sport and also one of the hardest things to train, because it is something that only experience can give you.

The confidence you have in yourself is a never-ending learning process. I feel like I’m only just beginning to understand it, and the more I understand, the more I realise how long the journey is.

What do you understand about racing now that you didn’t when you first started?

I’ve learned that if you treat this sport as a hobby, you won’t achieve results at the level the sport is at today. If you want to be up there at the front, you can’t afford to make mistakes, and when you do make them, you have to learn from them and fix them.

It takes discipline, commitment and a huge amount of hard work.

Is there a particular race format you prefer: sprint, technical or long distance?

My favourite discipline, without a doubt, is long distance. It requires controlled, constant and sustained suffering, combined with a strategy that may need to change during the race itself. For me, that makes it a very demanding discipline, but also a really fun one.

I also really enjoy technical races, although in a different way. They require more intense suffering, but for a shorter period of time, combined with the need to be smart and opportunistic around the buoy turns and to have a very precise plan.

You’re part of the NSP team. What does your equipment setup look like, and how important is having a board you can trust when racing at this level?

For me, my two essential pieces of equipment are my NSP Carolina EVO 14×20’5 and my 81 paddle from Quickblade Paddles.

I consider myself a pretty simple athlete in that sense: I race with one paddle and one board. For me, as an athlete, that is the perfect setup and the equipment I trust when I compete.

What are your goals for the rest of the year and heading into next season?

My goals are clear and simple: to complete the ESL races next year so that I can be part of the overall ranking and, on top of that, perform strongly in the senior category at the ICF Worlds.

I want to prove to myself that I have made that transition into the senior category and establish my own place within it, so that I can be up there fighting at the front every year that I’m competing in this category.

But apart from all those goals, for me the most important thing next season will be to do things right from the very beginning, without letting myself or my discipline down.

Because a World Champion cannot let himself down. If you do, you can never build the confidence you need to compete at your highest level.

To find out more about European SUP League (ESL), visit europeansupleague.com

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*Images courtesy of Lluís Perotti