John Mark Tokong (Marama) and Noah Arkfeld have just completed two WSL Qualifying Series (QS) events in Indonesia: the Krui Pro QS5000 and the Nias Pro QS5000, the first QS events of the season. These Siargao surfers are the only two surfers from the Philippines to be competing in the QS tour this year.

The QS tour this year is co-sanctioning the Asian league with the Australian league, meaning that Asian and Australian surfers compete against each other, however, they are ranked separately. The Qualifying Series is a regional tour of competitions where surfers from each region compete to gain points and secure a ranking. Surfers in the top 5 ranking of the QS get to move forward to the Challenger Series against the best surfers from across the globe.

Marama made it to the Challenger Series (CS) in 2023, making history as the first Filipino surfer ever to make it to the CS. How well he does this year determines whether he can make it again to the CS in 2025 and represent the Philippines once again.

Noah was competing in both the men's division and the junior division, his last tour as a junior in fact. It is an exciting time to see how he will score on his last run as a junior, whilst gaining even more experience against more seasoned surfers in the men's division.

KRUI PRO QS5000, May 28 - Jun 4

Noah was slotted into round of 64 in the men’s division. With the implication of priority, he was not able to catch a solid set wave to give him the score to advance to the round of 32. Noah gained 400 points from this event and came 49th.

Marama also joined this event in round of 64, heat 12. He was against solid competition from Australia and Japan, and whilst he gained two good scoring waves, it was unfortunately not enough for him to advance to the next round. Overall, he came 49th place in this event, gaining him 400 points.

NIAS PRO QS5000, Jun 8 - 15

Noah and Marama both started the event in round of 64. Noah gave his best effort against some strong competition, but did not get the waves he needed to progress. In the junior division Noah started in round of 32, and scored some good waves but does not proceed to the next round. Great experience for Noah for the rest of the tour.

Marama started this event strong, coming out top in his heat, getting two huge barrels earning him a total score 14.83 and proving himself once again to be a barrelling king.

The round of 32 was another nail biting round, with Marama competing against two huge Asian competition - Oney Anwar and Kian Martin, alongside Dane Harry from Australia. Marama once again solidified his reputation as a barrel master, scoring two monster barrels and gaining him a score of 18.47, placing him the top of his heat and allowing him to advance to the round of 16.

Marama made it to the round of 16, and despite his best efforts he did not catch a set wave that would allow him to advance to the quarter finals. Overall, Marama came 14th and gained 1440 points.

Surfing is an incredibly difficult sport, due to a variety of factors. For example, the court (the ocean), depends upon the daily/hourly weather and wave conditions. Implication of priority also makes surfing a tactical sport, because surfers may miss out on the best waves if not in the position of priority.

WHAT’S NEXT?

The Qualifying Series has just begun, and there are more events to come allowing Marama and Noah to gain more points and secure a top 5 ranking. Here is the line-up for events:

Siargao International Surfing Cup, Oct 25 - Nov 3

Taiwan Open, Nov 10 - 17

La Union International Pro, TBC

Baler International Pro, TBC

Hyde Central Coast ProBurton Automotive Pro

We will be posting updates on our social media accounts, @ks.boardriders.surf.shop on instagram and KS Boardriders on facebook.

Make sure to follow @arkfeldnoah and @maramatokong on instagram

Visit www.worldsurfleague.com for more information on events

To shop Kudo Surf and Vissla, visit www.ksboardriders.com or our stores in Siargao, KS Boardriders Surf Shop and Vissla PH.