Former surfing champion Layne Beachley making splash in Masters competition as pay parity kicks in early
TWENTY-FIVE years after her first major win as a surfer, it seems right that Layne Beachley, a powerful advocate for both her sport and female surfers, is going to be part of a historic moment for women in surfing.
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FOR decades seven-time world champion Layne Beachley battled for the right to surf the same waves, be recognised the same way and earn the same living as her male counterparts.
Now, 25 years after her first major win as a surfer, it seems right that Beachley, a powerful advocate for both her sport and female surfers, is going to be part of a historic moment for women in surfing.
After the World Surf League announced pay parity for world tour events from 2019, the new policy is coming into practice early for other major events run under the WSL banner.
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Beachley will be paid the same amount as men for her results at the world Masters championships being surfed in the Azores.
“This is the first time the WSL have included women in this event as well,” said Beachley, the only surfer - male or female - to have win six of her world surfing titles consecutively.
“It’s two fold. It keep people involved when they are a Master, which is after 45, and it’s also reigniting the pioneers of the sport.
“All the women who are here have all paved the way for others, so it is special.”
Beachley, 46, has surfed against the likes of four-time US world champion Frieda Zamba, Pauline Menczer and Pam Burridge at the event.
Success could also deliver Beachley a Masters world title in the same year Steph Gilmore finally equals her long-standing record of seven world crowns.
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Gilmore currently leads the world title race heading into the last two events of the tour in France and Hawaii.