Surfing Australia threaten Noosa Malibu club with expulsion over pay parity furore

A Queensland surfing club is under fire for paying a women’s champion 30 per cent less than the men’s winner. But the club president says women are welcome to compete against men to earn more money.

The Noosa Malibu Club has come under fire over breaching Surfing Australia pay parity rules.

A Queensland surfing club risks being disassociated from the sport after receiving a “first and final warning” for breaching Surfing Australia pay parity rules by paying their women’s champion 30 per cent less than the men’s winner.

Noosa Malibu Club has come under fire for direct contravention of Surfing Australia’s official rule book when they awarded Brazilian Augusto Olinto $718 for claiming first place in the open division of the annual Noosa Logger competition held over the first weekend in May.

American Mason Schremmer was presented with $505 as the women’s winner.

Surfing Australia CEO Chris Mater said the unequal prize money was “categorically against Surfing Australia’s rules”.

The Noosa Malibu Club has come under fire over breaching Surfing Australia pay parity rules.

“It’s pretty straightforward. We have a rule book that says clubs must offer equal prize money to men and women in events affiliated with Surfing Australia. We’ve asked the club to compensate the female winner and rectify the situation,” he said.

Mater called it a “first and final warning”, before Surfing Queensland and Surfing Australia threaten to disassociate with the Noosa club.

The furore comes nearly five years after the World Surf League (WSL) committed to paying equal prize money to men and women in top-tier international competitions, and two years after Surfing Australia updated its rule book to ingrain equal prize money.

Surfing Australia CEO Chris Mater says the club has received its first and final warning over the incident. Photos: Surfing Australia.

Noosa Malibu Club President Glen Gower said Surfing Australia’s integrity unit had spoken with him about the issue on Thursday afternoon but denied his club had broken the rules.

He said the Noosa Logger “treats everyone as equals” by allowing women to enter the “open” division alongside men and distributes prize money in proportion to the number of places offered in each division.

Published results from the event show only one woman – Gower’s own daughter Jade who finished second in the women’s final – entered the open division against a field of 21 men, while 12 women entered the “open women” division.

Professional Surfer and co-founder of Equal Pay for Equal Play, Lucy Small, says its disappointing to see things like this still happening. Picture: Tim Hunter.

“You would be amazed at how many people that I have come up to me and say, I’ve got two young boys but they’ve got to surf 10 times to even get a chance to get to a final, and your daughter can surf once [to get there],” Gower said.

“Decades ago, a lady would go to work and get paid half as much for doing eight hours’ work. So I can’t see that the solution is to flip in the opposite way to give the ladies more prize than the open competitors.”

Rose Locke came third in the open women’s division and believes the prize money system is flawed. Picture: Supplied.

Longboarder Rose Locke, who came third in the open women’s division, said she thought the

accounting method was flawed.

“I don’t agree with the pro rata system. It’s not equality, I believe there should be equal prize money,” Locke said.

Disappointed female competitors had approached the board of Noosa Malibu Club to make the prize money equal prior to the event; their concerns falling on deaf ears.

“It’s pretty disappointing really, to keep seeing this happen,” said professional longboarder Lucy Small, co-founder of political campaign Equal Pay for Equal Play.

“We’re at a point where everyone just needs to accept equal prize money as the status quo. That’s where the expectation of the community and of the surfers, and of the media is.”

Originally published as Surfing Australia threaten Noosa Malibu club with expulsion over pay parity furore