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Surf Nation | The Road (or Waves) to the Olympics
Clip: Season 7 Episode 1 | 1m 9sVideo has Closed Captions
Head coach Grant Thomas explains what China wants to achieve with its National Surf Team.
Head coach Grant Thomas explains what China wants to achieve with its National Surf Team. Through the country's Chinese National Competitions, they seek the best of the best athletes so that China and their surfers can reach the global stage at the World Surf League Championship Tour and International Surfing Association with the ultimate goal being the Olympics.
Funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Wyncote Foundation.
![Doc World](https://image.pbs.org/contentchannels/eLnCAGg-white-logo-41-ms1E5XD.png?format=webp&resize=200x)
Surf Nation | The Road (or Waves) to the Olympics
Clip: Season 7 Episode 1 | 1m 9sVideo has Closed Captions
Head coach Grant Thomas explains what China wants to achieve with its National Surf Team. Through the country's Chinese National Competitions, they seek the best of the best athletes so that China and their surfers can reach the global stage at the World Surf League Championship Tour and International Surfing Association with the ultimate goal being the Olympics.
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship[Matt Clark] So China's plan inv getting their kids competing in a variety of events around th These competitions basically fit into three categories.
There's the Chinese national com These are where the provinces send their own teams to compete against each other.
For the kids, these are really important events for competition experience and to maintain thei standing on the national team.
There's the World Surf League's Championship Tour, otherwise known as the CT.
This is where the superstars of the surfing world compete against each other indiv When Alex says he wants to be wo this is exactly what he's talkin And then there's th International Surfing Associatio They hold the World Surfing Game This is where countries send del of their top surfers, and they're typically seen as the amateur world championshi but now they're used as a qualifier for the Olympics, so everybody comes.
This is where China is measuring themselves against the world.
But Olympic qualification isn't it's as an individual, so the Chinese Olympic surf team, were there to be one, may only have one surfer.
Surf Nation | An Athlete's Mental Health: Expectations
Video has Closed Captions
Surfer Lolo Luo Ling opens up about her mental health as an athlete and as a woman. (57s)
Surf Nation | An Athlete's Mental Health: Winning
Video has Closed Captions
Sports is a mental game and winning that game can become a major obstacle for athletes like surfers. (1m 22s)
Surf Nation | China's Surfing History
Video has Closed Captions
The creation of a surf program of young Chinese athletes with its eyes set on the Olympics. (1m 19s)
Surf Nation | In Sport and Life, the Pressure and Motivation
Video has Closed Captions
Surfers for China's National Team know opportunities and expectations keep the pressure on. (1m 22s)
Video has Closed Captions
In Hainan, China, young surfers aspire to join the national surf team and dream of the Olympics. (30s)
Video has Closed Captions
In Hainan, China, young surfers aspire to join the national surf team and dream of the Olympics. (50s)
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipFunding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Wyncote Foundation.