Wave Final: Aloha Classic - World Cup favourites, livestream and the best pictures from the warm-up

The fact that the Aloha Classic has a special status is clear from the fact that the results must be included in the annual ranking - it is not possible to take the legendary event on Maui as a strimmer. Attendance is therefore mandatory for all World Championship aspirants, regardless of previous results. And history has shown that quite different riders often perform better at Hookipa than at the classic Euro spots.

The Aloha Classic 2024 starts on Monday 21 October and runs until 1 November. The title sponsor is Hotel Playa Surf El Medano from Tenerife and the presenter is fashion label Sundek. Bruch Boards and Goya are also supporting the event, with prize money totalling 20,000 dollars.

• The Hotel Playa Surf El Medano Tenerife is the title sponsor of the Aloha Classic

In the days leading up to the event, Hookipa fired on all cylinders and produced some big days. From world championship leader Marcilio Browne, Camille Juban and Baptist Cloarec to Kai Lenny and Robby Naish, the entire world's top riders were on the water. As always, Fish Bowl Diaries took some great pictures, the best of which you can see in the gallery above!

• Big Day in Hookipa - the best pictures from Fish Bowl Diaries

Who will be Wave World Champion 2024?

The status of the Wave World Championships is somewhat confusing this year. The ranking on the PWA page is still missing the points from Tenerife and Sylt, although Tenerife was only scheduled as a 4-star event anyway and therefore does not count towards the World Championship. The "Full Unified PWA/IWT Ranking" only appears at the very bottom of the selection, where you then come across the list that can also be seen at the IWT. Here too, however, a small question mark remains, as the points awarded by the IWT deviate from the PWA ranking from fifth place onwards. However, as this ranking is currently the only basis, it can be assumed that the PWA also uses this rating.

The two world championship leaders in the men's event are defending champion Marcilio Browne and Victor Fernandez, who are only a few points apart. As a Hookipa local, Brawzinho certainly has the best cards, but Victor Fernandez is also good for anything in his second spring. Especially as the Spaniard has the better streak so far. Marino Gil Gherardi is lurking a little way behind in third place; he only has a chance of winning the world championship if he wins and neither of the two leaders finishes better than fourth. Philip Köster is currently in fourth place, albeit with a clear gap. In order to win his sixth World Championship title, he would have to win, while the leaders can only finish sixth. Due to his injury, Sylt winner Marc Paré has one event too few in the rankings to become world champion, while Maui local Morgan Noireaux has two lower rankings than the competition with Pozo and Sylt. However, experience shows that hookipa specialists such as Camille Juban, Bernd Roediger and Antoine Martin always shake up the field at the Aloha Classic. All-round talent Kai Lenny is also "on a mission" to win.

Lina Erpenstein with World Cup chances

In the women's event, only three events count towards the World Championships, with Lina Erpenstein still in the lead after fourth place on Sylt. However, the gap is not big enough for a premature World Championship party, Alexia Kiefer and Sarah-Quita Offringa are also still in the running. SQ in particular, who won on Maui last year, is likely to be the top favourite. She has already taken two first places with Pozo and Sylt, while Lina's victory at the 4-star event on Tenerife does not count towards the World Championships. However, if Lina were to finish second behind Offringa, it would be a very close call for the World Championship title. Alexia Kiefer also still has every chance - so the World Championship race before Hookipa will be very exciting! However, riders like Coco Foveau, Sarah Hauser and Maria Andres can always spring a surprise here too.

The Aloha Classic 2024 livestream

There will also be a live stream from Hookipa on three days, depending on the conditions.

• Day 1: Wild card and qualification
• Day 2: Main round
• Day 3: Finals

You can find out when it starts and what the conditions are on the IWT and PWA social media accounts. The livestream is available on the IWT website and on YouTube.