The Chilean government has granted permission to surf big waves to 10 high-performance surfers who have a chance of qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, the local surfing federation reported on its website.

Guillermo Satt, Manuel Selman, Paloma Santos, Jessica Anderson, Lorena Fica, Josefina Vidueira, Nicolas Diaz, Cristian Merello, Roberto Araki and Maximiliano Cross are free to surf. Noel de la Torre was given permission but chose not to be on the list, the statement said.

“Every Friday, the assigned athletes will receive in their email the safe conduct to train (go and be on the beach), which will be valid for seven days.  This will be renewed according to compliance with the requirements of the Ministry of Health (which issues it and is the one who will re-evaluate its delivery every week)”, they point out and clarify: “The Safe Conduct is not a free instance of mobilization. It is delivered, in this case, only to go to the beach, play sports and return home”.

The news disappointed the main reference for Chilean surfing worldwide, Ramón Navarro, who wrote on his Instagram: “Is the sport in Chile being managed by people who do not know the essence and passion of sports?” he asks.

And he adds: “Each and every one of them on this list has more than earned their place and right for what they have done in their sporting careers with or without the possibility of reaching the Olympic Games as they say. But then, when they talk about big waves, only one spot is given to one of the greats of our country, who very well deserves it for his tremendous career and personal effort to get where he is today. But I am left with the big question. Have I not done enough to represent Chile throughout my career? Does Diego Medina, another athlete who has put the name of our sport at the top, not deserve to be on this list? What about all the juniors who are the future of our sport?”

Navarro also reflects on the safety measures that must be implemented when the sea is rough, requiring more personnel than just the surfer himself.

“As I said at the beginning of this post, it is done by an organization that is unfortunately run by people who do not feel or experience surfing in the way that true athletes do. What they are trying to do is separate and provoke conflicts in our sport,” he said.

“Sports cannot be dirty. And this surf federation, now more than ever, does not represent me. Federation: I don’t know what story they tell the Ministry of Sport, but watch out for who is in charge of surfing in Chile today,” he concludes his post.

Navarro had already spoken out against the ban on surfing in his native Pichilemu, one of the most surfing cities in Chile.

The decision is in line with the one Argentina took before surfing was allowed in Mar del Plata, when only four surfers were allowed into the water in the city, using the same criteria as in Chile.

In Chile, there are 324.000 confirmed cases of Covid, with 295 recoveries and 7290 deaths.

 

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Is it that in Chile sports are run by people who do not know the essence and passion of sports?? I say this because of what we are going through right now with the list of surfers that according to @fechsurf can enter to surf from today. Each and every one of this list has more than earned their space and right for what they have done in their sports careers with or without possibilities of reaching the Olympic games as they say. But then, when they talk about big waves, only one spot is given to one of the greats of our country, who very much deserves it for his tremendous career and personal effort to get where he is today. But I am left with the big question. Have I not done enough to represent Chile throughout my career?? Does @diegomedinachile, another athlete who has put the name of our sport at the top, not deserve to be on this list either?? And so, like many more athletes who do deserve to be on that list. What happens to all the juniors who are the future of our sport. What is happening with the safety measures in the water, how can they believe that only one person is going to enter the water on a day of big waves? As I said at the beginning of this post, it is made by an organization that is unfortunately run by people who do not feel or experience surfing in the way that true athletes feel. What they are trying to do is separate and provoke conflicts in our sport. But I tell you here, surfing cannot be soiled by decisions made at a desk. Above all, when they want to separate us from a generation that has given so many achievements to our country. If the Federation thinks that I should not be there for my achievements, it is their business, but at least they should know that big wave surfing is not a sport for one person, especially in the times we are living today. Sport does not get soiled. And to me, this surfing Federation now more than ever DOES NOT REPRESENT ME. @fechsurf I don't know what story they tell @mindepchile but watch out for who is in charge of surfing in Chile today. Comments 👇👇👇

A publication shared by Ramon Navarro (@surfnavarro) the 16 of Jul from 2020 to 4: 41 PDT