Surfing is Californiasa国际传媒檚 official state sport and Canadian para surfer Victoria Feige wants Los Angeles to live up to that pledge in 2028.

The five-time womensa国际传媒檚 world champion from Vancouver is at the forefront of a lobby to get L.A. to introduce para surfing to the Paralympic Games.

L.A.sa国际传媒檚 organizing committee stated in June it would not propose para surfing for inclusion as a new sport in 2028. sa国际传媒淐ost and complexitysa国际传媒� of the Summer Games was the stated rationale for para surfingsa国际传媒檚 omission.

That dumbfounded Feige. California has hosted every world para surfing championship since the first in 2015.

sa国际传媒淚 was devastated,sa国际传媒� Feige said. sa国际传媒淚 have been hearing about the movement toward the Paralympics for para surfing since 2018.

sa国际传媒淚 won my first world title and I was urine-tested right after according to WADA anti-doping regulations. It felt important, progressive and we had this momentum.sa国际传媒�

There are nine para surf classifications encompassing missing limbs, prosthetics, paralysis and visual impairment.

Feige, 39, competes in the womensa国际传媒檚 kneeling classification. She mistimed a jump while snowboarding in Colorado at age 18. She fractured vertebrae in her spine and was paralyzed below the waist.

sa国际传媒淚 have been so lucky and grateful to be able to surf again and find a community and compete for my country and reach the highest levels and push my sport forward in ways I never considered,sa国际传媒� Feige said.

sa国际传媒淲hile I am in still sort of the prime of my life, I would like to help my sport reach this global stage and I would love to compete for Canada and win the gold for Canada.sa国际传媒�

The International Surfing Association has turned its attention to Brisbane in 2032, but Feige isnsa国际传媒檛 giving up on 2028.

A sa国际传媒淪ave Paralympic Surfing L.A. 2028sa国际传媒� petition started by para surfer Jack Bogle has almost 27,000 signatures.

Feige has appeared in videos with surfing star Kelly Slater and musician Jack Johnson, who have endorsed para surfing for Paralympic inclusion.

Shesa国际传媒檚 planning a California outdoor wave pool event following Novembersa国际传媒檚 world championship sa国际传媒渁s a proof of concept to show that para surfing can be held in L.A. in 2028,sa国际传媒� Feige said.

sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 like a football field and a big hydraulic press that creates a surfable wave on demand,sa国际传媒� Feige explained. sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 standardized and theysa国际传媒檝e had surfing pro level competitions there before. Isa国际传媒檓 wondering if itsa国际传媒檚 an option to make it more cost-effective and logistically easy to incorporate it into the Games.sa国际传媒�

The first world championship in 2015 had 69 competitors from 18 countries.

Each country can enter up to two surfers per classification. The 2023 world championship in Huntington Beach, Calif., had 180 athletes from 27 countries. The number of competitive para surfers internationally is estimated at just under 500, according to Boglesa国际传媒檚 petition.

Canada has roughly 25 para surfers classified in seven of the nine divisions, said Surf Canada director Pascale Martineau, who co-founded the organizationsa国际传媒檚 adaptive surfing committee and has been the teamsa国际传媒檚 manager at world championships.

sa国际传媒淲orldwide, I feel we did so much work. We have an amazing team working on classification with the ISA,sa国际传媒� Martineau said.

sa国际传媒淲hen the news came that the L.A. 2028 organizing committee did not go through with para surfing for the Paralympics because of cost and complexity, it was a big shock. All adaptive sports come with cost and complexity.sa国际传媒�

Canadian wheelchair rugby co-captain Trevor Hirschfield, who competed in his fifth Paralympic Games in Paris, gave para surfing a try in 2020 because he wanted an outdoor sport to pursue during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A year later, he was on a board at the world championship in Pismo Beach, Calif., in the prone 2 division, in which athletes require assistance to catch a wave and get on a board safely.

sa国际传媒淚sa国际传媒檝e been to Paralympics and world championships before and I thought the world para surf championships were amazing,sa国际传媒� Hirschfield said. sa国际传媒淚t was very professional and world-class and I was kind of blown away by it.

sa国际传媒淐alifornia, L.A. hosting the Games and not picking up para surfing is a big miss on their part.sa国际传媒�

Aquatic beach chairs can help surfers with mobility issues get into the water.

sa国际传媒淚 just crawl,sa国际传媒� Feige said. sa国际传媒淚 push my board beside me. It looks a bit crazy, but it means I can go surfing independently.

sa国际传媒淥nce Isa国际传媒檓 in the water, Isa国际传媒檓 such a good swimmer and paddler, and I taught myself how to duck dive, Isa国际传媒檓 just as good as anybody else in the water who is able-bodied.sa国际传媒�

Feige acknowledged the clock is ticking on her Paralympic dreams, but she wants people with disabilities to see that surfing is possible.

sa国际传媒淚 really care about bringing more people into the sport, not just for the Paralympics, but it gives so much to be able to access the environment and feel alive,sa国际传媒� she explained.

sa国际传媒淥ne of the things I really like about para surfing is theresa国际传媒檚 no tokenism in the ocean. Theresa国际传媒檚 no special treatment. If you catch a good wave and you surf it well, you did that. Itsa国际传媒檚 very liberating and empowering that way.sa国际传媒�

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