It was a massive day at Burleigh Heads as Isla Huppatz and Dane Henry took out the 2026 Gold Coast Open. Both surfers, who recently claimed World Surf League World Junior Champion titles, kept their winning streaks alive in front of a home crowd. The iconic right point break delivered fun two-to-three foot walls that gave the competitors plenty of room to perform.
The Gold Coast Open is a Qualifying Series 4000 event, acting as the penultimate stop for the Asia and Australia/Oceania regions. It is a critical competition for athletes looking to grab ranking points for the 2026/2027 Challenger Series. While Huppatz and Henry had already locked in their Challenger Series spots thanks to their World Junior victories, their performances this week still caused major ranking shifts for the rest of the draw.
For eighteen-year-old Huppatz, this result marks her second major victory of 2026, keeping her entirely undefeated for the year. Born and raised in Victoria, she now calls Burleigh Heads home and actively represents the local boardriders club. She carried a lot of momentum into this event, having taken out the World Junior Title in the Philippines in late January. This victory is her second Gold Coast Open title, following up her inaugural Qualifying Series win at this event in 2023.
The women’s final turned into a tight battle between Huppatz and her close friend Milla Coco Brown. Surfing in her first Qualifying Series Final, Brown took control early in the thirty-minute heat, using a sharp forehand attack to post a 6.00 and a backup 7.00. Huppatz played a more patient game. After two false starts, she nailed a powerful two-turn combo that earned her a 7.50. With thirteen minutes remaining, Huppatz added a 5.85 to her tally, moving into a tiny 0.35 lead over Brown. She held onto that lead until the buzzer sounded. Ruby Berry and Minami Nonaka finished third and fourth respectively, continuing a strong run of results for both surfers.
Huppatz was thrilled to secure a win on home turf. “I’m pretty happy to win,” Huppatz said. “Obviously, I’m a part of Burleigh Boardriders and they’re such a crazy good…they’ve been such an amazing club to us. I’m super glad to represent them and get the win here for them at home. I’ll celebrate with a cruisy arvo at home with the dogs and the fam”. Her victory bumps her up to number two on the Australia/Oceania rankings, setting the stage ahead of the final event at Phillip Island.
In the men’s draw, nineteen-year-old Dane Henry continued his unstoppable run. This victory stands as his second and most significant Qualifying Series win. It adds to a list of recent achievements that includes two major ISA wins, a Qualifying Series podium finish at Newcastle last November, and a regional Junior Tour title.
The men’s final was an absolute air show, playing out as a battle between Henry and Bronson Meydi. Both surfers carried massive momentum into the final, having dropped some of the event’s highest scores in dramatic last-second Quarterfinal wins. Henry had posted a 9.70, while Meydi locked in a 9.50. Out in the water, Jackson Baker and Shohei Kato were left chasing large scores while Henry and Meydi went blow-for-blow.
The highlight of the event was Henry pulling off a signature backflip. As the most consistent surfer to perform this extremely rare manoeuvre in competition, he earned a massive 9.65. He improved his backup score to a 7.75, closing the event with the highest heat total of 17.40 out of a possible 20.
“I think a lot of people don’t believe me when I say I do backflips and they think it’s all AI on Instagram, but to get one in front of everyone at my home was really special,” Henry said. His coach, Adam Dufner, had advised him not to play into Meydi’s game. “The section was just too good, so I did one and then we’re all kind of laughing about it,” Henry explained. “Right till the very end, I was definitely not safe. If he got that last one at the end, I guarantee I wouldn’t be the one standing up here. Bronson pushes me to my absolute best and I’m really keen to have a lot more battles with that guy”.
Henry was stoked to share the moment with his friends and family. “It’s so good, I’ve got all my friends, my closest circle, everyone here,” Henry said. “Thank you to everyone that’s watching and following along. All the support means the world to me. I’m really happy to have all my family down here and to win the comp in front of my grandparents. It was a really special one at Burleigh. It holds a really special part in my heart”.
Henry is carrying huge confidence as he prepares to surf as a confirmed wildcard in his first Championship Tour event at Bells Beach in April.
For twenty-one-year-old Meydi, his second-place finish was enough to claim the Asia Qualifying Series rankings lead from Kei Kobayashi, who held it for the majority of the season. The road to qualification now reaches its decisive moment at the final event, the Phillip Island Pro QS 4000.
