Breaking News: Erik Logan Out As WSL CEO
According to a press release from the WSL, Erik Logan is no longer the company's CEO.
"Today, the World Surf League (WSL) announced that CEO Erik Logan has departed the company, effective immediately."
Interesting timing, considering the Championship Tour stop in Brazil is ongoing (and Logan is/was in attendance), with J-Bay just around the corner. So, what happened? At the moment, we don't have any information regarding why the WSL made such a drastic (and sudden) change in leadership, but we'll look for further details in the coming days, and keep you updated.
Read below for the full release from the WSL:
LOS ANGELES, Calif., USA (Thursday, June 29, 2023) - Today, the World Surf League (WSL) announced that CEO Erik Logan has departed the company, effective immediately. As the WSL begins the process of identifying a new CEO, Emily Hofer, WSL's Chief People & Purpose Officer, and Bob Kane, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Legal Officer, will jointly lead the company and continue to drive the WSL's mission to showcase the world's best surfers on the world's best waves as the global home of competitive surfing.
With Hofer's and Kane's leadership, alongside the dedicated executive team, the WSL remains well-positioned for continued success and growth. The League maintains an unwavering commitment to working alongside our colleagues, athletes, and partners to build surfing's global competitive platform, aligned with our purpose initiative around ocean conservation. Together, we will work to advance and develop competitive surfing, pushing forward to the evolution and progression of this incredible sport.
Emily Hofer has served as the Chief People Officer for the WSL since 2017, and added the role of Chief Purpose Officer in 2020. In this role, Hofer leads strategy, design, and delivery of all People and Purpose programs for World Surf League, Kelly Slater Wave Company, and the WSL Surf Ranch across the globe. In addition, she serves as the Executive Director of WSL PURE, the league's non-profit foundation, which is dedicated to inspiring and educating fans about ocean conservation.
Bob Kane has served as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Legal Officer for the WSL and the General Counsel for the Kelly Slater Wave Company since 2019. In this role, Kane oversees the operations of the WSL across North America, Latin America, EMEA and APAC, as well as staff and athlete health, safety and security. He also leads both organization's legal departments, including partnership contracts.
About the WSL
The World Surf League (WSL) is the global home of competitive surfing, crowning the World Champions since 1976 and showcasing the world's best surfers on the world's best waves. WSL is comprised of the Tours and Competition division, which oversees and operates more than 180 global competitions each year; the Kelly Slater Wave Company (KSWC), home of the world's largest high-performance, human-made wave; and WSL Studios, an independent producer of unscripted and scripted projects.
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