Para surfer Joel Taylor targets third world title with Australian team

PARA surfing champion Joel Taylor has set his sights on winning a third world title when he represents Australia in international competition later this year.

Taylor, 45, is fresh off his latest triumph which saw him win a third Australian title at Byron Bay.

The result saw him gain automatic qualification for ISA World Para Surfing Championships.

It will see the Lennox Head surfer travel to Europe or the United States to compete in the prone 1 division.

Taylor has been confined to a wheelchair since a surfing accident in 2001 and started surfing competitively in the para division five years ago.

“I’d been working pretty hard and I stripped back what competitions I was doing this year, so my main focus was on the Australian titles,” he said.

“The direct qualification is great; I don’t have to worry about a wildcard entry or anything else until later in the year now.”

Taylor was the only member of the Australian team to win a gold medal at the championships last year.

He said Australia sends a smaller team compared to other countries and they hope to be crowned overall team champions this year.

The Byron Bay event helped shine a light on the upcoming surfers, with countries including Japan, Italy and Canada involved, as well as a steady rise in Australian representation.

“It was cool because it’s the same sort of crew and then a bunch of new faces we’ve never seen,” Taylor said.

“Every world title event I’ve been to, there’s more countries getting involved. It’s growing worldwide.”

Part of competing in the sport has seen the surfers advocate for additional funding and for inclusion into the Paralympic Games.

It will not be part of the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles, however there has been continued momentum and support to see it included at Brisbane in 2032.

Taylor trains six days a week and still has plenty of determination to be part of the Australian team.

“That’s sort of the main goal for the sport at the moment,” he said. “Surfing Australia is really pushing it, and hopefully it happens for Brisbane.

“I just want to take every opportunity I can and keep pushing towards another world title for Australia.”