---
title: "Panama’s youth surf circuit returns to Isla Colón after five-year break"
date: 2026-04-12
author: ""
url: https://panamadaily.news/panama-youth-surf-league-isla-colon/
categories:
  - "News"
  - "Sports"
tags:
  - "Bocas del Toro"
  - "Isla Colón"
  - "Panama surfing"
  - "Pandeportes"
  - "Playa Paunch"
  - "youth sports"
---

# Panama’s youth surf circuit returns to Isla Colón after five-year break

## What Happened

The Panama Children’s and Youth Surf League will return to Isla Colón, in Bocas del Toro, for the second stop of its 2026 circuit on Saturday, April 18, at Playa Paunch. The event marks the league’s comeback to the island after five years away, bringing a new round of competition for the country’s youngest surfers.

Organized by the DST Children’s and Youth Surf Club, the league has grown into a training ground for emerging athletes. It gives competitors experience in a structured setting while helping them develop the discipline and routines expected in organized surfing.

## Competition Format

The event will follow a professional-style format with judges approved by the International Surfing Association. Surfers will compete under an official scoring system and ranking structure, and they will also take part in technical talks designed to reinforce competition knowledge and surf fundamentals.

Each participant will receive individual feedback from judges, adding an educational component to the contest. That approach is meant to support performance in the water while also strengthening the broader development of the sport.

## Divisions and Participation

Eight divisions will be contested: Novatos Kids for ages 5 to 12, Novatos Teen for ages 12 to 18, Sub 10, Sub 12, Sub 14, Sub 16, Sub 18 and Open Juvenil for ages 18 to 20. The range of categories reflects the depth of Panama’s junior surf pipeline and the effort to give athletes competitive opportunities at different stages of development.

Surfers from Bocas del Toro and other provinces are expected to take part, along with athletes representing different schools and sports organizations across the country. That broad participation underscores how youth surfing continues to spread beyond its traditional coastal centers.

## Why It Matters

Lower-age surf leagues have become an important part of Panama’s national surfing structure. They help identify talent early, build competition habits and prepare the next generation of coaches, judges and officials who will sustain the sport over time.

The DST club, a non-profit recognized by Pandeportes, has worked since 2012 to train children and teenagers in surfing nationwide. Its 2026 calendar also includes new stops in Playa Guánico and Puerto Armuelles, in Chiriquí, as part of a wider effort to promote surfing and sports tourism in Panama.

The return to Isla Colón adds another high-profile venue to that effort, placing one of the country’s key surfing destinations at the center of youth competition once again.