WAIKIKI, O‘AHU – June 14 and 15, 2025 — The next generation of Hawaii’s surfers took center stage at Queen’s Beach this past weekend as the 27th Annual T&C Surf Grom Contest, presented by Duke’s Waikiki, delivered two days of fun, family, and friendly competition to the heart of Waikiki. With a focus on community, ocean safety, and pure stoke, our beloved event created memories that will last a lifetime.
Waikiki provided playful and clean surf throughout the weekend. Day 1 served up 2 to 3-foot waves, or head-high to overhead for the keiki, and perfect conditions for the Kokua division at Baby Queens. Sunday saw a slight bump in the swell, with contestable 2-3 foot surf providing the ideal canvas for the kids at Queens main break, an epic wave for our keiki.
This year’s Kokua division saw the biggest turnout, with the addition of more heats and a girls’ bracket. Dozens of keiki aged 3–8 suited up and paddled out with help from aunties, uncles, and parents. Some stood up, some rode on their bellies, but everyone walked away with a medal, big smiles, and a budding connection to and love for the ocean.
The groms turned it up across all divisions, from classic longboard lines to fearless shortboard hacks and high-energy bodyboard rides. Every division had standout performances. Among the many impressive wins, the girl's shortboard 6–8-year-old division saw Kawailani Ho take the top spot with smooth surfing that showed poise beyond her years. The shortboard boys 6–8 champ Kane Mochkatel navigated the inside sections like a boss. In the Shortboard girls 9–10, Keenah Fujimura rose to the occasion with powerful turns and consistent wave selection. Lincoln Patacchia had an early lead in the boy's shortboard 9-10 division, but Reef Adams stayed busy and edged out a win in the final minutes. Jeremiah Fritz claimed gold in the hotly contested Shortboard Boys 11–12 bracket with a strong backhand combination of searing turns. On the longboard side, Kealii Sallas found the nose in the highly competitive 10-12-year-old division, and Yoni Amir in the boys 10–12 division brought classic Waikiki style to his winning ride. In Bodyboard Coed 6–9, Brave Keizer lived up to his name with bold, clean rides, while Kaikea Apuna topped the 10–12-year-old field. The Freesurf Expression Session, always a crowd favorite, saw Kilil & Tanner Haytin claim 1st with a mix of technical tandem maneuvers and some upside-down double shakes.
“Seeing the next generation of surfers out at Queens this weekend reminded me why we started this comp years ago,” said T&C Surf Designs founder Craig Sugihara. “It’s about the joy of riding waves, the spirit of community, and sharing the stoke with the kids who represent the future of surfing.”
The T&C Grom Contest has always been more than just a surf event; it’s a cultural touchstone celebrating the values of mentorship, friendship, and respect for the ocean. The Kokua division, where groms receive in-water guidance, remains a tradition, welcoming keiki as young as three to stand tall on the waves at Baby Queens.
A heartfelt mahalo goes out to all the participants, parents, volunteers, water patrol, judges, and sponsors who made the 2025 contest possible, including Duke’s Waikiki, the Boys & Girls Club of Hawaii, and our event sponsors Dakine, Sun Bum, Yeti, Futures, Vans, RVCA, GoPro, Science Bodyboards, Melin, and PSD underwear plus countless prize sponsors.
With nearly three decades of grom stoke behind it, we were blessed to have been able to host the T&C Grom Contest this year and to inspire Hawai‘i’s youth, one wave at a time.
To help perpetuate this event in the years to come, consider expressing your appreciation to Hawaii’s City and County representatives.
T&C Surf has been organizing our annual Grom Comp since the 1998 at the iconic Queen's surf break at Waikiki Beach. The goal of the event is to give kids a positive experience with surf competition. To create a more relaxed and fun competitive atmosphere we don't allow ranked or national event competitors to enter our competition. It's for fun and spreading the stoke of surfing. Founder Craig Sugihara says "The arrival of summer creates a lot of anticipation for so many reasons - the end of school, long sunny days, south swells and the GROM Contest. This event has become an annual highlight for me kicking off summer. Creating a fun family-friendly environment giving keiki the opportunity to enjoy the sand and surf and get an introduction to competitive surfing is a true pleasure. Seeing the stoke in the eyes and smiles of the kids is priceless. It all about having fun!"
The two day event is held every summer and even during the pandemic we held a virtual competition online to keep the kids involved. Keikis from ages three to twelve convene from all sides of the island chain to compete in shortboard, longboard, and bodyboard divisions, along with the kokua division and the FreeSurf Magazine Expression Session, where parents and kids get to ride waves together. No one walks away empty handed. Each contestant receives a goodie bag full of cool prizes from the event sponsors including Dakine, RVCA, Vans, Vertra, and of course, T&C Surf Designs.
If you live on Oahu and surfed as a kid you probably participated in the T&C Grom Comp at least one time in your life. Notable past participants include current legends such as Billy Kemper, Brisa Hennessy, John John Florence, Carissa Moore, Barron Mamiya, Coco Ho, Betty Lou Sakura-Johnson, Mason Ho, Ezekiel Lau, Seth Moniz, Luana Silva, Kelia Moniz, Honalua Bloomfield, Kelis Kaleopa, Keani Canullo, Haley Otto, Keoki Saguibo and Kanela Stewart to name a few.
We look forward to many more contests and many more keiki to experience our event. We hope we play a part in their lifelong stoke for surfing and loving the ocean in general. The smiles and laughs say it all for us. We hope to see you all there! Mahalo from the T&C Ohana.