The ISA confirmed that many teams would be arriving for the Games with a full contingent. These include the surf powers of the world including Australia, Brazil, United States, France, Costa Rica, South Africa, Tahiti, Peru and New Zealand, all of whom are coming to this country looking to earn the championship Gold Medal.

In addition, Many morel countries are currently in the process of bringing their registrations up to date, thereby making their participation to the World Surfing Games official in the registry before the ISA. In the entire world, there are 54 teams who have the option to participate in the Billabong ISA World Surfing Games Costa Rica 2009. Each nationally selected team has until July 30 to register in order to be included in this year's spectacular contest.

The ISA World Surfing Games have taken place every year since 1964, and the record number of countries that participated at one time was in Huntington Beach, California in 2006. That year 33 countries arrived in "Surf City." With 35 national surf teams expected in Costa Rica, and the addition of Billabong as a title sponsor, the 2009 Billabong ISAWorld Surfing Games could very well be the greatest edition of the championship yet.

The Federacion de Surf de Costa (FSC), which is organizing the event, anticipates that between the surf teams, their technical bodies, and the staff of the event itself, there will be more than 1,000 people with the contest in Jaco during the days of the Games. Jose Ureña, President of the FSC, declared that the positive response from the national surf teams--which will break the participation record--indicates a great event. He also says having such a large turnout bodes well since the countries are meeting one of the great challenges of our time, the economic situation present at this time in the world.

"The teams that approach Costa Rica to a large extent are motivated by the warm water on our coast, the quality of our waves--which are the best ones in the world, very amiable people, their economic abilities to bring their full teams to the World Surfing Games, and the amount of different activities which they are complemented with in this country," said Ureña. "With a month and a half to go, it is very probable that the number of countries will still increase. Once we initiate the Billabong ISA World Surfing Games, this will be a real celebration of cultures combining globally."

This week, the South Africa team made the final team public of the eight athletes who will be surfing for their country in the Billabong ISA World Surfing Games, Costa Rica 2009. These surfers, who also participate on the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS), include Brandon Jackson, Rudy Palmboom, Damien Fahrentford and Ryan Payne in the Open category.

On the other hand, Latin American countries Venezuela, Peru and Puerto Rico have announced their teams. These include the best surfers of their countries including Francisco Bellorín, Gabriel Villarán and Brian Toth, respectively by nation.

In addition, it is no less important to stress the confirmed participation of unpublished countries for the World Surfing Games, as is the case of Vanuatu, an island in the continent of Australia, who will be sending a full contingent of surfers.

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