Ocean Lifeguards from Huntington State Beach, Laguna Beach Marine Safety, Crystal Cove and Los Angeles County Fire Dept. Selected To Represent the United States At The International Surf Rescue Challenge
by: Adam Sandler
Published: November 26, 2025
Gustavo Avila CSLSA President
HUNTINGTON BEACH...Ocean Lifeguards from Huntington State Beach, Laguna Beach Marine Safety, Crystal Cove and the Los Angeles County Fire Dept. (LACoFD) have been selected to represent the United States at the International Surf Rescue Challenge (ISRC) to be held in Mt. Maunganui Beach, New Zealand November 26 through 30, 2025.
Ocean Lifeguards selected to compete at ISRC for Team USA are California State Parks Lifeguards Montana George (Huntington State Beach), Kali Wilding (Crystal Cove State Beach) and Roman Higgins (Ventura State Beach). Laguna Beach Marine Safety Lifeguard Claire Kelly and LACoFD Ocean Lifeguards Holly Maine, Stephen Blaauw and Lukas Pohlman. Youth team members selected are Finley Murphy (Huntington Beach) and Thomas Rocher (San Clemente State JGs).
They all have been named to the US Surf Lifesaving National Team which will compete against teams from 13 countries during the week-long ISRC competition.
The prestigious ISRC will boast Ocean Lifeguards and elite Olympics-level surf racing athletes from USA, Japan, Great Britain, Spain, Germany and Australia, among others. There will also be eight youth teams (under-19 years old) competing and representing their respective nations.
“We are fortunate to have such outstanding California ocean lifeguard athletes, who are also terrific surf racing ambassadors,” said Gustavo Avila, President of the California Surf Lifesaving Association (CSLSA), based in Huntington Beach. “We are delighted they have been chosen to represent the USA in New Zealand."
Maine and Blaauw work during the summer as Ocean Lifeguards assigned to Zuma Beach, while Pohlman is an Ocean Lifeguard and Junior Guard Instructor at Dockweiler State Beach in Westchester.
Holly Maine
The bi-annual ISRC is a week-long event which centers on three “tests” – each test is a full day of continuous events with teams competing in ocean swims, paddleboard, surf ski, and beach races. The events are scored and the team with the highest point score across the three tests will be declared the 2025 ISRC Champions.
The Ocean Lifeguards were selected for Team USA by the United States Lifesaving Assoc. (USLA) from among hundreds of professional Ocean Lifeguards across the country based partly on their competitive performances at the USLA National Lifeguard Championships held in August at Huntington State Beach, CA.
“I feel absolutely honored to be representing Team USA at the ISRC,” said Maine. "I am so excited to compete against some of the top surf racing athletes in the world—and in such a beautiful place. I was fortunate to compete in ISRC 2017. But as a young 17-year old I didn't get the results I was hoping. Now at 25, with two full Australian racing seasons under my belt, I'm really looking forward to returning to New Zealand and putting my foot on that ISRC start line. I know I wouldn’t be here without the support of my family, coaches and friends.”
Maine and Blaauw are 2025 USLA National Champions in several events. Maine is the reigning Ironwoman and Women’s Board Rescue Race National Champion, while Blaauw is the current Men’s Rescue Race National Champion. Pohlman holds National Champion titles in Men’s Board Relay and Taplin Relay. This is Pohlman’s first selection to the US National Team.
Stephen Blaauw
“Being selected for the USA Team is a huge honor,” said Blaauw. “I am proud and excited to be on it. I feel confident and ready to test my skills against the best surf racing athletes in the world. It always feels good to represent your home country.”
Ocean Lifeguard surf racers from the East Coast, representing lifeguard agencies in New Jersey and Florida, among others, round-out the 16-member US team.
The ISRC event was last held in September, 2023 in South Padre Island, Texas, where the USA Team finished in third place among six countries. The 2025 event marks a return to Mount Maunganui Beach. New Zealand, where it was held in 2017.
The CSLSA/United States Lifesaving Association is the largest nonprofit association of professional ocean lifeguards and open water rescuers in the nation. The CSLSA/USLA works to reduce death and injury in the aquatic environment through public education, national lifeguard standards, training programs, competitions, promotion of high levels of lifeguard readiness, and other means.
Photos: Joel Gitelson