The Shark Island Challenge is back, and Cronulla Point will host the world-famous event on Sunday, May 24 and Monday, May 25. Action begins at 12pm on both days, with The Sporting News set to broadcast the official live stream.
The men’s and women’s competitions will both be decided at the 2026 Shark Island Challenge, giving the event two days of straight-through stakes at Cronulla’s premier bodyboarding contest. The live stream will be embedded on The Sporting News Australia’s YouTube page, giving fans a direct way to follow the action as it unfolds.
The event matters because it is not just another stop on the calendar. The Shark Island Challenge has built a reputation as one of the sport’s biggest stages, and this year’s edition comes with a familiar question hanging over it after Hawaiian legend Mike Stewart won the Shark Island Challenge 2025 title: can he do it again?
Stewart’s 2025 victory set the tone for the return of the contest, and his name will linger over Cronulla Point when the first heats get underway at noon on Sunday. That gives the opening day a clear narrative, but the event is bigger than one defending champion. Both divisions are still to be settled, and Monday’s session will bring the contest to its finish.
The setup also leaves little room for error. With action scheduled to begin at 12pm on both Sunday and Monday, viewers will need to tune in on time if they want to catch the start of the live stream. The Sporting News Australia’s YouTube page will carry the embedded broadcast, making it the main online destination for fans following the competition from outside Cronulla.
For a bodyboarding event that is described as world-famous, the Shark Island Challenge is also a reminder of how much weight a single venue can carry. Cronulla Point will again become the center of the sport for two days, with the men’s and women’s winners decided in front of a global audience watching online. The contest now arrives with its storyline already built in, and the only thing left is to see who owns it when the waves do the talking.
