Costes Wins Sixth Sintra Bodyboard Festival Title

Pierre-Louis Costes captured his sixth Sintra Bodyboard Festival title on Sunday, defeating Brazilian Uri Valadão in the final at Praia Grande as the sport’s oldest event celebrated its 30th-anniversary edition.

A field of former world champions

Costes worked his way through a draw heavy with decorated names. In the quarterfinals he edged Eder Luciano, closing the heat with a 7.25-point invert for a 14.25 total that overturned a slim deficit.

He then beat former world champion Armide Soliveres in the semifinals. The final paired Costes against Valadão, a four-time Sintra winner and two-time world champion, on the reef break both men have shaped their careers around.

A victory fifteen years in the making

Costes, who has lived in Portugal for roughly 15 years, read the shifting peaks with a local’s instinct. He first stood on the Sintra podium in 2008, and by 2026 he reckoned he had made about 20 appearances at the festival.

After the final, Costes spoke openly about the venue’s hold on him. “When I saw Sintra was celebrating 30 years I started counting — how many times I’d competed here, around 20,” he told reporters. “This victory is for Portugal. It is a Portuguese win.”

The event, organized by the Sintra Coast Bodyboarding and Surf Association with the municipal council as its founding sponsor, remains the longest-running stop on the IBC World Tour. At thirty years, it simply deepened what a sixth title already told: some athletes and some waves grow old together.