River waves · building, running, surfing
Surfing, young people and health: what research says
Anyone planning a wave hears two sentences: "That's just something for a few surfers" and "Surfing is good for young people". Neither is quite right. This article collects what is documented – about physical activity and screen time among children and young people, about surfing as a youth movement culture and about studies of surf programmes. And it says where the evidence ends.
Children and young people move too little
The World Health Organization recommends that children and young people aged 5 to 17 get an average of at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity a day. In Germany, few manage this: according to the KiGGS study of the Robert Koch Institute (wave 2, 2014 to 2017), 22.4 per cent of girls and 29.4 per cent of boys aged 3 to 17 reach it. The Motor Module Study (Motorik-Modul) came to the same picture in 2019: around 80 per cent of children and young people do not meet the recommendation.
Screen time: the competition for free time
The longitudinal study by the health insurer DAK-Gesundheit and the German Centre for Addiction Issues in Childhood and Adolescence at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf has been measuring for years how 10- to 17-year-olds use digital media. In the survey of autumn 2025 (published in March 2026) they spent an average of 146 minutes a day on social media on weekdays and 201 minutes at weekends. According to the study, more than 1.4 million children and young people show problematic use of social media, and more than 1.3 million of video streaming.
It does not follow that a sports facility prevents problematic media use – no study claims that. Something more modest follows: offers of physical activity compete with what actually fascinates young people in their free time. Criticising screen time alone does not win that competition; creating attractive places for real experiences stands a chance.
Surfing as a youth movement culture
The Third German Children's and Youth Sport Report ("Kinder- und Jugendsport im Umbruch", 2015) describes trend sport as a sports scene of its own alongside club sport and names BMX, skateboarding, surfing and parkour as examples: movement cultures that young people shape themselves in local scenes. Skateboarding and surfing have been Olympic since Tokyo 2021 – the scene has turned into competitive sport without the scene disappearing.
That outdoor sport and experiencing nature belong together has also reached organised youth sport. The German Sports Youth (dsj) and NAJU, the youth organisation of the German nature conservation union NABU, have published a joint handbook on this ("Abenteuer JUUS – Natürlich sportlich", 2009): many children and young people, it says, seek a special adventure in sport and exercise outdoors in nature; its guiding principle is that sport and the environment belong together. A river wave is such a place: whoever surfs there deals with current, water level and water quality – environmental education that needs no explaining. → Water quality of the Rems
What studies of surf programmes show
There is a small, growing body of research on surfing and the wellbeing of young people. Three studies are often cited:
- The Wave Project, United Kingdom. The organisation offers supervised surf courses in the sea to socially disadvantaged children and young people. An evaluation from 2015 (Godfrey, Devine-Wright and Taylor, Community Practitioner) followed 84 children and young people aged 8 to 18 through a six-week course at seven locations in south-west England. Their wellbeing improved significantly and was still higher three months after the course; one year later, 70 per cent regularly attended a surf club.
- "Surf to Success", United Kingdom. Hignett and colleagues (2018, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning) studied a twelve-week surf programme for 13- to 16-year-olds who were at risk of or affected by school exclusion. Afterwards their resting heart rate fell (an indication of better fitness), the young people spoke more positively about school and friendships, showed more environmental awareness and were rated better by their teachers. For wellbeing overall the picture was mixed.
- University Medical Center Freiburg. The Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics combined group behavioural therapy for young people with depression with water sports and a surf camp on the island of Sylt in a pilot study, and reports "clear improvements in depressive symptoms" (deutliche Verbesserungen bezüglich der depressiven Symptomatik). Its review of the state of research (Hearn, Biscaldi-Schäfer and Fleischhaker, 2024, Zeitschrift für Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie und Psychotherapie) concludes that initial studies suggest positive effects, but that the research is limited and needs further investigation.
What the studies do not show
All three studies concern surfing in the sea, in supervised programmes with trained staff, and none had a control group. Whether the improvements come from surfing, from the supervision, from the group or from the change of scene cannot be separated. There are no such studies on river waves. Surf therapy is therapy – with professionals, diagnosis and a concept. A wave is a sports facility, not a treatment. The only sound conclusion is therefore: surfing has what it takes to inspire young people and get them moving, and the first studies on it are encouraging.
Rapid surfing: from trend to organised sport
Surfing on standing waves has become organised within a few years. The German Championships in Rapid Surfing have their own junior categories for girls and boys under 16; in 2026 they were held as part of "Die Finals" at the Leinewelle in Hanover. The Leinewelle, run entirely by volunteers according to its own information, has more than 500 members and guests and held its own youth competition in 2025. In September 2026 the first European Championship took place in Ebikon near Lucerne; the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) saw it as a sign of "the steep development curve and the great potential of the still young sport", and the German Surfing Federation (DWV) stressed that the juniors "play a very special role in the development of the sport". → Rapid surfing
The federation also names the reason why standing waves matter for young athletes: because of the lower travel costs, this area could possibly be open to a larger group of children and young people as well. For families from inland regions, surfing in the sea means a long trip. A wave nearby means: cycling there after school.
What river waves offer children today
In Pforzheim, blackforestwave e.V. invites all children who can swim; for members, board, wetsuit, helmet and vest are included in the fee, and non-members surf on open surf days. In Nuremberg, the Fuchslochwelle offers children's courses from the age of twelve. Everywhere the same applies: helmet, supervision, fixed surfing times – and you must be able to swim. → Case study Pforzheim · → How to surf a river wave
What this means for a river wave
A river wave does not solve young people's problems. It can do something more concrete: be an offer of physical activity that young people find attractive of their own accord – outdoors, on the water, with their peers, in a sport with a scene, competitions and role models. It can reach young people whom traditional club sport does not reach, and it makes a sport accessible that otherwise requires a trip to the sea. How we see this for the Remswelle: → Children and young people at the Remswelle
Frequently asked questions
Is surfing good for young people's mental health?
Initial studies of supervised surf programmes in the sea show better wellbeing and, in young people with depression, an improvement in symptoms. The studies are small and without a control group; a review by the University Medical Center Freiburg calls the findings encouraging but the research limited. There are no such studies on river waves.
From what age can you surf a river wave?
Each wave decides that for itself. In Pforzheim all children who can swim are welcome; Nuremberg offers children's courses from the age of twelve. Helmets and supervision are usual at built waves.
Isn't rapid surfing just a passing fad?
Rapid surfing has had German Championships since 2019, today with junior categories, and since 2026 a national squad and a European Championship; the German Surfing Federation is a member of the German Olympic Sports Confederation. The DOSB speaks of a "steep development curve".
Sources: WHO, Guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour (2020) · Robert Koch-Institut, Journal of Health Monitoring 1/2018 (KiGGS wave 2, physical activity) · Motorik-Modul-Studie, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology/PH Karlsruhe, idw, 18.03.2019 · DAK-Gesundheit/DZSKJ at UKE, Mediensucht-Studie 2026, results report and press release of 24.03.2026 · German Olympic Sports Confederation, „Was steht im Dritten Deutschen Kinder- und Jugendsportbericht?“; W. Schmidt et al. (eds.), Dritter Deutscher Kinder- und Jugendsportbericht, 2015 · Deutsche Sportjugend and Naturschutzjugend, „Abenteuer JUUS – Natürlich sportlich“, 2009 · C. Godfrey, H. Devine-Wright, J. Taylor, "The positive impact of structured surfing courses on the wellbeing of vulnerable young people", Community Practitioner 88(1), 2015 · A. Hignett et al., Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning 18(1), 2018 · B. Hearn, M. Biscaldi-Schäfer, C. Fleischhaker, „Aktueller Forschungsstand zur Surftherapie …“, Zeitschrift für Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie und Psychotherapie, 2024 · Universitätsklinikum Freiburg, „Surfen gegen Depressionen“, press release 26.04.2023 · Deutscher Wellenreitverband, „Rapid Surfing“ (wellenreitverband.de) · DOSB, „Eine Sportart auf Erfolgswelle“, 22.09.2026 · Leinewelle e.V., „Finals 2026“ and „Jugend“ (enercity-leinewelle.de) · blackforestwave e.V., „FAQ“ (blackforestwave.de)
Last updated: 15 October 2026 · Initiative Remswelle