But it’s not just her surfing that has accelerated at a rate of knots – she’s also flying high academically, with the need to juggle training, travel and competitions with her all-important schoolwork.
Morse is a part of the Raglan Area School’s Surf Academy, a National Certificate of Educational Achievement subject which has seen children from around the country enrol in the school to attend, with the school day lasting from 7.30am to 5pm.
Alani Morse competes at the WSL Corona Cero New Zealand Pro surfing competition at Manu Bay, Raglan in May. Photo / Photosport
“I always noticed Surf Academy as a young kid and would see them rocking up to competitions. It was another opportunity and something that would really help me in my surfing. I applied and got in and I’ve got a few good friends in there and they help me push me.”
On the surf side, the academy teaches the students about their fitness and helps them to create their own training programmes. A focus on digital technology has helped with film-making, which has had the added bonus of helping her produce social media content around her surfing.
“It’s been a pretty big thing to navigate and I’ve been really transparent with my teachers and my principal, telling them that surfing is what I really want to do,” the Year 12 student, who jumped from Year 9 to Year 11 in 2025, says.
“I wanted to challenge myself.
“I’ve been able to use the commitment I have for surfing and put it into the commitment I have for my schoolwork. Last year, I finished the whole year and did all my exams and it was really cool because I could see the achievement in that.”
Alongside her father, her mother Hanna Morse has been there every step of the way as well, and older brother Theo Morse, now 19, is also a successful surfer, with the siblings having competed alongside each other at major events along the way. But with so many national and international competitions to attend, it’s hard financially to be able to do everything.
“There’s a bunch of different things that we’ve been doing to raise funds,” Morse says.
“Mum and Dad support a lot of it and we’ve been growing some pretty good sponsorships, I’ve also been doing a lot of fundraising I went and planted 2000 trees for a local farmer and got some funding from that. He’s also given me some cows to use the money off them,” she says.
“I’ve worked pretty hard and sometimes I won’t have much money and I won’t be able to go to the next competition, but somehow it comes together, so it’s just about trusting the process.”
The family moved to Raglan five years ago and Morse immediately took advantage of the waves that were on offer.
“When we lived in Auckland, I travelled all around there for surf on the weekends and some afternoons. I spent all my time at the beach or at the skatepark. Becoming a surfer was a natural thing and it’s a way of expressing myself.”
“In Auckland, the waves weren’t as good, but they helped challenge me. Now in Raglan, all of a sudden, I’ve got an amazing left-hand point bank right in front of me, and I’ve been to be able to use that and the stuff I’ve learned from my early years and put it together.”
In April this year, Morse, then 15, secured a wildcard into the following month’s World Surf League (WSL) event, after winning both the Under-20 and Open Women’s titles at the Queen of the Point event at Manu Bay.
It meant she joined thousands of spectators back home in Raglan, who had gathered to see the first men’s and women’s Championship Tour event to be held in New Zealand. Morse needed to take the day off school to face Bettylou Sakura Johnson of Hawaii, in the first round. Despite being beaten by the 13th seed, Morse was grateful for the opportunity.
“It’s been a crazy year, there’s been a lot going on and the Championship Tour event was an absolute highlight, it was an incredible experience. The opportunity to do that was amazing, and I was really lucky to be a part of it.”
Last month, Morse earned a bronze at the 2026 Surf City El Salvador ISA World Junior Surfing Championship – equalling the best individual result for New Zealand. Her performance also lifted New Zealand to No 8 in the rankings, the team’s best result since hosting the same championship at Piha in 2010, according to the International Surfing Association.
Next up for Morse is a potential trip to Taiwan for a WSL Qualifying Series event in November.
Much closer to home, the WSL will bring qualifying series and pro junior competitions to the South Island for the first time when Dunedin’s St Clair Beach hosts the Pro QS 4000 and Pro Junior events from March 16-21 next year.
Alani Morse. Photo / Photosport
“I’m appreciative of how hard New Zealand has worked to get a qualifying school competition here and I was just stoked because our Kiwi surfers have the opportunity to compete on an international level in New Zealand, rather than having to travel,” Morse says.
“It’s a good experience and then for me, home turf gives me a bit of an advantage, knowing the area there. I’m just really excited. I’ve won a few comps in Dunedin, so I feel pretty comfortable there.”
To keep her LA 2028 dream alive, Morse will need to qualify for the New Zealand Open team in 2027, and then place highly enough to try to earn selection. If it’s not to be, then perhaps her time will come in Brisbane in 2032.
“Hopefully I continue with some good results on the qualifying school series and I get to prove to the New Zealand Olympic Committee that I can do well there [in Los Angeles]. It’s a big process, but I guess every competition I go to, it gets a little bit more reachable, and that’s pretty cool.”
This story was originally published at Newsroom.co.nz and is republished with permission.