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Last year's world surfing title runner-up Julian Wilson will lead the local charge when he begins the defence of his Gold Coast crown in the season opener.

He's lost two great allies but Julian Wilson says he's ready for the "dogfight" when the World Surf League returns on the Gold Coast this week.

This year's Championship Tour will double as Olympic qualifying, with only a country's top two surfers securing berths for the sport's debut in Tokyo.

Wilson - the defending champion on the Gold Coast - isn't complicating things though as he aims for a maiden world title that would also seal his ticket for next year's Olympics.

"I've wanted to achieve winning a world title since I was a little kid, the Olympics is just into the equation," Wilson told AAP.

"It's a new thing and will take care of itself (with a world title win), but to potentially wear the green and gold ... it's a big reason why I surf too."

The 30-year-old was a close second to Brazil's Gabriel Medina in last season's title fight as countrymen Mick Fanning and Joel Parkinson both farewelled the tour.

Wilson insisted he isn't feeling extra pressure in their absence but knows the new guard will need to respond.

"There's been a lot of change; it's a dogfight, you scrap for your wins and don't sit back and think there's an extra element of responsibility," he told AAP.

"We've lost some of our greatest soldiers, our back's against the wall a bit, we're a little bit vulnerable ... now it's for us to step up."

Wilson won last year's Quiksilver Pro despite driving from his Sunshine Coast home each morning after the birth of his first child and nursing a serious shoulder injury.

Mikey Wright announced his arrival as a wildcard at Snapper Rocks and will this year join the tour full time, while Ryan Callinan and Soli Bailey are among Australia's new faces in the mix.

Eleven-time world champion Kelly Slater and two-time title winner John John Florence are also competing on the Gold Coast, with competition likely to begin at nearby Duranbah on Wednesday given the small conditions at the usual location.

Seven-time world title winner Stephanie Gilmore will fend off the new talent that includes fellow Australian Macy Callaghan - who clinched her fulltime spot on the main tour in last year's final qualifying series event - and United States teenager Caroline Marks.

"Locals really know a good wave from a bad wave (at Snapper Rocks), but at D'bar what you see is what you get," Wilson said.

"The waves should be really fun and with some lefts and rights, it'll open things right up."