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Ah during the prestigious Billabong Pipeline Masters in 2019, the final round of the last completed season of the World Surf League Championship Tour (CT), Italo Ferreira and Gabriel Medina emerged in the final to compete for the world title. It was an important event. Paddling the sparkling, clear waters of Oahu, Hawaii, the two most prominent Brazilian surfers of the moment competed for the sport’s biggest prize, reflecting both the present and the possible future of surfing. . Once a sport dominated by Americans and Australians, Brazil has usurped both as the focal point of the men’s field today.
At the start of the competition, she demonstrated one of the most underrated and fascinating aspects of competitive surfing. Two-time world champion Medina is renowned for his mental courage, but 10 seconds after the start of the competition, Medina provisionally withdrew from the first wave as Ferreira rushed forward and grabbed it. It thundered to the side of the wave, gently spinning at the bottom before exiting triumphantly at its end. The crowd on the beach applauded. The tone was set. Ferreira immediately asserted himself and within 39 minutes an unstable Medina could not perform well enough to deny him a first world title.
At its best, surfing is that one-on-one mental contest often won by those who choose their waves wisely, understand the conditions better and can even intimidate their opponents with their mere presence, never losing sight of them. It is also, quite simply, one of the supreme athletic feats in the sport. Surfers descend from walls of water, emerge from crashing barrels and sweeping through the air, landing on the shifting surface below. Immense core strength, tree trunk legs, balance and power are all necessary attributes.
As surfing enters the Olympic fold, the first question is simply whether it will work. Of all the places where surfing will make its Olympic debut, this is not a great place to introduce the sport to the world. The smaller the wave, the more opportunity for surfers to demonstrate the full extent of their skills. Enter Tsurigasaki Beach, the location of the surf event in Chiba about 40 miles from Tokyo, which is well known for its small waves during the summer.
There are also few events more difficult to follow than surfing, which depends on the most unpredictable battleground of all sports: the ocean. Any given competition day requires correct conditions to take place or it is postponed to another day. The days of competition and broadcasting can span a seemingly endless stream of hours with plenty of downtime. In addition to their actual opponents, surfers face the ocean and even the subjective score of the judges, which can lead to unsatisfactory results.
And yet, there is a lot of joy in following the sport. One of the recent thrills has been the sharp and steady improvement in female CT. The tour now offers equal prices and female surfers continue to become more dynamic with a growing talent pool. The progression was underscored by Carissa Moore of Hawaii, the current dominant figure. In April, she launched an air-reverse high in the sky, becoming the first woman to perform such a maneuver in competition. As Moore hugged his face in disbelief after landing him, his opponent, Johanne Defay, cheered from the water.
Few of the characters are currently more absorbing than Medina, a defining figure of the last decade in surfing. His first world title in 2014 helped catalyze the boom in Brazilian surfing and his success made him a superstar at home, reflected in his social media count and close friendship with Neymar, but for others his mentality. relentless to win at all costs marked him as the resident villain. His ruthlessness has led to incidents ranging from the “interference” dramas of 2019 when he prevented an opponent from taking a wave in the closing minutes of their contest, to a few comedic outbursts earlier in his career.
But above all, Medina is just a phenomenal surfer. He creates one of the most amazing heights in the air, but he is extremely well balanced in his strengths. At times he seems to slow down time, generating a constant stream of excellence from an abundance of waves as his enemies struggle to keep up. Its ability to produce consistently has been unmatched this year.
Quick guide
New Olympic sports in Tokyo 2020
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Baseball and softball
Returning for the first time since Beijing 2008 and both sports will find an enthusiastic following in Japan where they are extremely popular. The men compete in baseball, in which the field is overhanging and reaches over 100 mph from a distance of 60 feet. Women compete in softball in which the terrain is devious and hits around 60 mph at just 40 feet. No British interest.
Karate
Born in Japan and will be held at Nippon Budokan, considered to be the spiritual home of martial arts. Kata, the solo division, will see athletes demonstrate their techniques on their own. In Kumite, they will be judged on three minute flights in three different weight classes. No British interest.
Skateboarding
Held at Ariake Urban Sports Park, skateboarding is divided into two divisions. The park will take place on a fluid course, while the street will include obstacles such as benches, stairs, rails and slopes. Britons Sky Brown and Bombette Martin, aged 13 and 14, will take part in the park competition.
Sport climbing
Divided into three divisions: block, speed and advance. Bouldering allows athletes to complete a number of routes with as few attempts as possible, while in speed two athletes compete with the simple goal of reaching the top first. In the leading division, climbers go up for six minutes and the winner is the one who finishes highest. British interest: Shauna Coxsey
Surfing
The surf will take place 40 miles from Tokyo at Tsurigasaki Beach and take the form of 30-minute rounds, with the first rounds taking place as rounds of four to five competitors before subsequent rounds become individual competitions. Surfers will be evaluated by judges, who will give a score out of 10 based on speed, power and flow.
basketball 3×3
A more structured version of pickup basketball played recreationally around the world, teams consisting of three players and a substitute will compete on a half court with a basket. They will play up to 21 points, the leading team winning if the game is not decided in 10 minutes. No British interest.
Some oppose surfing as an Olympic sport as they see it as a way of life much more than a competition, while others fear even busier beaches which could stem from growing popularity.
Anyway, what these Olympics mean for surfers and also for all new sports is the chance to demonstrate their craft on the biggest stage, showing all the athleticism, the skills, the talent and hard work required to be successful, which is often still surrounded by outdated stereotypes of their sport.
Curious spectators will get a first glimpse of the surf and then have the option to stay beyond the next two weeks. Time will tell if they do.
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