Janice R. Andrews
At the 2024 Olympics, Gabriel Medina is creating quite a stir—and not only because of his incredible surfing abilities. Due to a now-viral shot, the Brazilian surfer’s amazing performance in the third round of the men’s surfing competition on July 29 in Teahupo’o, Tahiti, has garnered notice across the world.
Upon emerging from a monster barrel wave during the competition, Medina confidently anticipated his score by putting up ten fingers. According to NBC News, he wasn’t too far off, recording the greatest single-wave score in Olympic history with a 9.90. Only in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics did surfing make its Olympic debut, and Medina’s performance is breaking records.
But more than simply his almost flawless score grabbed media attention. After riding the wave, Medina threw up his board and celebrated by pointing up to the sky. Photographer Jerome Brouillet photographed this moment in the air, and his image went viral very quickly. Touched by grace, that is how Brouillet put it while describing the encounter on Instagram. I like to compare shooting images to surfing. It takes a combination of planning, commitment, timing, expertise, and a little bit of good fortune.
“On July 29, 2024, at 6:23 am, arriving on the spot by boat, we knew it would be a great Olympic surfing day,” said Brouillet of the event. Gabriel Medina went for a flawless ride on the day’s greatest wave at 9:30:31 a.m. He leaps off the wave at 9:38 a.m., igniting a celebration that quickly went viral throughout the globe.
Notifications began to ring on Brouillet’s phone, and they haven’t stopped since. He complimented the surfer on Instagram and gave credit to Medina’s flawless timing and technique for landing the shot.
Medina began surfing at a young age. At age eight, he took up surfing, and at eleven, he won the Rip Curl Grom Search. He started the WSL Championship Tour at the age of 17. Since then, Medina has participated in and finished fourth in three World Championships (in 2014, 2018, and 2021). He also competed in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Medina stopped surfing in 2022 as a result of mental health issues, which included depression. “I began seeing a psychologist for myself. I never thought I would be in this position,” he said to Olympics.com. Later that year, he made a comeback to the sport, recovering from a knee injury to win the Margaret River Pro in Western Australia in 2023.
Even with all of his accomplishments, Medina’s passion for surfing continues to be his major motivation. “I don’t consider the outcome. I keep the others out of my mind. My favorite wave is right here, so that’s why I want to ride it,” he remarked.
Medina’s enthusiasm for surfing and having fun in the water is his major focus while he waits for his next round of competition.
