Brazilian Maya Gabeira Breaks Record for Biggest Wave Ever Surfed by a Woman

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazilian Maya Gabeira set a new world record for the largest wave ever surfed by a woman: 22.4 meters (73.5 feet). The mark was reached on February 11th, 2020, during the Nazaré Tow Surfing, the giant wave championship held at Praia do Norte, in Nazaré (Portugal). The announcement was made by the World Surfing League (WSL) on Thursday, September 10th.

“Although I think I’m not a competitive person, I was very focused and braver than usual that day. I was risking a lot more and when I let go of the [jet-ski] rope, I had the feeling that it could be the biggest wave of my life, but I wasn’t sure. Speed was very high and the sound of the wave when it broke made me realize that this was probably the biggest wave I had ever surfed,” she said in a WSL statement.

Maya broke her own record, which was 20.7 meters (68 feet) in 2018. The new achievement earned her the Biggest Wave award at the 2020 Red Bull Big Wave Awards (BWA). The Brazilian surpassed the wave surfed by the French Justine Dupont between two and three feet (less than one meter) on the same competition day in Nazaré and was also better than the Hawaiian Kai Lenny, winner of the Biggest Wave among men, with 21 meters (70 feet).

“This world record is really surprising because the size of the wave was even bigger than the male winner’s wave, so that means that a woman surfed the biggest wave of the year overall. This is something I had dreamed of years ago, but not as something realistic. This is an extremely male-dominated sport, so having a woman capable of doing this is quite rare,” highlighted the Brazilian.

The record for the biggest wave ever surfed by a man is also Brazilian. On November 8th, 2017, in Nazaré, São Paulo’s Rodrigo Koxa reached the mark of 24.4 meters (80 feet).

“I like to do something that seems impossible because of what we predetermined to be possible for the gender. When it proves possible, it becomes easier for the next one. It almost doesn’t seem like it was me, but I love the way it’s been accomplished,” Gabeira added.

Source: Agência Brasil

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