Young Brazilian Surfers Struggle to Progress from Amateur to Professional Status

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Inspired by Brazil’s latest world titles, a new generation of surfers is trying to fly, that flight over the wave, going from amateurs to a professional career. This move faces a lack of sponsorship for young athletes and the structural difficulties of the basic categories that characterize not only surfing but all amateur sport in the country.

Caio Costa is the Brazilian U-16 champion. He is one of the students of the Gabriel Medina Institute and gets physical preparation, swimming, and English classes for free. In April, the boy from Maresias will travel to Australia to take part in a world tournament sponsored by a sportswear brand. He is a great promise for Brazil. Throughout the week, he was worried about a meeting to renew one of his sponsors. The target was the Savannah restaurant in Santos. He made it.

To take part in the main competitions this season, he needs to raise between R$20,000 (US$5,000) and R$60,000, according to the competitions he decides to attend. Amateur surfers are not awarded cash prizes. “My difficulties are the same as the others: getting money to compete,” said the first-year high school student.

When the registration, lodging, and airline expenses are due for payment, Caio turns to his father, Paulo Cesar, a former athlete and surf instructor and who also performs various maintenance and gardening services.

In general, surfers start their careers in unofficial neighborhood events, promoted by local associations. The next step is the municipal circuits, held in most coastal cities. In São Paulo, each city participates in the state circuit, which covers the U-10 to U-18 categories. Under the supervision of the São Paulo Surf Federation, the highlights of the state go to the Brazilian Amateur Circuit, organized by the Brazilian Surf Confederation.

The world titles Brazil has won – there have been four since 2014 with Gabriel Medina (twice), Adriano de Souza, Mineirinho, and Ítalo Ferreira – are the backdrop to the young surfers’ career.

The reality of municipal tournaments is far from the glamour of the World Surf League (WSL) tournaments, the organizer of the World Surf Circuit. In some tournaments, the number of stages is minimal throughout the season. As they are organized by the municipalities, many competitions can be used by politicians who want to surf the same wave of popularity as sportsmen.

There are also organizational issues, with advances and setbacks. Although it sponsored 12 Brazilian athletes to attend the International Surfing Association (ISA) Games, an international event at the end of last year, the Brazilian Surfing Confederation failed to distribute trophies to the winners of the Brazilian title in any category. On the shelves lining the walls of Caio’s home, the most important trophy of his career so far is missing.

An athlete goes from amateur to professional by choice. The difficulty lies in affording the costs in the career with affiliation and entries for the larger tournaments. National competitions’ costs range from R$1,000 to R$5,000.

At 16, Isabela Saldanha plans to become a professional by 2020. Ranked ninth in the World Qualifying Series (WQS) 1000 Nelson Mandela Pro WSL, access division circuit for the world elite, she plans to stop competing in amateur championships. Her focus is the South American WSL Pro Jr. circuit and the world elite access division circuit (WQS). Every year, she travels to train and compete in Hawaii. This year, she is on Sunset Beach and will compete as of January 18th.

“All athletes have their time, some become professionals sooner, some later, some never do! It’s all up to them. To be able to make a living from the competition, becoming a professional is essential since cash awards are only granted in professional championships,” explained Isabela.

Four years younger than Caio and Isabela, Guilherme Fernandes is another highlight of the new generation, but with less time on the road. He became a two-time municipal champion in the U-12 and U-14 categories in Ubatuba and runner-up in São Paulo U-12. “My greatest dream is to enter the world surfing elite and be world champion,” the pre-teen said.

He is following the traditional path, from the neighborhood to the country, carrying out the dream of his father, Claudemir Fernandes, an amateur surfer who has become one of the main motivators of his son’s career. “Plan B is to study and go to college. He is surfing and studying simultaneously. We never know what will happen, but he only thinks about surfing,” said his father, who defines himself as autonomous and “does a bit of everything”.

Source: Estadão Conteúdo