This February, back from a near-death surfing accident in 2013 that broke her bones and required three spine operations to rehabilitate her, Brazilian Maya Gabeira, surfed a 22.4m [73.4ft] wave to set a world record for for Women and Men in 2020 and besting her own 2018 record of 20.8m [68 ft], to set an all-time record for women.
Recounting her feat in The Guardian, Paula Cocozza writes:
The peaks surfed by Gabeira are classed as size XXL by the World Surf League (there is no XXXL). Hawaii and California once drew the big-wave community, but Gabeira believes that the small Portuguese fishing village of Nazaré, where she lives and works, is home to “the most incredible big waves in the world … The speeds are incredible. You are going so fast and the wave is building behind you; it’s a lot of water moving, an incredible feeling, and you’re very, very present, which has always been my favourite part of the sport. To feel connection with a very powerful force.”
After the 2013 accident that dumped 144 tonnes of water on her, breaking her bones and causing her to blackout and remain unconscious for four minutes, Gabeira was told by medical experts she would never be an athlete again. So she moved to Nazaré, the scene of her accident to recover.
“I knew that just being there would inspire me to keep working towards health. I was willing to keep trying because there is something that fulfils me by trying to prove myself on a daily basis, understanding how to navigate my limitations, and not allowing them to stop me.” After a further three years, she knew she had started to peak again as an athlete. This year’s record-breaking ride provided statistical confirmation: she became the first female big surfer in the record books, the first to break her own record.
At 17, Gabeira moved to Hawaii and took a job waitressing, and knowing she was getting a late start in a sport dominated my men, she saw an opportunity to make her mark as the first female Big Wave rider. The rest is history.
What’s next? Not retirement.
Gabeira says she surfs with more fear than she used to, but also with better risk assessment. At 33, she has begun to think she might continue for another five years, “but don’t tell my mum”. So what comes after a 73.5 ft wave? “I can surf more aggressive lines,” she says. “I think I can catch a bigger wave.”
Sounds simple enough.
Thanks, Maya, for proving 2020 wasn't a complete wash. 🏄♀️