Die World Surf League hat die Katze aus dem Sack gelassen und Maya Gabeira als Gewinnerin des cbdMD XXL Biggest Wave Award 2020 gekürt.

Mit ihrer 73,5 ft (22,40 Meter) Welle in Nazaré holt sie sich jedoch nicht nur den Award, sondern auch den Weltrekord. Somit darf sie sich nun „GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title holder for the largest wave surfed (unlimited) – female“ nennen. Als kleinen Bonus hat sie mit der am 11. Februar gesurften Welle auch noch Kai Lenny mit seinen 70 ft Monster übertrumpft und stellt damit klar, dass Frauen auch im Big Wave Business den Männern um nichts nachstehen.

“This wave was during the [WSL Nazaré Tow Surfing] contest and although I say I’m not a competitive person, I was very in the zone and braver than I usually am on this day. I was risking more than I usually like to do. When I let go of the rope, I had a feeling it could be the one but wasn’t sure. The speed was very high but the noise that the wave made when it broke made me realize that this was probably the biggest wave I’d ever ridden.”

Zusammen mit Justine Dupont haben sich die Damen dieses Jahr unglaublich gut geschlagen, denn obwohl Justine nicht den erhofften XXL Award gewinnen konnte, holte sie sich den Ride of the Year und Performance of the Year.

„This wave was really special and every one said to me that this wave was really special from the shape to the footage, all the angles, and the size. Everything made this wave special and having all the community speaking about it like this was a big reward. It is not about a performance for a woman but a performance for a surfer. Having Kai (Lenny) and Lucas (Chianca), the best in the discipline, wanting to surf this wave, and I was on it, so I am really stoked. This wave is special so having the Ride of the Year means I had the best line possible on a giant wave and I made it.”

so Justine über ihre Welle am 11. Februar