As Olympic sports go, surfing is quite young, having debuted in the Games three years ago in Tokyo. Thus, its history is still in the formative stage.
Accordingly, Brazil's Gabriel Medina left his mark on his profession's history books on Monday with a ride for the ages. In the third round of the men's shortboard competition in Teahupoʻo, French Polynesia, Medina posted a single-wave score of 9.90—the largest in the history of the Olympics.
After his triumphant run, Jerome Brouillet of Agence France-Presse captured an unbelievable photograph of Medina appearing to levitate while pointing in triumph—his surfboard close behind him.
This is one of the coolest photos I've ever seen
— Kendall Baker (@kendallbaker) July 29, 2024
📸 Jerome Brouillet/AFP via Getty Images pic.twitter.com/PZJdYK9qF9
In his third round matchup, Medina easily topped defending silver medalist Kanoa Igarashi of Japan to advance to the quarterfinals. He will meet countryman João Chianca in that round Tuesday afternoon.
Medina, 30, is an accomplished surfer—he owns three World Surf League championships and a pair of gold medals at the World Games. However, he lost in the bronze medal match in Tokyo to Australia's Owen Wright.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Epic Photo of Brazilian Surfer Celebrating Historic Score Defies Gravity.
