"It’s not really a surf photograph so it captures the attention of more people.”
Surfing’s initial Olympic offering, after being included in the 2021 nee 2020 Tokyo Games, was, and always would have been silly (save a wild typhoon). Japan, for all its magic, is not a known wave banger. And, so, surf fans and surfers alike were thrilled when Paris announced it would contest its 2024 Olympics 10,000 miles away from the City of Love all the way at Tahiti’s End of the Road.
As soon it was announced, surf fans were both thrilled but worried. Would Head Place turn on or would nature not cooperate thus creating another li’l flippy few days of mediocre surf absolutely non-understandable to the family watching in Dubuque.
A suspect forecast leading up to the waiting period had the aforementioned (surf fans, not Dubuque family) maybe sad.
But nature is an unpredictable beast and roared to life creating one of the best days of competitive surfing in memory/history.
Thus birthing “the image of the Games.”
The Frenchman Jérôme Brouillet, who has called Tahiti home for the past li’l while took the image off a boat in the channel declared, “So he [Medina] is at the back of the wave and I can’t see him and then he pops up and I took four pictures and one of them was this one. It was not hard to take the picture. It was more about anticipating the moment and where Gabriel will kick off the wave.”
As a true surfer, added, “It’s very cool, it’s a nice shot and lots of people love it. It’s not really a surf photograph so it captures the attention of more people.”
Knowing, very well, that our Pastime of Kings is an acquired taste.
Bravo, anyhow, to Medina who absolutely deserves to be the face of these Olympics and Brouillet who made art.
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Why do the Brazzies have 3 guys in the mix? (Please hold off with Toledo jokes!)
So are you saying with all the band width and channels on hand in the good old US there is only one channel showing Olympic activity? In Oz we have multiple channels showing different events simultaneously and live web streams available for other sports. You can pretty much view every event. And it’s free. Although better if you pay a small fee.
My takeaway from that photo is surprise at what a full outline his board has for waves of that size.
Medina is 5’11 and the board looks shorter than him? 5’8-5’10ish possibly?
Anyone know the length of that board he was riding?
Pretty fucken badass shot ey, indeed
Will the swell drop enough to host another “transcendent” performance by the women?
Will Jen See mention the ladies dodging another swell?
Tune in to Beach Grit for equality.
In all paper views, medias in all segments!
Most people in the world don’t care about Teahupo’ , surf, or WSL.
They only want good stories.
Surf will continue to be as it always has been, and is today, as will the WSL.
An exception… it will grow even more here in Brazil.
GM’s post, with the photo, had 112,259 comments in 1 day…
The man, the photgrapher, the photo, the storie.
This is what counts… for most people.
https://uploads.disquscdn.c…
the irony is not lost when comparing this image juxtaposed with images from the opening ceremony
great pont
I can hear his brain ticking over reading his posts.
I’ll bring my bongo.
kind of like the clouds for contrast.
Thanks Jen. I appreciate you taking the time to answer and tell me what you know. At first I thought it was only a few day window. But do see something about a hold or something for the August days on the Peacock app, but can’t remember exactly what it said.
Bummer you couldn’t get out to Tahiti or Paris with your Red Bull or mountain biking journalistic connections. Next time. Thanks again!
‘Surf media’. Correct – it’s not happening. But there has been a bit more chatter about it this year from a lot of non endemic sources. It’s certainly more exciting than Japan.
My Peacock app is not showing any round 3 for women scheduled. Yesterday it said round 3 women would be this morning, and men’s quarter and semi finals would be today.
But now with today called off, it just shows that tomorrow will just be men’s and woman’s quarters semi’s and medal rounds. What does your journalist spidey sense think? Are they shortening the women’s comp because tomorrow is last day of waiting period?
Enquiring minds want to know!
Non-surf media just LOVES photos of flyaway kickouts. They always publish these pics and go crazy about them. So lame. Like the photog himself said, it’s not really a surfing photo. Could be a total Barney flying upside down with his leash stretched 20 feet just bailing out of a wave he can barely surf and that image is front page guaranteed. Not the real surfer pulling in getting drained.
so true, I recall seeing similar pics on the cover of my local small town paper
Yeah, I used to work for a local paper and they creamed their jeans when they saw a photo that I submitted of a flyaway kickout. I learned quick to not shoot or submit those photos to them. Never wanted to shoot them anyways. And no specific locations, just vague regions. Even that was a little too much info for a few people.
What if the surfers just all did that thing where they run along the seafloor with rocks, only in the Olympic pool?
Laird would be a gold medal winner. And Olympic underwater rock running coach. And world’s greatest known expert on the this discipline.
Those aren’t rocks, they’re his balls.
Like that one where they ski and shoot?
That’s a real world activity sport.
This is the brave Warrior that Ricardo Toledo was talking about
An icon in iconic beast mode
Apart from yesterdays surf which i missed, ive enjiyed the street skate the most.
I watched all of the womens and mens.
excellent stuff!!!
I watched some. I’m frothing for the park stuff. They should have a pool skating division.
Oh theres more?
Cool, cool!!
Someone let me know if Gabby decides to be a sperm doner. I’ve had the snip but I’d be happy for the missus to add a mini G-Med to the Gunderson clan. G for Gil of course. Gil-Med Gunderson.
Did you know Gil is actually short for Guilherme? Interesting story. It all started in 1984 when… Doves Cry by Prince and… Carl Lewis at the LA Olympics… absconded to Brazil with the Germans… South Coast of Australia and here we are! Guilherme Gunderson!
Have been watching a bit of the Equestrian with Mrs Newman and was interesting to learn many of the horses have been bred from the same Stallion. Which makes me wonder if instead you should be considering harvesting Cabianca’s seed and perhaps we should all be concerned with reproducing our favourite shapers?
Mayhem Stud
Was the Stallion Italian by chance? I’m pretty sure Dez holds exclusive rights to harvesting Cabianca’s seed, or at least for Aus. He’s holding that seed close to his chest.