Where famous surfers grew up and lived

Andy Irons1978–1998

📍 Hanalei, HI 96714, USA

I was born Philip Andrew Irons in Lihue, Kauai, in July 1978, and grew up in Hanalei, on the island's lush north shore, a small town of taro fields, green mountains with waterfalls and a…

Bethany Hamilton1990–2008

📍 Princeville, HI 96722, USA

Bethany Meilani Hamilton was born in Lihue, Kauai, in February 1990, and grew up in Princeville, on the island's north shore, above Hanalei Bay, in a family of surfers: her parents, Tom and…

Bruce Irons1979–1998

📍 Hanalei, HI 96714, USA

Bruce Irons was born in Hanalei, on the north shore of Kauai, in November 1979, the younger brother of Andy Irons, and grew up in the small town by Hanalei Bay, surrounded by taro fields…

Carissa Moore1992–2010

📍 Waikīkī, Honolulu, HI 96815, USA

Carissa Kainani Moore was born in Honolulu in August 1992, the elder daughter of Carol Lum and Christopher Moore, and grew up in the city with her younger sister, Cayla, who also became a…

Duke Kahanamoku

📍 Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

I was born and raised in Honolulu, and the ocean was my backyard from the very beginning. We lived simply near Waikiki — the beach was our playground, our larder, and in many ways our…

Eddie Aikau1959–1978

📍 Honolulu, HI, USA

I was born Edward Ryan Makua Hanai Aikau on Maui in May 1946, the third of six children of Solomon and Henrietta Aikau, a proud Hawaiian family, and in 1959 we moved to Oahu, to Honolulu…

Gabriel Medina1993–2011

📍 Maresias, São Sebastião, SP, Brazil

Gabriel Medina Pinto Ferreira was born in December 1993 in São Sebastião, on the green, mountainous north coast of São Paulo state, and grew up in Maresias, a beach village where the…

Garrett McNamara2010–2020

📍 Nazaré, Portugal

Garrett McNamara was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in August 1967, and grew up partly in California before his family moved to Hawaii when he was eleven, where he and his brother…

Gerry Lopez1948–1968

📍 Honolulu, HI, USA

Gerard Anthony Lopez was born in Honolulu in November 1948 and grew up in East Honolulu, on the south shore of Oahu, in the shadow of Diamond Head, where the warm, gentle waves of Waikiki…

Greg Noll1940–1954

📍 Manhattan Beach, CA, USA

I was born in San Diego in February 1937, and as a small boy I moved with my mother to Manhattan Beach, a small beach town in the South Bay of Los Angeles, with a long wooden pier and wide…

Italo Ferreira1994–2012

📍 Baía Formosa, RN, Brazil

Italo Ferreira was born in May 1994 in Baía Formosa, a small fishing village on the coast of Rio Grande do Norte, in north-eastern Brazil, with a crescent bay, sand dunes and a point break…

Joel Parkinson1992–2000

📍 Coolangatta QLD 4225, Australia

Joel Parkinson was born in Nambour, on Queensland's Sunshine Coast, in April 1981, and started surfing as a small boy at Caloundra, on his father's board, quickly showing a natural, smooth…

John John Florence1992–2011

📍 Sunset Beach, HI 96712, USA

John John Florence was born in Honolulu in October 1992, the eldest of three brothers, and was named after John F. Kennedy Jr., known as John John. His mother, Alexandra, a surfer from New…

Kelly Slater1972–1990

📍 176 Van Arsdale Avenue, Cocoa Beach, Florida 32931, USA

Robert Kelly Slater was born in Cocoa Beach, Florida, in February 1972, and grew up there with his brothers, Sean and Stephen. His father, Stephen, ran a bait-and-tackle shop near the…

Laird Hamilton1964–1982

📍 Wainiha, Kauai, HI 96714, USA

Laird John Zerfas was born in San Francisco in March 1964, and his father, a Greek immigrant, left before his first birthday. While he was still a baby, his mother, Joann, moved with him to…

Layne Beachley1972–1990

📍 Manly NSW 2095, Australia

Layne Collette Beachley was born in Sydney in May 1972 and grew up in Manly, the famous beach suburb on Sydney's Northern Beaches, between the harbour and the Pacific, with its long…

Lisa Andersen1982–1985

📍 Ormond Beach, FL, USA

Lisa Andersen was born in Amityville, New York, in March 1969, and spent her early childhood in Maryland and Virginia, before her family moved to Ormond Beach, a quiet coastal town in…

Mark Richards1957–1979

📍 Merewether NSW 2291, Australia

Mark Richards was born in Newcastle, New South Wales, in March 1957, the son of Ray and Val Richards, and grew up in Merewether, a beachside suburb of the coal and steel city, with its rock…

Maya Gabeira1987–2004

📍 Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Maya Gabeira was born in Rio de Janeiro in April 1987 and grew up in Ipanema, the famous beach neighbourhood between the lagoon and the Atlantic, with the Two Brothers mountains at the end…

Mick Fanning1993–2001

📍 Coolangatta QLD 4225, Australia

Michael Eugene Fanning was born in Penrith, in western Sydney, in June 1981, the youngest of five children of Irish parents. His parents separated, and his mother, Liz, moved the family…

Midget Farrelly1950–1964

📍 Manly NSW 2095, Australia

I was born Bernard Farrelly in Paddington, Sydney, in September 1944, and when I was six my uncle, Ray Hookham, a well-known board rider, took me out into the surf at North Bondi for the…

Miki Dora1950–1968

📍 Surfrider Beach, Malibu, CA 90265, USA

I was born Miklos Sandor Dora in Budapest in August 1934, and brought to California as a small child. My father, Miklos, taught me a gracious way of living, but my mother remarried, and my…

Nat Young1947–1966

📍 Collaroy NSW 2097, Australia

Robert Harold Young was born in Sydney in November 1947 and grew up in Collaroy, a small seaside suburb on Sydney's Northern Beaches, between Long Reef and Narrabeen, with long, open…

Paige Hareb1990–2008

📍 New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand

Paige Hareb was born at New Plymouth Hospital in June 1990, and grew up near New Plymouth on the Taranaki coast of New Zealand's North Island, in the shadow of Mount Taranaki, where…

Rob Machado1974–1993

📍 Cardiff-by-the-Sea, Encinitas, CA 92007, USA

Robert Edward Machado was born in Sydney, Australia, in October 1973, and when he was about four his family moved to California, settling in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, a relaxed beach community in…

Shaun Tomson1955–1975

📍 Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Shaun Tomson was born in Durban, South Africa, in August 1955, and grew up in the warm, subtropical port city on the Indian Ocean, with its long beaches and powerful waves, with his older…

Stephanie Gilmore1988–2007

📍 Kingscliff NSW 2487, Australia

Stephanie Gilmore was born in Murwillumbah, in the Tweed Valley of northern New South Wales, in January 1988, and grew up in Kingscliff, a relaxed coastal town on the Tweed Coast, just…

Tom Carroll1961–1983

📍 Newport NSW 2106, Australia

Thomas Victor Carroll was born in Sydney in November 1961 and grew up in Newport, a beach suburb on Sydney's Northern Beaches, near the mouth of Pittwater, with his older brother, Nick, and…

Tom Curren1964–1982

📍 Santa Barbara, CA, USA

Tom Curren was born in July 1964, the eldest of three children of Pat Curren, a pioneering big-wave surfer and surfboard shaper who had surfed Waimea Bay in the 1950s, and Jeanine, who ran…

Wayne 'Rabbit' Bartholomew1954–1975

📍 Coolangatta QLD 4225, Australia

Wayne Bartholomew was born in Murwillumbah, New South Wales, in November 1954, and grew up in Coolangatta, at the southern end of Queensland's Gold Coast, with his parents, Donald and…