Were one to wind the clocks back a little over three and a half years, one would come face-to-face with a famous moment. Justine Dupont might not be as well known outside of surfing circles. Regardless, she etched her name into the Guinness Book of World Records. She broke a longstanding record in the year 2020. That record, set in 2018, belonged to Brazilian surfer Maya Gabeira.
On February 11, 2020, at Nazare, Portugal, Justine Dupont briefly held the world record for the highest wave surfed by a woman. She surfed a 70.5-foot wave that broke Gabeira’s earlier record of 68 feet, set at the same location. Unfortunately for Dupont, that achievement did not stand the test of time. In fact, it would be broken on the same day at the same location.
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Justine Dupont became the first woman to break through the 70-foot barrier
Justine Dupont broke the record for the biggest wave ridden by a woman. It was snatched back from her by none other than Maya Gabeira. This year, she broke Gabeira’s record a second time in January. A video of her riding that 70.5-foot monster from 2020 is currently doing the rounds. Following that occasion, she would not receive the award for the biggest wave of the year from the WSL.
That honor went to Maya Gabeira despite Justine Dupont becoming the first woman to ride a wave bigger than 70 feet. Gabeira reclaimed the record after surfing a 73.5-foot wave the same day. Apart from the pair, only seven men have breached the 70-foot barrier, including record holder Sebastian Steudtner. Big wave surfing did not attract as many women back then. Gabeira and Dupont broke new ground in the water. Of course, Dupont would be justly rewarded for her feat this year.
Clean sweep at the Big Wave Challenge Awards
The inaugural ceremony of the Big Wave Challenge Awards was held at Nazare, Portugal, on October 28. Justine Dupont made a clean sweep at the same. In the women’s category, the French surfer picked up the Ride of the Year and the Surfer of the Year awards. That was not all, though. She also claimed the Biggest Wave award. This time, it was for a 75-foot wave she’d ridden off the Californian coast. Dupont also reclaimed the world record in the process after three long years.
The waves at Nazare, Portugal, have defeated many. In fact, former record holder Maya Gaberia was one of them. She almost drowned there in 2013. Fast forward five years to 2018 at the same venue and she would surf a wave 68 feet tall. That record stood for two years before both Gabeira and Justine Dupont crossed the 70-foot line.
Dupont would break Gabeira’s record once more this year. It remains to be seen how this rivalry between Gabeira and Dupont progresses. Will the pair continue to inspire each other to greater heights? Only time will tell.
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Edited by
Brandon Gabriel