Gabriel Medina Is The Most Dangerous Man In The Pipe Pro Draw
From Carissa Moore stepping away from competitive surfing, to Kelly Slater’s swan song, to a dangerous crop of rookies and wildcards, there are no shortage of storylines swirling about the start the 2024 Championship Tour. One surfer that’s avoided the spotlight for the most part thus far, but should be on everybody’s radar, is three-time world champ Gabe Medina. Going into the new season, it feels like he’s eyeing a run at another title.
Most recently, Medina has been doing his preseason work at home in Brazil with coach Andy King. The two are a formidable pair. King is one of the most accomplished surf coaches in the world and the two were lockstep during Medina’s last title campaign in 2021. From his boards to his body, they’ve been doing work over the last month and the results, at least the ones Medina is sharing on social media, are statement making. His post on January 19 shows him training in a Wavegarden facility, and it should put every single competitor on tour on notice.
If success comes when preparation meets opportunity, 2024 could be a big year for Medina. For starters, he didn’t qualify for the Olympics, so he’s free from the pressure and stress of the Games. And the WSL schedule this year plays to his strengths. Starting the season at Pipeline is a big one for him. Going back over the last 10 years, Medina has been one of the most dominant surfers at Pipe.
Making the final 50 percent of the time over the last decade, in 2014 and 2015, Medina finished runner-up in the Pipe Masters. He finally broke through and won the event in 2018, posting a jaw-dropping perfect 10 at Backdoor in the process. In 2019 and 2021, Medina once again strung together a pair of second-place finishes. He didn’t compete in the event in 2022 and finished in ninth in 2023.
Besides Pipe, Medina will also benefit from the return of the Surf Ranch and Cloudbreak onto the schedule. Add Teahupo’o to the mix, as well as the WSL Finals at Lowers, and things start to look pretty good for Medina.
Gabe Medina Vs. John John Florence Is The Kind Of Rivalry Surfing Needs In 2024
There’s also a psychological element to consider. Countryman Filipe Toledo has won the last two world titles, becoming the first surf from Brazil to accomplish the feat. And while Medina was there to congratulate his friend, he’s also a competitor and winning titles is what he does for a living. Toledo will have to contend with an Olympic year, which means he’ll be competing a Teahupo’o twice over the course of three months. Historically, the intimidating Tahitian reef has been his Achilles heel.
Besides Toledo, Australia’s Ethan Ewing, who finished ranked second in the world last year, is probably best suited to give Medina a run for his money. His powerful, tack-sharp rail game gives him a point of differentiation against Medina’s high-flying air game. Griffin Colapinto and Jack Robinson are probably next in line.
The start of the Championship Tour is less than ten days away. Be sure to keep an eye on Medina.
5x World Champion Carissa Moore Stepping Away From Competitive Surfing
With more than 25 years of writing about surfing, the ocean and action sports, Jake Howard continues to share stories, profiles and issues that shape the surfing world. One of the premier subject-matter experts in the field today, he's savvy in the ways of print, digital and social media, his breadth of work is expansive. Getting his start writing Surfline surf reports and recording the phone reports for 976-SURF in the late '90s, Jake served as the managing editor for Surfer Magazine in the early 2000s before moving on to launch RedBullSurfing.com and cover surfing for ESPN and the X Games. Over the years, Jake has also enjoyed time behind the edit desk at The Surfer's Journal, as well as the World Surf League, where he worked as the Senior Editor for a number of years. Beyond producing editorial content, Jake has served as a digital marketer and copywriter for iconic surf brands such as Quiksilver, Roxy and Rip Curl. Writing thousands of pages of copy for Surfline, he has deep SEO experience as well. The surf columnist for the San Clemente Times, Jake continues to dedicate himself to the culture and history of the sport through his involvement with the Surfing Heritage and Culture Center in San Clemente.