Joao Chianca banned from using his Christ theRedeemer graphic during Paris 2024 at Teahupoo.@joaochumbinho
By DerekRielly
"It's very frustrating to be excluded fromrepresenting my home country... simply because of my religiousidentity."
In a turbo-charged example of France’s secular laws, orLaïcité as they call it, French Olympic officials havebanned all explicit religious symbols from the Paris 2024Games.
And, in the case of Brazil’s João Chianca, one of the gold medalfavourites at Teahupoo, he’s been told to remove his Christ theRedeemer graphic from his quiver of Channel Islands shooters.
“I just received the news thatpainting is not authorized at the Olympic Games because Christ is areligious figure,” said Chianca. “And the games have strict rulesand focus on total neutrality.”
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French secularism has real long roots stretching back to theFrench Revolution of 1789 when the Declaration of the Rights of Manand Citizen proclaimed the freedom of religious opinion.
A couple of hundred years later, the Law on the Separation ofthe Churches and State was passed, establishing the separation ofchurch and state in France. This law has been real important inFrench society ever since, ensuring that the state remains neutralin matters of religion.
It means no crucifix necklaces in school and, theoretically atleast, no gals in hijabs strolling into classrooms. Obviously, it’sa pretty paper thin rule.
A little aside: my kids were educated in the French system andone of ‘em had to cover his skate tee which featured a cross. But,then, one of the sub teachers got around in a pretty LVT hijab.
Go figure, as they say.
The ban has hit one of France’s star basketball players, FrenchMuslim Diaba Konate told she couldn’t wear her hijab during theGames.
“Despite my desire and skills, I’m… not actually allowed to playfor France because of discriminatory policies,” the 24-year-oldtold France24.
“It’s very frustrating to be excluded from representing my homecountry… simply because of my religious identity,” said the athletewho has played on France’s national youth team and has a career incollege basketball in the United States. I strongly believe thatsports should be inclusive.”
The surfing takes place over four days in a 10-day window, from27 July to 5 August.
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Italo Ferreira handstands for fans inRotterdam.
By DerekRielly
And Italo Ferriera, world champ, gives anunforgettable show for Dutch surf fans! Handstands! Big spins!
What a wild ol history Rotterdam has, from its role asthe port hub in the Dutch slave trade, shipping 600k Africans tothe Americas in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries,to having the hell bombed out of it by Göring’s superbLuftwaffe in the second existential world war.
And, now, right there in the centre of the joint is a TomLochtefeld-tech Surf Loch wavepool, the same buttons and switchesand air pumps whatever else, used in the Palm Springs Surf Club,currently broken.
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Recently, Italo Ferreira, world champ five years ago and a darkhorse to steal if off John John this year, showed the Dutch what itlooks like when a man who surfs thrice a day and always with thefurious clang of lips being hit, attacks it.
“Likely the best surfing that will ever be done in this pool,”Noa Flegel correctly points out.
If you’re in Rotterdam, click hereto book a session.
It’s summer so the water ain’t so bad, 57 degrees or so, 14degrees if you’re European, Australian etc.
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By Chas Smith
"Like delicately seasoned steak tartar..."
There is good news, there is great news andthen there is the news that big wave champion Billy Kemper isjoining OnlyFans. That sort of news that tilts the world on itsvery axis. The Maui raised Kemper, thirty-four, is known for hisepic Jaws performances as well as his smoldering good looks andwill certainly be a welcome addition to the popular internetsubscription service.
Per the PR inquiry, Kemper “plans to use his platform onOnlyFans to share exclusive content around his training and alsoshare his thoughts on the US Open competition.”
As thirsty surf fans know, the annual Huntington Beach bacchanalofficially gets underway on August 5th. Long Beach’s Sublime willbe headlining the musical portion of the show leading many toimagine another glorious riot to add to a long-ish list of gloriousriots.
Fun.
Back to Kemper, though, as a four-time Jaws winner, his insightinto the competitive nuts and bolts of Huntington Beach, itsbathymetry etc. will be more than welcome. Do you have a horse inthat race or will you be mainly focused on the Olympics, which justso happen to be running concurrently?
I am in Paris covering the Games, as you know, just down thestreet from the USA House, as it happens. I heard a rumor thatvictorious surfers will be flown the 10,000 from Tahiti to the Cityof Light and I very much look forward to showing them around. I’vealready discovered a favorite bistro that Vahine Fierro and JoaoChianca will undoubtedly enjoy. Those are my picks for gold, by theway. Silvers will go to John John Florence and Brisa Hennessy.Bronzes to Jack Robinson and Molly Picklum.
Back to the bistro, though, I had the most delicate steak tartarof my life and foie gras that, truly, inspired. Any of the aboveOlympians will relish twice as much as they will have been eatingpoisson cru, only, for the past two weeks.
Like wandering through the maze of OnlyFans and stumbling uponBilly Kemper.
Inspired.
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By DerekRielly
"As soon as you think you have Mother Ocean allfigured out, she will quickly humble you and remind you that youare at her mercy entirely.”
Dramatic scenes from Teahupoo yesterday afternoon after ateenage Australian surf photographer was pulled from the waterunconscious in heavy eight-foot surf.
The Santa Cruz photographer Ryan Craig and local bodyboarderAngelo Fararie draggedAustralian Byron Mcloughlinfrom the water after he floated by the pair face down.
Nineeten-year-old Mclouhglin, who was shooting the action froman inflatable bodyboard, had been sucked over the falls on anearlier set and had ended up in the lagoon. The former tour surferMichel Bourez went in to pick him up and brought him back to thechannel.
He went back into the lineup to shoot and thirty minutes laterwas found face down during a lull. When Mcloughlin was flipped over his lipswere blue and he was foaming at the mouth.
He was rushed to hospital where he was put into an inducedcoma.
It isn’t the Australian’s first brush with disaster in thesurf.
Two years ago, Mcloughlin describes nearly drowning at PadangPadang in Bali after a marathon six-hour shoot.
“I knew I was in trouble I still hadno local knowledge of this place as it was my first time here. Itwas getting darker and darker and I decided to scream out forhelp,” he told The Inertia.
The story continues:
Two South African surfers came to his aid,paddling while he held onto their surfboard leashes. But withno fins on his feet to help with kicking and a heavy camerahousing, McLoughlin felt like he was making them tow dead weight.He was tired, it was dark, and two strangers were risking theirlives to make sure he wouldn’t be in danger. McLoughlin admits atthis point he thought the worst might happen and he considereddropping his camera, but the group came up with another planinstead. One surfer paddled in to get help while the other waitedwith him. Almost an hour later they saw lights and heardwhistles.
“We just waited for the tide to go back up a bitand then with quick thinking the guy decided to take my camera,give me his board to lie down on, and catch a wave in while he lefthis board leash on his leg,” he describes. “It was basically atandem wave.”
He adds, “I remember panicking a lot, tellingthem both, we need to call for proper help — police, ambulance etc.But they kept reminding me where I was — Padang Padang — everythingis on a cliff here. No one can get a boat or a jet ski downhere.”
They finally made it backwith a battered camera, a handful of reef cuts, and some valuablereminders for McLoughlin.
“Your mindset in that situation and your abilityto stay calm and collected as the beatings and hold-downs keepcoming and coming…that will determine whether or not you become astatistic or simply have a harrowing story to tell the guys lateron,” he says. “As soon as you think you have Mother Ocean allfigured out, she will quickly humble you and remind you that youare at her mercy entirely.”
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By Chas Smith
Hubba hubba.
Almost one month ago, Hawaiian surf star KoaRothman stunned surf watchers by dropping longtime sponsor forQuiksilver for bodybuilding brand Darc Sport Hawaii. The son ofFast Eddie took to Instagram toexplain, “They’ve got the sickest logo, the sickestteam, I met with them in California, it’s a super cool vibe notcorporate at all. And not just me, they picked up the gnarliest guyever in surfing, Bruce Irons, and the gnarliest guy in the MMA, MaxHolloway. That’s their Hawaiian team, me, Bruce and Max. Theystarted back in 2015. They started with bodybuilders, then movedinto fitness influencers, and now they’re breaking into surfing andMMA. Their background is definitely weightlifting and fitness,which is really cool. They’re a brand that wants the athletesinvolved in what they’re doing.”
Things got much heavier, hours ago, when Santa Cruz hunk PeterMel melted the internet with an unfairly handsome photo shootdeclaring he, too, is on the team.
The big wave star simply stated, “It’s not WHO wears it… ButWHY. NFGU.”
#NFGU is the tagline for Darc Sport which stands for “Neverf*cking Give Up.”
But the emergence of a new brand on the scene should well excitewhat with Hurley pivoting to beard oils and Billabong focusing onwide legged jeans for the Costco customer. It feels, almost, likethe dawn of a whole new surf industrial era.
Darc Sports has a robustoffering crossing surfwear staples such as hoodies,boardshorts, t-shirts, hats etc. Mel modeled a sweatshirt in hisspread.
Congratulations came from all corners, onto Mel’s feed,including Dane Gudauskus, Bianca Valenti and Koa Rothmanhimself.
Bright days ahead.
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