JOHN JOHN
FLORENCE

Literally growing up on the North Shore, it was inevitable that John John Florence would become regarded as one of the world's best surfers. Florence is one of only five surfers in men’s Championship Tour history to clinch his first two World Titles in back-to-back fashion. Mark Richards, Tom Carroll, Tom Curren and the late Andy Irons are the only other male surfers to do so. He was surfing on his own by the age of 5, sponsored by the age of 6, consistently  winning NSSAs, and at the age of 13, entered the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing, making him the youngest competitor by far. In 2016, he achieved perhaps the greatest competitive year in surfing history — winning the world title, the triple crown and the coveted Eddie Aikau big-wave event all in a 12-month stretch. Unfortunately, Florence has been plagued by a series of injuries. In mid-2019, having won two events and sitting on top of the Leaderboard, Florence ruptured his cruciate  ligament and didn’t surf until the final event at Pipe, where he did well enough to secure his spot for the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games and again in 2024. Injuries aside, his deep love of sailing is only enhancing his ocean knowledge, and his film projects keep him constantly on the go. 

This board is on loan from the collection of Jon Pyzel.
Portrait photo © WSL