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Who is Gabriel Medina?
Gabriel Medina is a Brazilian competitive surfer who won the WSL World Championships in 2014, 2018, and 2021. Gabriel Medina is one of the most experienced surfers when it comes to creating the best surfing under pressure, having won 16 WSL Championship Tour (CT) events and appearing in 29 Finals.
Medina is the only surfer on the CT with more World Titles than Kelly Slater.
The gorgeous, dark-haired goofy-footer is regarded as a national hero in Brazil, thanks to the World Titles he delivered to the superb surfing nation in 2014 and 2018.
Following his amazing victory at Pipeline for his second title, Medina’s raucous homecoming to So Paulo grabbed national headlines.
Furthermore, he still finds it difficult to go anywhere in Brazil without being recognized.
Furthermore, Medina’s popularity showed no indications of waning as a result of his selection for the Tokyo Olympic Games.
Gabriel won his first title at the age of 11, and he gained international attention after finishing second in the under-14 Volcom in California.
Gabriel Medina, who is he?
Gabriel Medina Pinto Ferreira (born December 22, 1993) is a Brazilian competition surfer who won the World Championships in 2014, 2018, and 2021.
Medina became a member of the World Surf League Tour’s elite in 2011.
Furthermore, he finished in the top 12 of the ASP (now WSL) World Tour in his first year at the age of 17.
In addition, in March 2014, he won the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast.
According to media accounts, he is only the second person to perform the “Backflip.
Medina also made history by being the first player to successfully execute this technique in a tournament.
Childhood and Early Life
Gabriel was born in So Sebastio, So Paulo, to Simone Pinto Medina and Claudio de Jesus Ferreira and raised in the city’s Maresias area.
Gabriel began surfing at the age of nine.
Furthermore, at the age of eleven, he won his first national title, the Rip Curl Grom Search in the Sub-12 category in Buzios, Rio de Janeiro.
Medina won a slew of amateur contests in Brazil, including the Volcom Sub-14, Quicksilver King of Groms, and Rip Curl Grom Search, as well as three state titles.
In California, he finished second in the Volcom Internacional Sub-14 Championship and vice-champion in the Amateur World Sub-16 Championship in Ecuador.
Medina was a finalist in the Paulista Championship when he was 14 years old.
He also won the Paulista Junior Championship.
In Ubatuba, he competed in the World Qualifying Series (WQS) 6-star event Onbongo Pro Surfing 2008, defeating his idol Adriano de Souza, dubbed Mineirinho.
Gabriele Medina’s Body Measurements
Gabriele Medina stands at 6 feet tall. Similarly, he weighs 170 pounds (77 kg) (1.85 meters).
He also leads a healthy lifestyle because he does not smoke or drink.
Beginnings of a Career
He won numerous amateur events in his early teens, including Rip Curl’s Grom Search, Quiksilver’s King of the Groms, and multiple state titles.
All owing to his lethal arsenal of above-the-lip methods.
In 2009, Medina, then 15, became the youngest surfer to win a major Qualifying Series event.
Medina, at 17, qualified for the Championship Tour in mid-2011 (together with John John Florence).
He quickly became well-known for his high-flying acrobatic technique.
He won his first CT event, and he repeated the feat two more times.
His enormous impact on the international scene sparked the rise of the Brazilian Storm.
More Facts Abou Gabriel Medina
Full Name | Gabriel Medina Pinto Ferreira |
---|---|
Birth Date | December 22, 1993 |
Age | 28 Years Old |
Zodiac Sign | Capricorn |
Birth Place | Sao Sebastiao, Sao Paulo |
Father’s Name | Claudio de Jesus Ferreira |
Mother’s Name | Simone Pinto Medina |
Height | 5’11” (1.80 m) |
Weight | 169 lb (77 kg) |
Nationality | Brazil |
Ethnicity | Brazilian |
Religion | Christianity |
Eye Color | Dark Brown |
Hair Color | Black |
Profession | Professional Surfer |
Shaper | Johnny Cabianca |
Favorite maneuvers | Aerials, Barrels |
Gender | Male |
Net Worth | $3.5 million |
Marital Status | Married |
Wife | Yasmin Brunet Medina |
Children | None |
Sibling | Felipe Medina and Sophia Rodgigues Medina |
Favorite waves | Teahupoo |
Current Residence | Maresias, Sao Paulo, Brazil |
Sponsors | Matt Nabney, Rip Curl, Audi, Samsung Galaxy, Oakley, Gorilla Guaraná Antarctica, Oi |
Stance | Goofy |
Achievements |
|
Social Media Presence | Instagram, Facebook, Twitter |
Best Year | 1st: 2021, 2014, and 2018 – WSL World Champion |
Surfing Merch | Rash Guard, Surf Backpack |
Last Update | September 2022 |
Professional Development
Following a string of mediocre results, Medina won the Quiksilver Pro France in 2015, his sixth WCT victory and his second in Hossegor, France.
Medina created history for the second year in a row by overcoming Mick Fanning and reaching the finals of the Billabong Pipe Masters in Hawaii.
Gabriel became the first Brazilian to win the Hawaiian Surfing Triple Crown.
On May 14, 2016, he made history again when he became the first surfer to land the move “Backflip” in a competition at the Oi Rio Pro.
Medina defeated fellow countryman Alex Ribeiro in a second-round elimination heat, receiving a perfect ten from all five judges.
Furthermore, he finished third in the tournament.
On June 17, 2016, Medina won his seventh WCT event, his second in Cloudbreak, in the Fiji Islands.
He became the most successful Brazilian surfer in CT history at the age of 22.
In 2017, he became one of two surfers to win a competition in a man-made wave pool at Kelly Slater’s Surf Ranch in Lemoore, California.
Along with Italo Ferreira, the 2019 WCT Champion, the Brazilian surfer has been chosen to represent his country at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
In the Olympics, he finished fourth, narrowly losing the bronze medal match to Australia’s Owen Wright.
Disagreement at Pipe Masters
With the Billabong Pipe Masters in Hawaii on the line, Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina pulled off one of surfing’s most controversial tricks to keep his title aspirations alive.
When fellow Brazilian Caio Ibelli had priority, Medina jumped in on his wave.
Medina’s drop-in kept Ibelli from surfing a wave that would have given him the top score in the heat.
As a wave with high scoring potential came in the last minutes of the heat, Medina prioritized Ibelli.
It may have been Ibelli’s best ride, but Medina jumped in, knowing that even one good ride from Ibelli would knock him out of contention for the world title.
Medina’s drop-in was a superb tactical play because he knew he’d still win the heat even with the penalty, but it was still awful form and sportsmanship.
Furthermore, in his post-surf interview, Medina remarked that he merely used the rule book to his advantage.
Surfboards by Gabriel Medina
It is only natural for Medina to do so as a professional surfer.
Medina has been working with his shaper, Johnny Cabianca, since 2008.
Johnny Cabianca, a Brazilian surfer living in the Basque Country, is one of the world’s most well-known surfboard shapers.
Medina goes through about 100 surfboards per year. Cabianca, who previously sculpted Pukas in Spain, established his own label in 2015.
Medina’s first victory on a Cabianca Surfboard came at the Quiksilver Pro France 2015.
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Medina, however, became involved in the family feud after marrying Yasmin.
Furthermore, it was said that Medina gave Gabriel’s mother $200,000.
The mother, Simone Medina, also blamed Yasmin for the family’s issues.
She went on to claim that the surfer is estranged from his family, which includes his stepfather and sister.
His younger sister is also getting into surfing.
Similarly, Simone alleged that her husband, Charlie Rodrigues, has been guiding Gabriel from the beginning of his career and has not been compensated for his efforts.
Gabriel Medina’s Salary
Gabriel is one of the highest-paid surfers in the world. Idol Networth estimates his net worth to be $3.5 million in 2021.
Gabriel’s fortune is largely derived from his competitive surfing career.
The surfer also earns money from sponsorship and endorsement deals.
Matt Nabney, Rip Curl, Audi, Guarana Antarctica, Oi, and Samsung Galaxy are among his sponsors.
Furthermore, the surfer has gained handsomely from the prize money. In addition, he founded the institute with the explicit objective of preparing future champions.
Gabriel mentioned in an interview that the institute is supporting people in avoiding drugs and encouraging surfing.
Gabriel Medina Institute of Technology
In January 2017, Gabriel Medina and his family established the Gabriel Institute in Medina’s hometown of Maresias, Brazil, to develop the next generation of powerful competitive Brazilian surfers.
His competition success has inspired a generation of young Brazilians to put their blood, sweat, and tears into achieving their competitive dreams of becoming world champions.
Furthermore, IGM has become the go-to spot in Brazil for young surfers.
Gabriel regards IGM as one of his successes.
Furthermore, he aspires to produce a Brazilian World Champion.
Gabriel Medina is a married man.
Gabriel Medina married his girlfriend, Yasmin Brunet, in Hawaii at the end of 2020.
He also dedicated their love in a little Instagram video.
Furthermore, they married without the presence of family or friends, as is customary in Hawaii.
Yasmin Brunet is a model and actress. They are happy couples who aren’t afraid to flaunt their happiness on social media.
On February 2, Brunet changed her Instagram handle to Medina’s surname.
Prior to that, the couple was said to have spent time together in the Maldives and had been dating for around a year before deciding to marry.
Several Brazilian media publications, however, have reported a rift between the couple and Medina’s family, who feel the marriage may jeopardize his surfing career.
Gabriel Medina had previously been associated with Anitta (2015), Jessica Gunther (2014), and Tayna Hanada since 2015.
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Presence on Social Media
Gabriel is present on a number of social media networks.
He is also a surfer’s social media influencer.
Gabriel is also more active on Instagram, where he often publishes photographs and updates about his life.
Instagram has 9.4 million users.
1.5 million Facebook followers
437k Followers on Twitter
Gabriel is also close friends with Brazilian football player Neymar.
Furthermore, Gabriel regards him as an elder brother.