Living the dream

In September this year, Australian surfer and multiple world champion, Stephanie Gilmore, attained a whole new level of achievement in her beloved sport of surfing and made history in the process.

The 34-year-old produced a thrilling performance at the Rip Curl WSL Finals in California to clinch not only the 2022 World Surf League (WSL) World Championship, but her eighth such title – and in doing so became the most successful female surfer in history. The greatest of all time – the GOAT.

Her eighth world title became her entry to an exclusive new club – so exclusive in fact, that Gilmore is now the only member – being the only female surfer to be crowned best in the world eight times. The previous benchmark of seven world crowns had belonged to fellow Australian, Layne Beachley since 2006, with Gilmore drawing level in 2018. At the time, headlines around the world proclaimed her record-breaking eighth title to be eminent, but when that didn’t happened straight away, a kind of waiting game ensued that Gilmore seemed to ignite again this year as if from nowhere.

“The pressure to reach the eighth felt like it had disappeared a little bit in the last few years,” Gilmore she told Audi Magazine Australia.

“But maybe that was a bit of my fear of not ever being able to reach that achievement.”

Achieve she did though and in spectacular fashion, the Audi ambassador taking the most difficult path through to the final to even get a shot at the title. From fifth position, Gilmore had to beat the fourth, third and second-ranked contenders back-to-back before entering into a showdown with the reigning champion and favourite, Carissa Moore.

“I'd say it was the best performance of my career! To battle against each woman who had a better year than I did and then go all the way to beat the world number one Carissa Moore twice, all in one day, I'm still processing how I actually did it!”

It was an extraordinary performance where Gilmore says she reached ‘that true flow state’ that athletes strive for, where action is unconscious.

“It was an incredibly important win and a dream I am now living which is cool.”

But going into the tournament it was all about trying to stay focused on the task and not the result – no small feat when history was literally on the line.

“I was definitely aware of the situation. I also knew I was going into the final day in fifth so I was starting at the very bottom with the hardest route. I was nervous but tried my hardest to create the belief that it was possible.”

The self belief, mixed with liberal amounts of pure talent won out on the day, and the rest is quite literally history. But when you’re dealing with an individual like Stephanie Gilmore, making history and pushing the boundaries have always gone hand in hand.

Making her professional surfing debut 15 years ago in 2007, Gilmore stunned the surfing world and became the first surfer – male or female – to win the world title in her rookie year.

That was followed up with another three world titles in rapid succession in 2008, 2009 and 2010. That frenetic pace then slowed ever so slightly to every other year, adding more world titles in 2012 and 2014, before equally Layne Beachley’s seven titles in 2018.

Her list of additional awards and countless accolades along the way reflect the high regard she is held in by fellow professionals and leaders in all walks of life, but nothing can quite compare with breaking through and doing something that has never been done before.

“When you dream of having the most titles or trophies and then you finally reach that moment, it's an insane feeling, completely wonderful,” says Gilmore. 

“But more importantly I feel like I have empowered other women to believe that what may seem impossible, can totally be done!”

Now that she’s had some time to process the achievement, the more philosophical side of Gilmore takes over from the driven, elite athlete.

“I always dreamed of having the most world titles, and I guess that's just my pure competitive drive deep down that helped to get me there,” she says.

“But surfing is a creative sport, a subjective sport and so even after having won so many, I still feel like I'm not 'the greatest,” she says of her new title.

But if the competition think Stephanie Gilmore is now satisfied and will perhaps turn her attention to music – one of her other great loves – they needn’t get their hopes up.

“Now that I’ve reached it [an eighth world title] I’m feeling like I have unlocked even more potential,” she says. “There's so much room to improve in my surfing.”

Indeed, the dust has barely settled from her meteoric win and already Gilmore is thinking about training and looking towards the 2023 season which kicks off in Hawaii in January. 

“Balance is the key,” she says of the approach she has used since first entering the professional ranks all those years ago.

“Work hard but highlight your rest and recovery. Stay curious and open to the curveballs the world will throw at you and look at challenges and pressure as a privilege. Also, have fun!”