Getty Image / Pablo Blazquez Dominguez / Stringer
Brazilian surfer Rodrigo Koxa rode his way into the record books back in November when he charged a wave in Nazaré, Portugal so large that nobody in the surfing community could believe what had happened.
Nazaré is a tiny town on the Portuguese coast roughly halfway between Lisbon and Porto, and in recent years the popularity of the town has absolutely exploded after surfers discovered that Nazaré is home to the largest waves in the world. Something that makes this wave even more special is it’s so close to the shore that spectators can actually watch from the shore and get a clear view of the action, which is a surfing photographer’s dream.
The WSL (World Surf League) Big Wave Awards ceremony was held last weekend and the gigantic wave ridden by Rodrigo Koxa at Nazarê was certified as the largest wave ever ridden, at ~80 feet (24.38 meters). This breaks the previous record held by Garrett McNamara at ~78 feet (23.77 meters). By riding this wave, Rodrigo Koxa not only won the XXL Biggest Wave of the Year award but he also surfed his way into the all-time record books:
Here’s another look at that epic wave:
It's official: new world record for biggest wave ever surfed was just won by Rodrigo Koxa for his 80-footer at Nazare. Full wrap of the WSL Big Wave Awards: https://t.co/zQqyy2p0i7 pic.twitter.com/AcMid9cQl8
— Surfline (@surfline) April 29, 2018
At the WSL Big Wave Awards, pro surfer Ian Walsh won ‘Ride of the Year’ and ‘Tube of the Year’ for his perfect ride at Pe’ahi, Paige Elms won for ‘Women’s Overall Performance’, and Andrew Cotton won ‘Wipeout of the Year’ on a monstrous wave that was also surfed at Nazaré, Portugal. You can check out all of the WSL Big Wave Awards winners by following that link. Each of the awards has links to video of those waves being ridden.