Following her quarter-final loss at the Olympics today, Hawaiian queen of surfing Carissa Moore retired from competition. The five-time world champion was ousted by Johanne Defay during the quarters of Chopes and gave a heart-felt post heat speech where she said that she ‘couldn’t have imagined a better place to finish off [her] career’.
“I mean, it’s very raw,” Carissa said after her second Gold Medal campaign was cut short. “You put everything you have into something. I put my whole year, I took a chance. I left the tour. I came here and spent months out of the year just trying to do my very best. And when you come up short of a dream, it sucks.
“But at the same point, like, how fun was it? Like, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. I would have been so bummed if I look back and been like,’ Oh, I only did that half-heartedly, you know?
“I went all in and I just hope that at the end of the day, I can encourage whoever is watching, you know, win or lose. Don’t be afraid to go into it fearlessly and don’t be afraid to fail. The process has been so much fun. I feel like there’s been a lot of personal growth in and out of the water and I’m really proud of my backside barrel riding. I caught some waves I never thought I would have ever caught in my whole life in this process. So obviously, I’m really sad to not be a part of finals day, to get to represent my home and my family one more time. But I’m really grateful and I couldn’t have imagined a better place to finish off my career. I mean, that was the plan.
“I announced my departure from the tour earlier on this year. I’m gonna give myself some time to just take a break. It’s been full on, you know? It’s been full on for my whole life and I’m really proud of that. I’m proud of how I’ve given everything. I think the last thing I just want to say is, I want to express my gratitude to everybody who been there for me and supported me, not only in this event, but my whole life. It’s just nice to have a community behind you.”
The Hawaiian leaves competitive surfing with an Olympic gold, five world titles and 31 WCT event wins – a lasting legacy which will stand the test of time. Even though she’s only 31-year-old she has paved a way for generations below her to continue pushing the boundaries of what is possible in women’s surfing.
