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Not a bad payday for a teenager.
Caroline Marks, a 17-year-old surfer living in San Clemente, earned a $100,000 paycheck for winning a major surf contest in Australia, beating some of the globe’s best female surfers.
It’s not just the dollar amount that made it a momentous day for Marks. This was also the first win that makes good on a promise by the World Surf League to award equal prizes for men and women competing on the elite level. The decision, announced in September, makes pro surfing one of the few professional sports that has implemented such gender equality.
The Boost Mobile Pro contest, staged in conjunction with the men’s Quiksilver Pro, was the first big event of the year, held at Duranbah Beach on Sunday, in two- to four-foot surf.
For Marks, it was good timing to make her debut on the winner’s podium. She joined the World Championship Tour last year, after a stellar run on the amateur circuit.
“I’m really emotional right now,” Marks said in an interview with the World Surf League. “I can’t believe it. I’m speechless. It’s incredible to be a part of this sport. I just want to thank everyone at WSL — I’m so grateful. It’s so amazing to be a part of women’s surfing.”
Marks eliminated seven-time world champion Stephanie Gilmore, of Australia, in the quarterfinals. She defeated three-time world champ Carissa Moore, of Hawaii, in the finals.
Marks spent her first 12 years in Florida, and since then has been living in Orange County.
In the men’s event, San Clemente’s Kolohe Andino came close to earning the top spot, edged out when Italo Ferreira earned a buzzer-beater score to take the lead.
“I was stoked to be in the final with Italo,” Andino said in a WSL interview. “I let that wave go, but I think 10 times out of 10, I would let it go again just because it was actually a knee-high wave. But he did a full rotation, so good on him. It’s a bummer I wasn’t getting chaired up for my first event win but it’s a long year and still a great result. I was two minutes away from winning that one.”
Andino said he hopes the tides have turned for his country’s athletes.
“The American surfers are doing great, it’s rad to see,” he said. “I think everyone is sick of seeing those top three guys on tour win every event. I think everyone’s put their heads down and trying really hard and it’s great for the sport.”
The first event of the year also marked the first opportunity for the world’s best surfers to inch closer to qualifying for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, where surfing will make its Olympic debut. The Championship Tour rankings at the end of this season will determine 18 of the 40 available spots — 10 men and eight women.
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