Kanoa Igarashi

Kanoa Igarashi (born 1 October 1997) is an American surfer who has competed professionally worldwide since 2012. He was the youngest rookie on the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT) in 2016 and collected the most Round One wins than any other surfer, finished 2nd place at the Pipeline event, and 20th place overall that year[1]. His greatest career performance was in the 2019 WSL CT where he won the Corona Bali Protected event and placed 6th place overall that year[2].

Kanoa Igarashi
Personal information
Born (1997-10-01) 1 October 1997
Huntington Beach, California
Height5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight171 lb (78 kg)
Surfing career
Years activeSince 2012 (8)
Best year2019 - Ranked #6 WSL CT World Tour
Surfing specifications
StanceRegular
Kanoa Igarashi
Japanese name
Kanji五十嵐カノア

Childhood

Kanoa's father Tsutomu was a surfer in Japan and an avid fan of the sport himself. When his wife Misa found out she was pregnant, the couple quit their jobs in Tokyo and moved to Huntington Beach, California, aka Surf City, with the goal of raising their child to be a competitive surfer[3]. Tsutomu took his son Kanoa surfing as young as age 3, and would routinely wake Kanoa up to go surfing by 5:45AM so he could still make it to school on time[4]. Kanoa won his first surfing trophy by age 7[4].

Career

In 2016 he entered as the youngest rookie to the WSL CT and the first representative surfer for Japan in the WSL[1]. He won the Vans U.S. Open WSL event in his hometown of Huntington Beach two years in a row in 2017 and 2018, but was eliminated early the following year[5]. Kanoa's first 1st-place finish at a WSL CT event was at the Corona Bali Protected event in Indonesia in 2019; he placed 6th overall that year[2].

As a top ranked finisher of the 2019 WSL CT, Kanoa has qualified to compete in the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo as a representative of Japan. The games have been postponed to July 23, 2021 due to the 2019 Coronavirus outbreak[6]. The selected beach break for the competition is at Tsurigasaki beach in the town of Ichinomiya, Chiba prefecture[7]. The chosen beach break has special meaning to Kanoa as it is the same beach break that Kanoa's father Tsutomu not only surfed at, but also reportedly discovered with his friends and called "the Dojo"[8].

WSL World Championship Tour
Tournament 2016 2017 2018 2019
Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast 9th 25th 9th 9th
Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach 13th 25th 25th 9th
Corona Bali Protected - - 25th 1st
Margaret River Pro 13th 13th 25th 9th
Oi Rio Pro 13th 9th 9th 5th
Corona Open J-Bay 13th 25th 3rd 5th
Billabong Pro Tahiti Teahupoo 13th 13th 9th 17th
Freshwater Pro - - 3rd 9th
Quiksilver Pro France 13th 25th 25th 17th
MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal 13th 3rd 5th 3rd
Billabong Pipeline Masters 2nd 3rd 13th 17th
Fiji Pro 13th 25th - -
Hurley Pro at Trestles 13th 5th - -
OVERALL RANK 20th 17th 10th 6th
Earnings $157,250 $153,250 $174,600 $253,900
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References
  1. "2016 Men's Championship Tour Rankings". World Surf League. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  2. "Men's Championship Tour Rankings 2019". World Surf League. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  3. "Pro Surfer: Kanoa Igarashi". World Surf League. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  4. "Kanoa Igarashi Japan's Surfing Superstar". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  5. "Men's Qualifying Series Event Schedule". World Surf League. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  6. "2020 Olympics - Next Summer Olympic Games | Tokyo 2020". International Olympic Committee. 2020-04-16. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  7. Tsurigasaki Surfing Beach, retrieved 2020-04-16
  8. "For fast-rising pro surfer Kanoa Igarashi, home is where the waves are". Red Bull. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
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