CNN
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A neighborhood lifeguard in Hawaii was the shock winner of the distinguished Eddie Aikau Massive Wave Invitational – dubbed the “Tremendous Bowl of browsing” – after beating off competitors from a number of the sport’s largest names.
Luke Shepardson took authorised breaks from his lifeguarding responsibility at Waimea Bay to compete within the occasion – affectionately referred to as the Eddie – and completed with a near-perfect rating of 89.1 factors, forward of defending champion John John Florence in second.
The 27-year-old accepted the award sporting his yellow lifeguard t-shirt and purple board shorts, saying it was a “dream come true” merely to take part within the competitors on Sunday.
The Eddie is barely held when waves constantly attain a top of 20 toes throughout the winter months at Waimea Bay on the North Shore of Oahu.
This was simply the tenth time it has been held since its inception in 1987 and the primary since 2016, when Florence took the title.
Different previous winners embody browsing veterans Kelly Slater in 2002 and Ross Clarke-Jones, who competed once more this yr, in 2001. No surfer has ever received the Eddie greater than as soon as.
The occasion is held in reminiscence of big-wave surfer Eddie Aikau, the primary official lifeguard on the North Shore who died after volunteering to hunt assist when a canoe journey recreating an historic Polynesian migration route hit dangerous climate.
It appeared becoming, then, that this yr’s champion was additionally a neighborhood lifeguard.
When he was introduced because the winner, Shepardson was hoisted onto the shoulders of his fellow rivals, doused in beer, and mobbed by spectators desirous to get a photograph.
He received $10,000 for taking first place with scores of 30.0, 30.0, and 29.1 throughout his three finest waves, simply shy of an ideal rating of 90 factors.
Florence completed with 84.2 factors forward of Mark Healey in third and Billy Kemper in fourth.
This yr additionally noticed girls – six in complete – participate within the competitors for the primary time, and it was Andrea Moller who made historical past as the primary girl to catch a wave on the Eddie.
In 2016, Keala Kennelly grew to become the primary girl to be invited to the competitors when she was named as an alternate.
The big waves at Waimea Bay produced a sequence of breath-taking, nerveless performances from these invited to participate within the Eddie this yr.
The competitors drew large crowds, who had been instructed to remain behind a yellow tape near the shoreline to keep away from being swept up within the harmful swell.
“I need to thank everybody for being right here in the present day,” Clyde Aikau, the competitors director and brother of Eddie, mentioned throughout the awards ceremony.
“I need to reward each single contestant who paddled out as a result of simply paddling out in the present day was a feat in itself, and congratulations to all of the contestants.”