![]() “I don’t feel right today,” Slater said, looking straight-shouldered and fit as he stood, surrounded by young fans asking for autographs in front of the lifeguard tower. The spirit of the day was embodied early on by one previous Eddie champion, Kelly Slater, who was invited and showed up, but didn’t surf. ![]() More than a contest, as many of the 40 participants said before and during the event, which started in 1985, this Eddie was a celebration of the entire island community, defined by Hawaiian pride, style and generosity. The enthusiastic gathering underscored this community’s pride in its native sons and daughters and its gratitude toward all the city ocean safety officers who, from towers and personal watercraft, protect the public every day in Oahu’s beautiful but often lethally dangerous seas. The holder of two world titles on the World Surf League Championship Tour took off deepest toward the point on massive outside set waves, dropping down sheer cliffs of water with trademark composure and strength.Īs co-director Clyde Aikau announced the winner, and Shepardson stepped up beside Florence with a shy, boyish smile, the crowd let out a deafening roar. The 2016 Eddie champion and fellow North Shore native John John Florence, 30, placed a close second. It was the biggest wave of the day, moderators said. Late in the afternoon, Shepardson drew gasps by taking off late into a radical drop on an enormous wave racing in off the point, maneuvering turns on a long wall and completing the ride. On this picture-perfect day, the 27-year-old North Shore lifeguard battled the size, power and shape of waves which averaged 25 feet, with 50-foot faces. Coast Guard rescued the remaining crew a few hours later after being alerted by a commercial plane that spotted the canoe.Ĭoleman said The Eddie is about the best of big wave surfing and the best of Hawaiian culture.Luke Shepardson won first place in Sunday’s 2023 Eddie Aikau Invitational Big Wave Contest at Waimea Bay in a breathtaking display of surfing that surpassed the highest expectations. Aikau volunteered to paddle several miles to nearby Lanai Island on his surfboard to get help for the rest of the crew but was never seen again. ![]() Just hours out of port, the giant double-hulled canoe known as the Hokulea took on water and overturned in stormy weather. He’s also famous for surfing towering waves that no one else would dare ride.Īikau died in 1978 at the age of 31 during an expedition to sail a traditional Polynesian voyaging canoe from Honolulu to Tahiti. “What makes this contest the most unique is that it’s in memory of a particular individual who really has transcended his time and place when he lived,” said Coleman, who wrote “Eddie Would Go,” a biography of Aikau.Įdward Ryon Makuahanai Aikau rose to prominence as the first lifeguard hired by Honolulu to work on Oahu’s North Shore and was revered for saving over 500 people during his career. But author Stuart Coleman says The Eddie is distinguished by how it honors Eddie Aikau, a legendary Native Hawaiian waterman, for his selflessness, courage and sacrifice. Other places around the world have big wave surfing events: Mavericks in California, Nazaré in Portugal and Peʻahi on Hawaii’s Maui Island.
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