2024 Paris Olympics: Reflections of champion surfer Carissa Moore

Carissa Moore won her first heat in Tahiti.

It shouldn't be a surprise that the No. 1 women's surfer would come from Hawaii where the sport became popular.

Carissa Moore proved her top standing at the Tokyo Olympics where she won a gold medal. She gave the surfing world a worry when she took time off to decompress after the Olympics but the 31-year old s definitely back and looking to repeat as a gold medalist.

She's back for the Paris Olympics, but Paris is 10,000 miles away. The surfing competition is taking place in Tahiti, a colony of France and only a short flight away from Moore's home in Hawaii.

She won her first heat Sunday which allows her to skip round 2 and go straight to round 3.

FYI: Follow all the AANHPI athletes at the Paris Olympics.

During her time off after Tokyo, Moore, who is part Native Hawaiian and Filipino on her mother's side, German on her father's side, was able to reflect on other things besides catching the next wave.

“It taught me how to look at different perspectives and see where other people are coming from,” she shared. “I think it’s important for us all to understand that there’s not one way that’s the right way.”

Moore says she is a proud American, but she said she is an even prouder Asian Hawaiian Pacific Islander athlete who hopes to inspire all cultures and races that anything is possible.

“There is something about growing up in the islands with such a tight community. You feel like you are doing this for everyone,” she said.

Moore began surfing at just 5 years old when she began riding the Waikiki waves with her father,.At age 11, she won her first competition. As she began her career, she quickly climbed to the top, leading her to a successful career in competitive surfing.

Throughout her career, she's won 11 NSSA amateur titles, and even made history in 2008 when she became the youngest champion of the Reef Hawaiian Pro, per her Olympic bio. At the 2021 Tokyo Games, Moore won the sport's first-ever Olympic gold medal. has been surfing since she was seven. Now at 28, she has been the No. 1 woman surfer since she was 20.

In the back of her mind is the thought that this may very well be her last Olympics. After Tokyo, she got married and plans to have a family after the Paaris Games.

"I'm not just a competitive surfer," she says. "I'm a sister, I'm a daughter, I'm a friend and also hopefully, one day, a mother. Having a family of my own is something that is super important to me and is really meaningful."

"I've really had to look at myself and my identity and throw myself into the unknown and take a leap of faith," she explains. "All my friends who are men who are on the tour, obviously, they're able to have families. They've already started their families. It's a big decision for me."

For now, she's focused on winning another gold medal. The US team members all won their first heat Sunday and moving on to the next round.

"The ocean has changed my life and I can't imagine my life without it, I'll be surfing until I'm in the ground," Moore added. "Riding the wave makes you feel free, it makes you feel present, it makes you feel more in love with yourself and the ocean and the environment."

“I feel very fortunate that I have had a lot of really beautiful moments in the ocean. I think some of my favourite days are just surfing at home with my dad or my husband or my little sister at one of my favourite local spots, and the sun is shining and it's warm and the waves are really good and there's nothing to worry about.”

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