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Griffin Colapinto

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Griffin Colapinto
Personal information
Born (1998-07-29) July 29, 1998 (age 26)
San Clemente, California, U.S.
Height5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight171 lb (78 kg)
Surfing career
Best year2023,2024 – Ranked No. 3 WSL CT World Tour
SponsorsQuiksilver, Red Bull, Oakley, Inc., Creatures of Leisure
Major achievements
Surfing specifications
StanceRegular (natural foot)
Medal record
Men's surfing
Representing  United States
World Games
Gold medal – first place 2022 Huntington Beach Team

Griffin Colapinto (/ˌkləˈpɪnt/ KOH-lə-PIN-toh; born July 29, 1998)[1] is an American professional surfer who has competed on the World Surf League Men's World Tour since 2018.[2][3] He qualified for the 2024 Olympic Games where he was eliminated in the third round of the men's shortboard competition.

Surfing career

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Colapinto has been surfing in competition since the 2011 men's junior season at 13 years old.[2] In 2015, he won first place at the Junior Men's US Open of Surfing.

As a junior surfer, Colapinto went viral in 2016 with an air-reverse to win a Qualifying Series heat at the Hawaii Pro.[3]

In 2017, he made the final of the WSL's World Junior Championship. He finished the year winning the Triple Crown in Hawaii and claimed the top spot in the Qualifying Series rankings. He thus qualified for the following year's Championship Tour.

At the 2018 Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast he completed a triple-barrel and scored a perfect 10, and obtained a third-place finish. He finished the 2018 season in 18th place, and later went on to finish the 2019 season in 16th place.

Colapinto finished in the Top 10 for the first time at the end of 2021, in 6th place.[4] He also won the 2021 US Open of Surfing in the WSL Challenger Series.[2]

For the 2022 season, he won the MEO Pro Portugal and Surf City El Salvador Pro, and finished the season in 7th place.[5]

In 2023, Colapinto qualified for the first time for the 2023 Rip Curl World Surf League Finals held at his hometown surf break at the Lower Trestles in San Clemente.[6] During the season, he won the Surf Ranch Pro, as well as finished as the runner-up at the Hurley Pro Sunset Beach, Margaret River Pro, and Surf City El Salvador Pro. He entered the final ranked 2nd in the world rankings and was highly touted locally, as a Californian male had not won a world title since Tom Curren in 1990.[7][8] The fanfare also included a personal motivational speech from actor Matthew McConaughey, which gained traction on social media.[9][10] He finished in 3rd place at the final, with the 2nd most overall season points.[11]

Career Victories

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WCT Wins
Year Event Venue Country
2024 Corona Fiji Pro Cloudbreak, Tavarua  Fiji
2024 MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal Supertubos, Peniche  Portugal
2023 Surf Ranch Pro Lemoore, California  United States
2022 Surf City El Salvador Pro Punta Roca, La Libertad  El Salvador
2022 MEO Portugal Pro Supertubos, Peniche  Portugal
WSL Challenger Series Wins
Year Event Venue Country
2021 US Open of Surfing Huntington Beach Huntington Beach  United States

Other work

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Griffin and his brother Crosby Colapinto post surfing highlights to their YouTube channel, Cola Bros, which has gained a strong following.[12]

References

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  1. ^ "COLAPINTO Griffin". Olympics.com. 2024. Retrieved August 8, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c "Griffin Colapinto Surfer Bio | Age, Height, Videos & Results". World Surf League. September 4, 2023. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Griffin Colapinto". Red Bull. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  4. ^ "Griffin Colapinto". www.teamusa.com. September 7, 2023. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  5. ^ Binner, Andrew; Tulloch, Ashlee (May 29, 2023). "USA surfer Griffin Colapinto: I don't want to be the boring guy". Olympics.
  6. ^ "GRIFFIN COLAPINTO | Quiksilver". quiksilver.com. November 11, 2022. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  7. ^ Peene, Sam (September 8, 2023). "WSL Tour Finals: Griffin Colapinto's big break at home". Olympics.
  8. ^ "San Clemente's Colapinto aiming for world title this weekend – CBS Los Angeles". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  9. ^ "Even Matthew McConaughey Wants Griffin Colapinto to Beat Filipe Toledo for the World Title (Video)". Surfer. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  10. ^ Trnka, Holden (September 9, 2023). "Watch: Matthew McConaughey's Transcendental Finals Day Pump-Up For Griffin Colapinto". Stab Mag. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  11. ^ "Marks, Toledo Win 2023 World Titles". Dana Point Times. September 11, 2023. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  12. ^ "Cola Bros – YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
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