24 SurfGirl Magazine
A
elan, where do you live?
I live in Tahiti, French Polynesia, a small island
in the middle of the Pacific. My house is in a
small village, where there is no traffic and it’s
just in front of the surf spots, including my favourite spot,
Te ava iti.For someone like myself who loves the ocean,
it’s like paradise.Who got you into surfing?
My family got me into surfing. I started when I was five
with my big brother Kauli, who passed on his passion
for surfing. Nowadays I usually surf at the reef with my
brothers after school, or during weekends.We’ve seen photos of you surfing barrels at
Teahupoo – what’s that like to surf that wave?
I’ve surfed this wave since I was 10 years old. I like to
surf this spot because it’s located in a beautiful place, the
power of it is just amazing and you can catch barrels.What’s the biggest surf you’ve been in?
It was at Teahupoo, when I was 12 years old. There were a
lot pro surfers out and everybody told me to go out. I was
excited but also very scared. I finally paddled out there and
slid into the barrel. It was really intense, because the wave
was twice as big as me. I came out of the barrel, smiling
because I was so happy to be alive, then I paddled straight
to the boat.What do you do when you’re not surfing?
When I’m at home I like baking cakes for my family, going
spearfishing with my brothers and going shopping with my
girlfriends.Surf or school?
I do both. My parents are teachers – my mom teaches
in elementary school and my dad in high school. So in
the family, you have to do both. Sometimes it’s difficult
to travel around the world doing surf contests, then go
back to school. I often dream about home schooling, but
then I realise how lucky I am to see my friends, and I slip
back into my routine at school. In the future I would love to
continue my studies in marine biology while doing some
surf contests. I know that will be difficult, but trust I can
keep up both.What’s your motto to live by?
Respect our earth.