Carissa Moore | Surf Champion

Carissa Moore was born August 27, 1992 in Honolulu, Hawaii. She started surfing at the age of 5 off the beaches of Waikiki with her father. She soon discovered her untapped passion for surfing. In several years she was collecting wins at the NSSA junior surf contests and acquiring top sports at the ISA World Junior Surfing Championships where she helped team Hawaii to win a victory in 2005. At the age of 12, after she won four consecutive NSSA open division women’s titles, everyone knew she was destined for the greatness. In 2008, she became the youngest champion at a Triple Crown of Surfing event – Carissa was only 12. Carissa credits her father for her passion in surfing.

In 2010 Carissa began her first season on the ASP World Tour (Now the World Surf League). In this season alone she won two major contests and was named Rookie of the Year. Carissa says “You’re traveling to all these different places and I didn’t expect all the challenges I had to face. It was hard to adapt to new waves and I missed home. It was a learning curve that first year, but by the end, I started to find a place for myself.”

The following year in 2011, Carissa won three surf events and claimed her first world title, beating out defending champion Stephanie Gilmore. For an 18 year old, she became the youngest person – male or female to win a surfing world title. She was named one of Glamour magazine’s Women of the Year.

What can happen to the best of champions, Carissa had no contest wins in 2012. However, in 2013 she came back with four out of eight stops and claimed another world title. Then in 2014 she was inducted into the Surfers’ Hall of Fame.

Her fame didn’t stop there. In 2015, Carissa won three tour events and sealed more world titles. Carissa Moore has established herself as a powerhouse in women’s surfing, a top competitor and world champ who’s not afraid to compete against the guys and pull moves no other women are doing in the water. “I want to empower women to believe in themselves and do what they love”, states Carissa. Carissa Moore is an inspiration to all.