This year, Quiksilver has six surfers on the WSL’s Championship Tour, each representing a different region: Jeremy Flores (FRA), Ezekiel Lau (HAW), Wiggolly Dantas (BRA), Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA), Kanoa Igarashi (USA), Connor O’Leary (AUS). Ranging in age from 19 to 28, they are the new generation of Quiksilver surfers to make noise on surfing’s biggest stage. Good luck in 2017 boys.
#GenerationsOfQuik
Jeremy Flores - @floresjeremy
Date Of Birth: 4/27/1988
Hometown: Hossegor, France
Passionate. That’s what Jeremy Flores is. In the water, out of the water, all the time. He was born on Reunion Island, raised in Madagascar and currently resides in France. Jeremy’s talent was recognized early on and he quickly found himself traveling the world with big names like Kelly Slater. That diverse, worldly experience translated to his surfing- he’s powerful, he’s progressive and he’s absolutely fearless when the waves get heavy. So far, he’s won two CT events in his career - 2010 Pipeline Masters and the 2015 Billabong Pro Tahiti - and has consistently remained a must-watch every time he surfs a heat.
Wiggolly Dantas - @wiggolly
Date Of Birth: 12/16/1989
Hometown: Ubatuba, Brazil
Wiggolly Dantas’ surfing speaks for itself. After winning the Quiksilver Saquerema Prime event in 2014, he qualified for the CT and began to unleash his surfing alongside the world’s best. He charges as if there is no tomorrow, or even a slight idea of a tomorrow, and his backhand is powerful enough to make almost any wave disintegrate. Plus, he’s got the airs. The Brazilian is one of the most well-rounded surfers of this generation and you’ll surely see him standing on a podium or in the belly of an oversized wave at Pipeline soon enough.
Kanoa Igarashi - @kanoaigarashi
Date Of Birth: 10/1/1997
Hometown: Huntington Beach
USA Kanoa Igarashi is a truly complete surfer. He’s technical. He’s progressive. He’s consistently surprising and surprisingly consistent. The Japanese-American grew up as a surf prodigy in Huntington Beach, CA and has lived up to every bit of hype. It’s damn near impossible to find a flaw in his game. He’s won a few major WQS events so far in his career, like the 2016 Pantin Classic Galicia Pro and the 2015 Mahalo Surf Eco Festival. And on the CT level, he made the finals of the 2016 Billabong Pipeline Masters during his rookie year. The future may have a lot in store for Kanoa, but Kanoa has even more in store for the future.
Connor O’Leary - @connoroleary
Date Of Birth: 12/10/1993
Hometown: Cronulla, Australia
After an impressive junior career in Australia, Connor O’Leary disappeared into the depths of the WQS for a little while. While his surfing was just as fast, powerful and progressive as ever, it wasn’t translating into the results that he deserved. At one point, he even took up teaching surf lessons in order to gain the funds to keep chasing his dream. And then one day it all clicked: he finished two spots away from qualification in 2015, then made it up to himself by winning the whole series in 2016. His miraculous runincluded a win at the 2016 Ballito Pro. Boom. Just like that, Connor is back to where he belongs.
Leonardo Fioravanti - @lfioravanti
Date Of Birth: 12/8/1997
Hometown: Rome, Italy
Leonardo Fioravanti is no stranger to the surf world. And the surf world is certainly no stranger to him. The Italian charmer has had a spotlight shining on him since before he even hit his teens. And why not? He had eerily good form, a myriad of airs, a fearless approach to fearsome waves and a carve as big as his smile. The world was his, and the hype was inevitable. But those days are over. Leo’s an adult now. He’s had a certain fire in him ever since returning to the water after breaking his back at Pipeline. He qualified for the CT in 2016 at only 18-years-old and he has already beaten both Kelly Slater and 2015 World Champ Adriano de Souza as a wildcard on the WSL. From here on out, Leo’s just going to let his surfing do the talking. Rest assured, the whole world will be listening.
Ezekiel Lau - @zekelau
Date Of Birth: 11/23/1993
Hometown: Honolulu, Hawaii
Talent. Motivation. Positivity. And a touch of grit. That’s a formula for success in surfing, and that’s the formula that has taken Zeke Lau to the top. The proud Hawaiian has faced a few major setbacks in his career - including some bouts with back injury - but he always fights hard and comes back. In 2015, he power-surfed his way onto the CT where he’ll be producing big, bold surfing that’ll please judges and spectators alike. His ultimate goal is a World Title. Don’t expect him to sleep until he gets there.
