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Portuguese wave slayer Nic Von Rupp just turned 30. To commemorate the occasion he opened some gifts, shared his thoughts on hitting the big 3-0, and compiled his greatest surfing clip from his twenties. Oh, and he also comes clean about his fetish for outside showers.

As you can see from the clip Von Rupp has a pretty actioned packed life for a big wave surfer so young. Born in Lisbon to a German father and Portuguese mother, which explains his fluency in five languages, his teenage years were spent chasing success in the competitive realm, rather than the big wave scene.

In 2007 he finished runner-up on the European Pro junior circuit to qualify for the World Junior Championships in 2008, where he came fifth. Following those results he spent a few years on the QS, with some success. However under the mentorship of Portuguese big wave legend Joao de Macedo, he was increasingly drawn to the heavy water slabs nearer home and further abroad.

By the time he was 20 he had started going down the freesurf route. He filmed his slab riding and exotic trips to Indonesia, Tahiti, Hawaii and Africa for a number of well produced web series.

Highlight reels of epic sessions at Kandui and Nias earned him a legion of fans, but as he progressed his thirst for bigger waves grew. His surfing at the world's heaviest waves such as Mullaghmore, Mavericks, Jaws and Puerto Escondido was supplemented by an increasing commitment to Nazare, located just an hour from his house.

In 2020 he surfed with partner Francesco Porcella in the Nazare Tow Challenge and also released another series, called Von Froth, which chronicled both his big wave dedication, his mastery of his local slabs as well as constant search for the most perfect waves on the planet.

2020 Ride of the Year Entry: Nic von Rupp at Nazare 2
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2020 Ride of the Year Entry: Nic von Rupp at Nazare, Portugal on December 12, 2019. Video by Laurent Pujol.

And now just 30, he is entering the prime of big wave career. "I'm so glad to be a professional surfer and do what I love," he concludes. "To chase big waves, and have the drive to progress myself, and the sport."

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