Owen Wright grew up in the town of Culburra, New South Wales, Australia, as the second of five kids who all surf (His sister Tyler is a two-time World Champion, while his little brother Mikey is a free-surfing firebrand who has also made the CT.) This tiny town is a long way from Tokyo, Japan, where Owen will travel to represent Australia at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games, after provisionally qualifying through the 2019 WSL Championship Tour.

After taking an Australian Title in 2007 he qualified for the CT in 2009 and finished his debut season of 2010 ranked No. 7, which earned him Rookie of the Year. Tall, lanky, and famously unflappable, Wright utilizes his large frame to full effect with a powerful brand of explosive surfing. His first CT win came in 2012 at the Quiksilver Pro New York, where he netted surfing’s largest-ever prize of $300,000.

In 2015 Owen put himself in the hunt for a World Title after a huge win in Fiji, where he bagged two perfect 10-point rides to win the Final. But days before the final event at Pipeline, he suffered a traumatic brain injury during a warm-up session. The incident proved life-threatening, and for a time it looked like Wright’s career was over. He sat out the entire 2016 season, learning how to surf all over again. This time also coincided with his marriage to singer and model Kita Alexander and the birth of their first child.

His eventual return to competition in 2017 is now the stuff of legend, as Wright won the season opener at Snapper Rocks during one of the most emotionally charged comebacks in surfing history. He finished both the 2017 and 2018 seasons at No. 6 on the Jeep Leaderboard, and cemented his legendary status when he won the Tahiti Teahupo’o Pro in 2019. Wright will travel to Tokyo in 2020 hoping to complete one of sport’s greatest comeback stories with a Gold medal.