Johanne Defay, Europe's top female surfer

Surfing is a global sport, with Europe boasting some of the best surfers in the world. Johanne Defay has been one of the top European surfing talents in recent years.

Defay has been on the way up ever since she joined the World Tour back in 2014. In 2017, she was ranked 9th in the Women's Qualifiers but she fought her way to the top over the years.

In 2021, Defay climbed up to 4th place in the qualifiers with 32,000 points! Since then, she has been struggling with recurring injuries, dropping her back to 11th.

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Johanne Defay was born on November 19, 1993, in Le Puy-en-Velay, France. She grew up in the mountainous Auvergne region of France, far from the ocean. Defay discovered her love for surfing during a family vacation in the French region of Réunion.

The small island of Réunion is located in the Indian Ocean, roughly 700 km (424 miles) from the Island of Madagascar. It is often described as one of the best surfing spots in the Indian Ocean, however, it is also known for its abundant shark population.

Young Defay learned how to surf in some very challenging waters, filled with sharks. La Réunion has registered a whooping 56 attacks and over 30 deaths due to shark attacks since 1913! Defay currently lives in Réunion and she enjoys world-class on the daily.

Nothing could stop young Defay, her burning passion for surfing would push her to test her limits. She began competing at the age of 10 where she began developing her technique to perfection.

During her WSL rookie year in 2014, she faced Carissa Moore and Tyler Wright and still managed to secure a solid 5th place. Not bad at all for her first year!

Defay's first tour title would arrive during the Women's Vans US Open for Surfing in 2015. A series of jaw-dropping heats saw the French surfer secure her first podium alongside 10,000 points for the qualifier!

The French surfer would also go and win the Fiji Women's Pro in 2016, Jeep Surf Ranch 2021, and the Roxy Pro G-Land 2022.

"I’ve been really lucky. So far in the time I’ve been on tour, I’ve felt like life has changed in a massive way, but also very little, at the same time. In terms of the experiences, everything’s multiplied by a thousand. Surfing waves like Cloudbreak going off, being amongst the top girls, surfing in front of what feels like the whole world watching, that’s massive," shared Defay during an interview for Surf Europe Mag.

The road to success has not been an easy one for Defay, plagued with injuries and flaky sponsorships. The French surfer was considering quitting the sport back in 2012 due to a major fallout with her sponsors.

"I’d found it hard to step up from the juniors to the WQS. Then the crisis hit the surf business and at 19 I found myself without sponsors and without decent results. I went back home to Reunion Island to figure things out with my folks. We decided it’d be a big shame to just let those years of competing and training come to nothing," shared Defay during her interview for Surf Europe.

Defay now currently rides for O'Neill, one of the big hitters in the industry. The local Santa Cruz (California, USA) brand has provided a healthy platform for her to develop as a professional.

The 2023 season didn't do Defay any justice. The French surfer struggled to regain her peak form and struggled to make it into the top 3. To make matters worse, Defay suffered an injury to her right foot, missing out on the Billabong Pro Pipeline!

Defay's father has been her number-one fan since the beginning. He pushed her to follow her dreams and to think of surfing as a career. The small yet friendly surfing community of La Réunion has her back and stands proudly next to her as their only female representative on the Tour.

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