John John Florence is a name associated with surfing just as much as Kelly Slater. After bagging the World Championships in 2016 and 2017, he wanted to add another feather to his cap—an Olympic medal. The surfer qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games. But much to his dismay, that dream crashed and burned when he got eliminated in the last 16. However, this year, he seemed as confident as ever leading up to the Paris Olympics. 

However, on September 19, the surfer from Hawaii did something incredible. He had just won his third world title at the 2024 WSL Finals at Lowers. Florence shared a few images from the finals on Instagram with a heartfelt caption. “Finishing the season with the Finals comes with so much pressure, and I really enjoyed finding a headspace that allowed me to compete and surf how I wanted to. It was definitely one of my more emotional wins.” But someone else knew just how he felt all too well.

It was his brother, Nate Florence. Speaking about his brother’s incredible journey, he said, “This is probably one of the most proud days I’ve had.” John John Florence had to deal with a gruesome ACL injury in 2019. However, even though this was his third title, Nate confessed that this year felt special. He had zero injuries this year, and they were running their company and wearing the gear! “I mean, he’s got Florence on the back of his jersey. And being down on the beach with a big crowd of people all wearing Florence gear while screaming their heads off was very, very special.” 

After flying to Trestles from West OZ, Nate was incredibly disappointed when he couldn’t paddle ‘The Right.’ However, all it all felt like it was worth it when he watched his brother reclaim the WSL throne yet again. “We couldn’t be more thankful,” he stated. The surfer felt the same way. His heartbreaking note on Instagram was a testament to just that. 

“The journey to win was such a challenge. Years of heartbreak and injury. It’s been nice to reflect on all the effort from 2017 to now. I’m really proud of our whole team. Thank you all for supporting me, and here’s to the next challenge.” But even though John John Florence got to revel in his glory, he couldn’t ride the tide during the 2024 Paris Olympics. How did he do? 

John John Florence couldn’t redeem himself at Teahupo’o

This wasn’t the 31-year-old’s first rodeo. The sport made its grand debut in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and the surfer was poised as the favorite for the gold. However, he couldn’t keep up with the hype. While the experience was scary for him, the expectations from his fans were what seemed to add more pressure on him. But this time, he looked at the Summer Games differently. “I don’t really add too much pressure to myself with the Olympics. It’s just, to me, an opportunity to get the icing on top of the cake, really,” he stated.

This didn’t affect his concentration, though. It just helped John John Florence to take a step back and recuperate. This time, the surfing competitions for the Summer Games were held at Teahupo’o. How did he prepare for his second Olympic berth? The surfer has recorded notes to look back on. This includes what equipment works in certain waters. “For my little video notes that I do, I take a step back at the end of the session and it’s like, ‘OK, I rode these fins, this board… and that worked well.‘”

The surfer continued, “That will be a big one here with the equipment side of things, kinda noting down what’s been working, especially if we get some swell.” But did his unconventional strategy fare well on the waves? The 2x Champion earned the top combined score of 17.33 during round 1. He caught wave after wave, posting the highest wave score of the day with 9.33. Things looked promising as he moved on to round 3. 

John John Florence was more patient in the waves this time. But with just 3 minutes remaining in the heat, he could only muster up a 6.05. However, the surfer struggled to put together a good wave, but it never materialized. He finally ended with a score of 9.07, gracefully bowing out of another berth. As heartbreaking as that was, he definitely redeemed himself with an incredible third-world title last month. Do you agree?