Surfing Sensation John John Florence Unfazed for Paris Olympics Despite Tokyo Heartbreak: “Don’t Add Too Much Pressure”

We have a younger and a more intrepid Kelly Slater on the block and he seems to be a chip off the old block as well. John John Florence is determined to better his Tokyo Olympics performance, but he is not stressing out. He won the World Championships back to back in 2016 and 2017. Adding to his kitty of remarkable accomplishments, Florence also bagged the triple crown of surfing a whopping 5 times. The 31-year-old is also the only surfer from Hawaii to have won the world championship in consecutive years after Andy Irons. 

However, even after having such a successful career, Florence has one pivotal regret. A dominating Olympic outing. Although he did qualify for Tokyo back in 2021, but got eliminated pretty early on to have his dreams shattered. While he is keeping his focus on doing better this time, John John Florence seems to be a relaxed person ahead of the Paris Olympics. 

John John Florence keeping calm while gearing up for Teahupo’o

When John John Florence qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, the surrounding hype was huge. The entire US surfing community looked up to Florence and expected him to clinch the gold medal, which he could not. Looking back at the experience, Florence stated that such a significant hype around him was “definitely scary.” He further added that the pressure on him to perform was immense because the fans were “building it up like it’s this bigger-than-life event.” 

However, significant time has passed since then and that has made Florence mature enough. Although he still enjoys the surrounding limelight, Florence has learnt to remain unfazed. Speaking on his mindset going into the Paris games, the 31-year-old stated, “I don’t really add too much pressure to myself with the Olympics.” He further added, “It’s just, to me, an opportunity to get the icing on top of the cake, really.”  

Florence later explained that his casual mindset did not indicate a lapse in concentration. In fact, the world champion surfer is trying to take a step back in order to release the pressure and focus on his normal routines. This will, in turn, help him finish much higher than the ninth place, like he did in Japan. 

Florence’s dismal Tokyo outing 

John John Florence had a forgettable outing in Tokyo. Touted as one of the favorites, the then 28-year-old could not even make it to the quarterfinals. In a surprising turn of events, Florence, who was well known for his antics in the air, lost the heat against fellow US compatriot, Kolohe Andino. This was a huge upset as Florence recently won the Billabong Pipe Masters in December. He also had a superior ranking of 10 compared to Andino. 

Unfortunately, the results did not reflect in any of those heroics. Andino came from behind to score 14.83, which was enough to see him through to the last eight. On the other hand, a dejected Florence could only manage 11.60, crashing out of the games in a manner no one anticipated. Thus, trying to brush aside previous failures, Florence is trying to come to Paris with renewed vigor. Whether or not he will be successful in his mission is a question that only the future can answer.