This Day in Surfing History: Kelly Slater Reminisces His Golden Days With Andy Iron at 2005 Quiksilver Pro Japan

Kelly Slater has not thought much beyond his surfing love. The unassailable surfing monarch has earned almost every glory possible in the sport. Even his love of surfing went to a new high when his company, Kelly Slater Wave Co. shared expertise in building the Surf Abu Dhabi phenomenon. Slater’s career graph has also manifested in his spearheading. However, the 11-time WSL champion didn’t find it easy to carve his name in the history. 

Initially, Kelly Slater had to face an impulsive surfer whom he adored most. Chanting on a similar line, Kelly Slater shared a clip of a prized moment that witnessed both surfers in their paramount adroitness. 

Kelly Slater shares a clip of his surfing competition with Andy Irons in Japan 

Recently the Nalu films curated some of the memorable encounters from Kelly Slater’s surfing voyage as a treat to his fans. Among those, the folklore clash between Kelly and the late Andy Iron in Japan back in 2005 garnered a lot of traffic. It was one of those rare moments where the surfing GOAT had to taste defeat in his beloved sport. But recently he reminisced about the clip in his IG story on a unique occasion. Kelly Slater penned down the details of his whereabouts on the penultimate day in the description. But the voice of Andy Irons in the clip perfected the presentation. 

After clinching the surfing final, Andy Irons added, “Came around and pulled up perfect. Came out half snapped. Claimed it. Did another snap. Double claimed it”. Reportedly, on July 8, 2005, the occasion of the Quiksilver Pro Japan final was the first time when Kelly Slater faced Andy Irons’s skill set. However, Slater couldn’t stop himself from feeling the awe of Andy Irons’ poise. Later, on many encounters, the 51-year-old surfing legend left much proof of that.  

Tryst with Andy Irons 

In 2002, Kelly Slater found himself in the crowd of surfing legends like Joel Parkinson, and Mick Fanning. But after defeating all of them, the legend of Andy Irons started his journey with its first world title. Eventually, in the following 2003 and 2004, Andy Irons took the coveted title as well. Those outings were inspirational to Kelly Slater, who was already searching for his place in the leaderboards. 

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However, the fan moment of Slater for Andy Irons propelled him to a greater height in the final of the Pipe Masters. On that day, Kelly mumbled his admiration for Irons. However, later in the TV series “Letting Go“, the 11x WSL champion buzzed it off, terming it as a part of a joke. But the reverence for Irons remained the same. Proving that, Kelly Slater wrote, “I probably only hated him because I admired and envied what he was capable of,” in Irons’ obituary. 

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