Surf legend Stephanie Gilmore reveals career gap year may stretch on

Surf legend Stephanie Gilmore is adamant she’ll return to the professional circuit that she’s long been known to dominate – but when that will be remains unclear.

Surf legend Steph Gilmore is adamant she’ll return to the professional circuit that she’s long been known to dominate – but when that will be remains a mystery.

The 8-time world champion told the Saturday Herald Sun that what was initially intended to be a career gap year off tour to reboot mentally and physically could very well stretch.

“As your career goes on, you start to kind of break down a bit but I’m feeling good. I feel surf fit and healthy and happy, and that’s such a great place to be …” Gilmore said, taking in a stellar Melbourne day at Brighton’s famed beach boxes.

“I still haven’t decided whether I’m going to go back next year. Maybe next year, might be the year after – I’m not sure yet. I feel like I definitely still have that competitive drive, but I’m really enjoying this new adventure with Rip Curl.”

Eight-time world champion surfer Stephanie Gilmore says she’s unsure when she will make her return to the pro circuit. Picture: Mark Stewart

It’s been a year of sizeable change for the talented 36-year-old, making her long-awaited return to iconic surf brand Rip Curl as its newest team rider after 13 years.

Making it an even sweeter homecoming was the relaunch of its popular nineties campaign The Search, which sends team riders around the globe to test some unique surf breaks.

Never one to miss a beat, a beaming Gilmore – part of Australia’s first-ever surf team at the Tokyo Olympics – chuckles at the irony in taking a sabbatical from the world tour to go surf elsewhere.

“You surf all year for a living, and then you’re like, ‘I need a holiday. Okay, I’m gonna go surf for a year’. So we’re actually just possessed by this surfing thing and I think that’s why it’s unique and such a different sport,” Gilmore laughed.

Tweed Surfer Steph Gilmore rips into a wave at Snapper Rocks Photo Scott Powick

“ … I took a year off because I wanted to see what else I could achieve in my surf career that wasn’t chasing trophies and showcase my surfing outside of a jersey”.

Joined by fellow pro surfers Mason Ho and Tom Curran, the much-loved world champ and her trusty guitar have spent recent months venturing through Indonesia.

“Everything just fit perfectly,” the Gold Coast based star said. “When you’re on tour and when you’re so focused on trying to win things all the time, you can kind of get caught up on just getting from point A to point B and trying to do your job and get out of there.

Surf legend Steph Gilmore’s enjoying a sabbatical from the world surf tour which she’s long been known to dominate. Picture: Supplied

“I’ve just really come to realise how special it is, these opportunities I get to travel the world, and I feel like being able to slow down on my travels has been important.”

When not spending weeks at a time trotting the globe, Gilmore’s also managed to find a few spare hours to manually shape her own surf boards, while also collaborating with her major sponsor on a new women’s collection, inspired by the history of surf culture.

“I really wanted to reference all of their iconic imagery and logos. A lot of the products we brought back have this rainbow logo that they use,” she explained.

“It’s very like 90s surf to have big logos on your shirts and I feel like, kind of, people were scared of that for a while, but I’m trying to bring it back.”