Bethany Hamilton was destined to be a surfer, one of the best. Her parents were enthusiasts of the sport, and before she was born, they moved to the birthplace of surfing: Hawaii, home to some of the world’s best beaches. The young woman was born there in 1990, and they instilled in her a love of the waves from an early age. She learned to ride the sea almost as quickly as she learned to walk, and by the age of four she was already practicing this sport. From that moment on, the water became her element.
Bethany Hamilton’s early years in surfing
Dedicated to her board, she participated in her first competition, Rell Sun, at just eight years old. She won both disciplines she entered: shortboard and longboard for girls aged seven and nine. Her professional career was taking off at that time, becoming more established over the years.
In 1999, when she turned nine, Bethany was beginning to be considered a child prodigy. As a result, one of the most well-known brands in the surfing world, Rip Curl, began sponsoring her along with her friend Alana Blanchard. This sponsorship continues today, and she is one of Rip Curl’s main ambassadors worldwide.
At ten years old, she entered the annual Haleiwa Menehune Championship and won the girls’ eleven-and-under and the girls’ under-15 divisions. She also placed second in the mixed under-twelve divisions. A true standout.
Bethany Hamilton’s accident
Bethany Hamilton’s journey with surfing was just beginning, becoming her job and her passion. When she wasn’t training for a competition, she did it for fun, but Bethany was always in the water. On October 31, 2003, like any other day, at age 13, she went to a Kauai beach with her friend Alana and her brother and father.
Board in hand, she dove into the sea and, about 300 meters from the shore, with the water covering her, sat on the board to wait for the waves. There, while she was waiting for the waves with her left hand underwater, a shark attacked her and ripped off her left arm below the shoulder. The wound caused by the shark was very serious, resulting in the loss of 60% of the blood in her body.
Her friends carried her to shore so they could take her to a hospital. That very day, her father, Tom Hamilton, was scheduled to undergo surgery for a knee problem, but the procedure had to be postponed due to Bethany’s urgency. The doctors’ swift intervention saved his life, but there was no solution beyond learning to live with one arm.
After Bethany Hamilton’s accident
Despite the trauma triggered by the accident, Bethany never doubted her passion: she wasn’t going to give up surfing.
Only ten weeks after the tragic shark accident, she returned to surfing. To do so, she had to adapt a handmade board to make it thicker and easier to ride. First, she had to learn to swim with one arm, and little by little, she was back to surfing like before.
Bethany’s father also designed central handles on his daughter’s board so she could perform the duckboard maneuver. This simple maneuver, used to dive beneath the waves when entering the peak, was very difficult for Bethany, as she had no support to give her balance.
Just one year after her return to surfing, she received her next award: the ESPY Award for Best Comeback by an Athlete. Over the following years, she continued to achieve great results in numerous national and international competitions.
Her moving story was captured in an autobiography written by the surfer known as “the surfer who lost an arm” in 2004. The title was Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board. This book ended up at the top of the New York Times Magazine bestseller list.
Three years later, in 2007, Becky Baumgartner directed a short film based on her story (Heart of a Soul Surfer), which was screened at several festivals around the world. This short film was the prelude to her future film. In 2011, the young surfer’s life was brought to the big screen. The film, Soul Surfer, was directed by Sean McNamara and starred Anna Sophia Robb. Bethany herself was responsible for dubbing the protagonist in the surfing scenes.
The film was a huge success both critically and at the box office. It had a huge impact on female audiences and young people under 25, grossing over $10 million in its opening weekend. It’s one of the best surf movies out there.
In 2013, she married Adam Dirks, having her first child in 2015 and her second in 2018. Bethany says, “Being a mother is wonderful. It’s been a change for me and my husband, as it is for any couple. Combining it with professional surfing, traveling, and training has forced me to be more patient and organized, but it’s one of the most wonderful things that has ever happened to me. I surfed lightly until I was eight months pregnant, and the last month I only went into the ocean to swim. After giving birth, I didn’t surf for about five weeks.”
She has also written another fitness book called Body and Soul. She currently gives talks on self-improvement and is a huge social media enthusiast, as can be seen on her Instagram. Bethany Hamilton’s story is the epitome of self-improvement and that there are no excuses for not learning to surf.
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