Even though Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina was just shy of a perfect score on Day 3 of the Paris Olympics surfing competition, a viral snapshot of the athlete has scored nothing but 10s.
The photo from Monday’s event in Teahupo’o, Tahiti, was taken at just the right moment, timed so that Medina is upright and parallel with his board, floating several feet above dark water. In what’s already been called one of the most memorable images from the 2024 Olympics, the 30-year-old surfer is pointing one finger upward at the grey, cloudy sky.
Medina’s surf on a barrelling wave earned a 9.90, the highest single-wave score in Olympic history. The record came on Medina’s second run.
Before launching himself off the board for the picture-perfect moment, Medina cheekily flashed the judges 10 fingers, clearly hoping for a flawless score.
The viral photo was captured by Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet, who told The Guardian the day’s surfing conditions were “perfect” and “waves were taller than we expected.”
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Brouillet quelled conspiracy that the image was Photoshopped or created by artificial intelligence (AI).
“It was not hard to take the picture. It was more about anticipating the moment and where Gabriel will kick off the wave,” he told the outlet.
Monday was the third round of the Olympic surfing competition and saw eight athletes eliminated from the running for a coveted medal. Medina, a three-time world champion, scored a combined two-wave score of 17.40 out of a possible 20.
He was facing off against Japanese surfer Kanoa Igarashi, who triumphed over Medina during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and took home a silver medal, finishing only behind Italo Ferreira of Brazil.
Medina shared the viral photo, alongside other snaps from his historic surf, to Instagram with the Bible quote, “I can do everything through him who strengthens.”
The surfer told Olympics.com he was pleased with his performance on Monday.
“Felt amazing to get some good waves and I almost got a 10 so I was really happy with that,” he said. “It’s really a dream come true to compete in waves like this for the Olympics.”
Medina must still compete in two more rounds in order to secure a medal, though Tuesday’s men’s and women’s competitions were postponed by the IOC due to surf conditions.
He will face off against fellow Brazilian Joao Chianco in the surfing quarterfinals.
