The World Surfing Federation (WSL) announced on Tuesday that Germany's Sebastian Stuedtner is the new record holder for the largest wave ever. On October 29, 2020, in Nazareth, central Portugal, he managed to tame a wave 26.2 meters high.
Certified by Guinness World Records, the 37-year-old surfer's feat eclipses that of Brazilian Rodrigo Coxa, who rode a 24.4-meter wave on November 8, 2017. The previous record has already been set in Praia do Norte. The record was established in November 2011 by American Garrett McNamara, XXL surfing pioneer in Nazareth.
Perfect site for extreme surfers
The site has ideal characteristics for surfing giant waves due to the geological phenomenon called the “Nazareth Valley”: a crack in the sea floor 170 kilometers long and 5 kilometers deep, which pushes the waves of the Atlantic Ocean towards the coast. Every season, between autumn and winter, when a big wave hits the coast, avid surfers converge on this fishing town to offer an extraordinary spectacle to an increasing number of amateurs and passing tourists.
On that day in October 2020, when Sebastian Staudtner received his record, a large crowd gathered at the foot of the Nazareth Lighthouse and on the sides of the cliff that dominates the place. Due to the health restrictions in place at the time, local authorities were forced to restrict spectator access.
