Julian Wilson (born 8 November 1988) is an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

professional surfer who competes on the

World Surf League The World Surf League (WSL) is the governing body for professional surfers and is dedicated to showcasing the world's best talent in a variety of progressive formats. The World Surf League was originally known as the International Professional ...

Men's World Tour.

Personal life

Wilson was born and raised in

Coolum Beach, Queensland Coolum Beach is a beachside town and coastal suburb in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the suburb of Coolum Beach had a population of 8,497 people. Geography Coolum Beach has the following mountains (from north to s ...

. He is an ambassador for the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Wilson's mother is a breast cancer survivor, and he was inspired to ride a pink board by a close family friend and international cricketer,

Matthew Hayden Matthew Lawrence Hayden (born 29 October 1971) is an Australian cricket commentator and former cricketer. His career spanned fifteen years. Hayden was a powerful and aggressive left-handed batting order (cricket)#opening batsman, opening batsm ...

, who plays with a pink bat for the corresponding cause. Wilson was in the water during the final of the

J-Bay Open 2015 The J-Bay Open 2015 was an event of the World Surf League Championship Tour. This event was held from 8-19 July 2015 at Jeffreys Bay, (Eastern Cape, South Africa) with 36 professional surfers. The final of the tournament was canceled because M ...

in South Africa when three-time world champion

Mick Fanning Michael Eugene Fanning (born 13 June 1981) is an Australian professional surfer who was crowned champion of the Association of Surfing Professionals/World Surf League (ASP/WSL)'s World Tour in 2007, 2009 and 2013. In 2015, he survived a shark ...

was attacked by a

great white shark The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major oceans. It is nota ...

. He paddled toward Fanning to assist, was praised for his action, and was subsequently hailed as a hero. The event was cancelled. Both surfers escaped unharmed and gifted a shared second-place result. Following the ordeal, Wilson gave a tear-filled interview, and when asked, "You guys are locked in a title battle right now, and to put things into perspective, does that mean anything to you at this point?" he replied, "No, not at all, I'm just happy he's alive."

Surfing career

2011 Accomplishments: *Ranked #9 on the 2011 ASP World Tour *Rookie of the Year 2011 2012 Accomplishments: *Won first ASP World Tour event – Rip Curl Pro Portugal (Peniche, Portugal) *Ranked #9 on the 2012 ASP World Tour rankings Wilson then won the Hawaii Billabong Pipeline Master in 2014, the Billabong Pro Teahupoo in Tahiti in 2017, the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast in 2018, and the Quiksilver Pro France in 2018. Wilson qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. He lost to

Gabriel Medina Gabriel Medina Pinto Ferreira (born 22 December 1993) is a Brazilian professional surfer who won the 2014, 2018 and 2021 WSL World Championships. With 16 WSL Championship Tour (CT) event wins and 29 Final appearances under his belt, Medina is ...

from Brazil in the third round of the men's shortboard. Australia at the 2020 Summer Olympics details the results in depth.

Career victories

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Julian 1988 births Living people World Surf League surfers Australian surfers People from the Sunshine Coast, Queensland Olympic surfers of Australia Surfers at the 2020 Summer Olympics