Robert Edward Machado (born October 16, 1973) is an Australian born American professional surfer. Rob competed on the

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

Championship Tour from 1993-2001. Since then he has become a professional free surfer.

Early life

Machado attended San Dieguito High School. He describes himself in interviews, vlogs and social media as a " soul surfer," or freesurfer. He was largely active in the competitive surfing scene from 1993 to 2000, and was still competing in

events until 2012.

Career

Machado hosts and participates in an annual event held at his home reef called the Rob Machado Surf Classic and Beach Fair, which is an amateur competition for the locals of all ages, and it includes demo sessions with Machado and other pros. Machado portrayed " himself" in the 2007 animated picture, '' Surf's Up, as well as playing himself in the art film
Kingshighway - Rob Machado and Joel Tudor
by Paulo Carvalho (Kid Rio) and Danny Camp.'' Machado also starred in his own feature film released in the late 90s titled "Drifting". Additionally, Rob wrote and starred in the 2009 film, '' The Drifter''. Machado is a 2011 inductee into the Surfing Walk of Fame in

Huntington Beach, California Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, United States. The city was originally called Pacific City, but it was changed in 1903 to be named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 as of ...

, in the surf champion category. On December 31, 2019, Machado announced he would no longer be associated with Hurley International after having been sponsored by the surf company for nearly 20 years, due to the new ownership group's desire to cut spending. He is now sponsored by Vuori, Reef, Dragon and Firewire. He regularly surfs in San Diego, where he has gained prominence.

Environmental activism

Machado formed the Rob Machado Foundation, an organization focused on environmental causes.

Career highlights

Machado has won the Hawaii's Pipeline Masters (Triple Crown of Surfing), and the U.S. Open of Surfing, the largest surfing event held on the U.S. mainland.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Machado, Rob 1973 births Living people Sportspeople from San Diego Surfers from California Surfers from Sydney American surfers World Surf League surfers Australian emigrants to the United States