Surfing
With her new movie à la folie out now, we thought it was time to learn more about the French charger who might just be the best all-round waterwoman in the world.
When it comes to big wave surfing one woman stands head and shoulders above the rest: Justine Dupont. While you might know the French surfer – who now lives in Portugal – as a two-time winner of the Nazaré Tow Challenge, and the recipient of numerous XXL Awards across all categories, there is much more to the strong natural-footer than just being someone who shines in heavy water. As her latest biopic à la folie has just launched, we got on the phone to talk all things Justine, as she recuperates from a broken ankle suffered at her favourite heavy wave this past February.
à la folie
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"À la folie means 'with a lot of passion'. It does for me anyway, because otherwise, it means 'madness', and that's not what I see my surfing as, whereas I definitely have a lot of passion when it comes to surfing big waves. Last year was my best season yet, so it was great to have that all captured in this film, to show off how I was feeling, how I do everything with my team, and all of the work beyond just the surfing.
"It's nice to be recognised as one of the best big wave surfers in the world for all sorts of reasons. I've dedicated myself to Nazaré, to big waves, and it makes me feel like I'm doing the right thing. Being recognised also helps with sponsors, who allow for travel and that kind of thing, which means I can follow my dreams, and follow the storms and the waves I want to surf."
Chasing a dream from France to Portugal
"Nazaré has been such a great experience. We came down as a French couple wanting to surf big waves, so we were open to listening to anyone and getting advice, and were so inspired by everyone. I had just qualified for the Championship Tour after doing well on the Qualifying Series, so I think I was seen as having a strong background as a shortboard surfer. It was a really welcoming community. Then the more we surfed it, the more we improved, and it became more enjoyable.
"In Nazaré, there is such big organisation needed, from the base to the jetskis to having talented people with the right skills. It’s so tricky, that’s why having good support is essential and lets me dedicate my time to my passion. I can do it every day. That’s why we moved to Nazaré. There are so many big days there, almost too many!
"Nazarè always has waves, big and small, and it breaks all the time! Sometimes you have to say to yourself, don't go in the water just to have a little break, but as a surfer, that's not very easy. You see waves you want to go! This place is crazy, and this winter especially. Last year wasn't quite as good, which is why we had the time to go to Jaws and Mavericks, so that worked out really well because it was such a good Mavericks winter; lots of swell and not much wind, so that was good for this movie."
I'm never looking for a win. I surf for myself. I don't really care if I win or lose, I'm a surfer, and I only care about the waves
About that Jaws wave...
"I think that Jaws tube last year is the best wave of my life. I had one at the first Nazaré Tow Challenge in 2020, and I really loved it because it was perfect Nazaré; a big, peaky, glassy triangle, but I'll say that it and the Jaws wave are my top two. They are the best memories for me. That was an epic, epic day at Jaws. A few times at Mavericks, I missed barrels where I should have been deeper, so going to Jaws, I knew it would barrel, and I knew where I had to put myself. I wanted a proper one!
"A friend, French legend Michel Laronde, told me I’d get barreled, but to be aware that the barrel at Jaws looks like a closeout, so to be ready for it. The day of the swell, Michel towed me into one, then I waited and waited and got the second one, and that was the one! I’m really stoked with my tow wave. Now I want to get one like that paddling!"
The price of competing
"I'm never looking for a win. I surf for myself. I don't really care if I win or lose, I'm a surfer, and I only care about the waves. If I win and catch bad waves, I won't be happy. I'll just say: 'okay, thanks.' I know that it will be good for my sponsors and the media to talk about it, but I'd rather be happy with the waves I rode, the lines I took, and how I feel afterwards. The contests are just an opportunity to surf places that can get crowded with less people and with more safety and organisation around me. Having said that, twice I've got hurt in competitions, and I can't figure it out! I really hope it's just bad luck."
Dupont grew up riding a shortboard, but loves logs, guns, tow boards and anything else that floats
"I grew up riding a shortboard, I'd steal my father's board, and that was how I got into it. In 2011, I came second to Bianca Buitendag at Narrabeen in the World Juniors. I qualified for the Championship Tour in 2012, and then I injured myself training a week before the first contest, so I had to have surgery, rehab and everything. I didn't get the injury wildcard at the end of the year, then had to go back to the Qualifying Series.
"I started doing a few longboarding contests growing up and loved the vibe. I always did more shortboarding, but I've always loved longboarding. I've won the European longboarding championship a few times, and won a world title for stand-up paddling in 2019. Because I'm so used to riding a longboard and a longer (paddle surfing) gun, I was encouraged to try SUPing, and I found success pretty quickly."
"I still surf when it's small!"
"At Nazaré, there aren't that many small days, so I really enjoy it when we do have them. In big waves, you wear so much gear that it's nice to go surfing sometimes with just one wetsuit on, no inflatable vests and no jetski. Just grab the one board and go."
Who is Fredo David?
"My boyfriend Fredo is also my tow partner, so he's a huge part of my life, in and out of the water. The decision for us to move to Nazaré was a big one, and doing everything together all the time can be tough, sure, but it's so good because when one of you succeeds, you both do, and when one of you is a little down the other person can pick you up. In big waves, I have so much confidence in him that it's one less thing to worry about. Also, I don't want to put him in a bad situation, so I feel responsible for him. It's nice."
California, here we come
"We thought we weren’t going to be able to travel last year with Covid going on, but somehow we could go to the US. The Nazaré winter wasn’t that great, so as soon as we saw the first big swell heading to California, we headed off. That’s the legend (and first man to surf) Mavericks’, Jeff Clark, who we’re towing with in à la folie. We’d already been there twice before but never surfed it really big, so I was keen for a proper day.
"The airline lost my boards, so I had to borrow some, and as I had already met Jeff once before, I thought I would ask him. He has a shop full of big wave gear, and he remembered me and was happy to help us! We spent some time together after that, which was awesome, and then he decided he wanted to start towing at Mavericks again when it's too big to paddle, and I was stoked to be with him on his comeback! It was so big, the numbers on the charts were crazy, and the boat captains weren't sure about getting in and out of the harbour, but in the end, it worked out okay and was one of the best days ever out there."
Staying positive when the chips are down
"Right now, I'm out of the water for another three to four months. I'm trying to take the positives out of the situation. I'm just trying to tell myself that clearly, my body needed a break and to enjoy the time off. But it's hard."
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From commentating on Tokyo 2020 to competing at Teahupo'o 2024?
"I commentated on the Japanese Olympic surfing on French TV. I'd never done it before, and it was a different experience for sure, really interesting. As a surfer, I like to change my boards to have a different perspective of the waves. By commentating, I was able to have a different perspective on the media and even the professional surfing world. Obviously, the waves at the event weren't that appealing, so I didn't mind missing out, but at the next Olympic Games, surfing is Teahupo'o, so it's very tempting to try and make the French team. I love that wave so much!"
What does the future hold for Justine Dupont?
"What are my goals? I want to get better at Teahupo'o. I still feel like I have a lot of work to do out there. I still want to get a good paddle wave at Jaws and the same at Mavericks. I want to go to Australia and have a proper go at slabs and barrels. I surfed the Cave in Portugal and loved it, and I want to keep going back to Ireland for sure, but Western Australia is still waiting for me. Maybe Mexico too, Fiji, Morocco, lots of travel and barrelling waves, I hope. We'll see!"
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