Surfing
Maya Gabeira's Triumphant Return to Nazaré
Watch the Brazilian surfer make her comeback at Nazaré, Portugal, where she nearly drowned in 2013.
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5 min
Maya Gabeira returns to Nazaré
After two years Maya Gabeira overcomes her pains, traumas and the dreaded waves of Nazaré, Portugal.
On October 9, 2015, at exactly midday, beneath the 12 chimes of the bells of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Nazaré, Maya Gabeira rode her first wave back at Praia do Norte, where three years earlier she experienced the roughest moment of her career.
Bulldozed by a massive wave, Gabeira broke her ankle instantly, but that was the least of her troubles. Two more waves tossed her around as her body went limp and she slipped in and out of consciousness before fellow Brazilian Carlos Burle was able to rescue her. The scenes were shocking and were watched in horror around the world.
All of which brings us to the courageous clip above. With much physical and psychological preparation, along with two hernia surgeries to her back, Gabeira got back to the place that once changed her life forever. As naturally as you'd expect from someone who's surfed the biggest waves on the planet for the past decade, the 28-year-old didn’t have any problems dropping into 10ft waves, but that was only her first step.
Maya Gabeira
© Hugo Silva
“On the first day it was good just to relax after the flight from Brazil to Portugal," Gabeira said. "I have a new board, made especially for me by Gerry Lopez, and we also have a new Jet Ski, so it was good to surf on a smaller day to get more understanding of this new equipment."
I needed to get back to Nazaré, because it was here where my surfing life stopped two years ago– Maya Gabeira
Now, Gabeira is already aiming for her next challenge, a familiar one: Hawaii. For the first time since 2013, she'll spend a proper winter season in the famous Pacific islands.
“I’m going to Hawaii knowing that I’m fine," she said. "I needed to get back to Nazaré, because it was here where my surfing life stopped two years ago. I needed to restart here. Now, I feel my life is back on track. I’m happy again. I’m happy when I surf and when I’m in the water, and I can’t wait to face the winter season in the Northern Hemisphere!"
Maya and Pedro Scooby check back in to the game
© Hugo Silva
Gabeira's long-time partner Burle was the man responsible for her rescue back in 2013, and is one of the people who followed her path to recovery the closest. In the eyes of the man who arguably once rode the biggest wave ever, Gabeira's efforts, mentally and physically, have more than paid off.
Now this feels like her backyard. It’s pretty good to see her laughing and having fun in the water again– Carlos Burle
“I need to congratulate and celebrate this moment with Maya," he says. "Every day she spends here the surfers are more impressed with her evolution. The way she has been surfing, the way she drives the ski in critical situations… I heard that from Garrett McNamara, who knows this place and this wave better than anyone. When we first got here, at the beginning of October, she was so tense; I didn’t even know how to help her. We talked a little bit, she felt pressured… but now this feels like her backyard. It’s pretty good to see her laughing and having fun in the water again."
This confidence finally came back after spending almost two months in Portugal, though it took a lot of hard work to get to this point. Over this period Gabeira had to deal with pain, tensions, stresses and fears associated with returning to the place that turned her life turned upside-down in October 2013. Several times Gabeira contemplated letting the project slide, so apprenhensive was she that it was all too much.
“I’ve been in Nazaré since the beginning of October," said Gabeira, "and I’m the only person who knows all that I’ve been through. Several times the only relief was to cry; cry because of the pain I feel, cry because of the fear, cry due the stress I was under. In the end, though, it was all good. I wouldn’t change a thing, because everything I've been through helped me to get here. And everything was worth it – really worth it!"
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