In terms of athletes, it’s hard to find one with Kelly Slater’s track record. In surfing, of course, it’s impossible — he’s so far ahead of the pack his records may never be beaten. He’s 50 years old now and he’s got 11 world titles. At the time of this writing, he’s sitting second in the ratings, tied with 22-year-old Barron Mamiya. Twenty-four-year-old Kanoa Igarashi is only 2,640 points ahead of him. He recently won Pipeline. There is a chance — although it’s far too early to really say — that he could win a 12th world title. And, like we said, he’s 50.
“I think I’m still doing this because I do know that on my day, I can beat anyone, anywhere,” he says. “You have to feel that. And if you don’t feel that, you just shouldn’t do it.”
Of course, one doesn’t become a multiple-time world champion without having a blazing competitive fire inside. All those wins come with losses, and as he gets older, he’s been having to work even harder to stay ahead of the younger generation. Only he knows when he’ll retire, and it doesn’t appear that he’s really made any decision yet. On the heels of his Pipe win, the World Surf League put together a short video of the good, the bad, and some of the ugliness that comes along with having the competitive drive of one Kelly Slater.
