Mimi Barona rips. The first time I saw her surfing she was with fellow shredder and ‘QS competitor, Anali Gomez. She effortlessly threw a layback snap and a chop hop 360, as quick and powerful as lightening. The guys next to me on the beach were stoked as they watched. “These dudes are killing it, the waves are sick right now,” they said. Then they realized the “dudes” were actually two ladies and awkwardly mumbled off into other subject matter. The confusion was sparked by Mimi’s outfit. Under here t-shirt and boardshorts was a cute bikini and a bangin’ bod, but that day she was surfing covered and she was surfing well.
Looks over skill isn’t exactly a new topic in the world of competitive female surfing. But we look at it superficially, cringing over gender comparisons as we argue over whether or not the girls are as good as the guys. But who’s in charge of the selection we’re analyzing?
There are other issues at play when discussing whether or not female surfers need to be blonde and thin in order to deserve recognition. Discrimination based on race restricts a huge percentage of the world’s surfers from making it into the public sphere. Most of the best surf spots in the world are home to locals who aren’t white-skinned and wiry-framed, yet very few of them are represented on the competitive circuit. This happens even more often when it comes to women.
Case in point: Mimi.
She has skill and heart, she’s a positive role model, she’s the champion of Latin America. Barona is currently ranked 7th on the WSL’s ‘QS circuit, just within arm’s length of accomplishing her dream to become a member of the WCT. She’s fresh off a runner-up result in June’s Los Cabos Open of Surf, which placed her firmly in that top ten ranking. All this and most of fans, to no fault of their own, probably don’t know her name.
Her two sponsors are one small company in her home of Ecuador along with a project through the country’s sports ministry. They are circumstances that have sparked a community campaign to fundraise the money to keep Barona in a contest jersey.
It’s an interesting reality of competitive surfing, and it begs the question: How many other talented surfers are off the radar, hoping to be world champions?
