Kelly Slater, widely regarded as the greatest professional surfer of all time, said Tuesday “this feels like the end” after being knocked out of a competition in Australia and losing his place on the world tour.
The 52-year-old American, an 11-time world champion, was already out of contention for a spot at the Paris Olympics this summer.
“This feels like the end,” he said, fighting back tears, following elimination from a World Surf League event at Margaret River, near Perth.
Slater did not definitively say he was retiring and has hinted several times before that his professional surfing career was over.
He also said on Tuesday that he had asked for a wildcard for an upcoming event in Fiji.
But he was visibly emotional and was carried off the beach in a show of respect, and applauded by fans and fellow competitors.
“Everything comes to an end,” said Slater, who has been compared to basketball’s Michael Jordan in how his fame transcended his sport.
“If you don’t adapt, you don’t survive.
“My motivation just hasn’t quite been there to really put in that 100 percent that everyone is doing now.”
Australian three-time world champion Mick Fanning, who quit the sport in 2018, congratulated Slater on “an incredible career”.
“What you did for the sport of surfing is unrivalled. Pushing the limits of what is possible,” Fanning wrote on Instagram.
“The dedication to your craft inspired everyone to become better.
“Thank you for all the memories and battles.”
Known for his prowess and style, the ultra-competitive Slater arrived on the surfing scene in 1990, capturing his first world title two years later aged 20 and his last in 2011.
He is both the youngest and oldest world champion.
Slater has also appeared in dozens of surfing films, starred in the hit 1990s TV show “Baywatch” and has featured in video games.
“It’s been an incredible lifetime of memories,” said Slater, who has a baby on the way with his partner Kalani Miller and said now was “the start of something else, the start of the rest of my life”.
“It’s so much emotion for so long. It’s not all roses, but it’s been the best times of my life,” said the American.
“I couldn’t quite pull a miracle off this week. I’ve pulled off a few over the years.”
