- Born:
- December 19, 1990, Nowra, New South Wales, Australia (age 35)
Sally Fitzgibbons
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Who is Sally Fitzgibbons?
Sally Fitzgibbons, born on December 19, 1990, is an Australian surfer celebrated for her skill, power, and finesse. Fitzgibbons started surfing competitively at age 11 and, at 14, was the youngest to win an Association of Surfing Professionals under-21 Pro Junior Open event.
Fitzgibbons has won 12 individual surfing events on the professional tour and is the first surfer to win four individual gold medals (2008, 2018, 2021, and 2024) at the International Surfing Association (ISA) World Surfing Games. In 2007, she became the ASP junior world champion and, in 2008, the youngest athlete to qualify for the ASP world championship tour.
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Where is Sally Fitzgibbons from?
Sally Fitzgibbons, an Australian surfer, was born in Nowra, New South Wales, Australia, on December 19, 1990. Fitzgibbons grew up surfing in Gerroa, New South Wales, with her father and three older brothers. She also participated in football (soccer), touch football, cross-country, and middle-distance running in high school.
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How did Sally Fitzgibbons become interested in surfing?
Sally Fitzgibbons's interest in surfing began in her childhood. Growing up in Gerroa, New South Wales, she surfed with her father and three older brothers. Fitzgibbons entered her first surfing competition at age 11. At 14, she was the youngest athlete to place first in an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) under-21 Pro Junior Open event. In 2007, at age 16, Fitzgibbons focused solely on surfing. That same year, she became the ASP junior world champion. Besides surfing, she competed in soccer, touch football, and cross-country and middle-distance running in high school, also winning gold medals in track events at the Australian Youth Olympic Festival in 2007.
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What are some major competitions Sally Fitzgibbons has competed in?
Sally Fitzgibbons is an Australian surfer known for her power and finesse in the sport. She entered her first surfing competition at age 11 and, at 14, was the youngest to place first in an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) under-21 Pro Junior Open event.
Fitzgibbons became the ASP junior world champion in 2007. The next year, she repeated as champion and qualified for the ASP world championship tour, the youngest ever at 17. Also in 2008, she won her first gold medal at the ISA World Surfing Games. In 2021, she competed in surfing's Olympic debut at the 2020 Tokyo Games, reaching the quarterfinals. She won a record fourth gold at the ISA World Surfing Games in 2024.
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What achievements has Sally Fitzgibbons earned in her surfing career?
Sally Fitzgibbons is an Australian surfer celebrated for its power and finesse, securing 12 individual surfing victories on the professional circuit. By 14, she was the youngest to win an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) under-21 Pro Junior Open. In 2007, she focused solely on surfing, becoming the ASP junior world champion that year. The following year, she repeated her world champion title and, at 17, became the youngest to qualify for the ASP world championship tour.
Fitzgibbons has four individual gold medals at the International Surfing Association (ISA) World Surfing Games (2008, 2018, 2021, and 2024), the first surfer to achieve this milestone. In 2011, she reached the top, winning at Bells Beach, Australia.
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How has Sally Fitzgibbons influenced surfing in Australia and around the world?
Sally Fitzgibbons is an Australian surfer known for its power and finesse, with 12 individual surfing victories on the professional tour. Fitzgibbons entered her first surfing contest at age 11. At 14, she was the youngest athlete to place first in an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) under-21 Pro Junior Open event.
Fitzgibbons became the ASP junior world champion in 2007 and won her first gold medal at the ISA World Surfing Games in 2008. In 2009, during her rookie season on the premier professional surfing tour, she finished fifth in the overall standings. She reached the top of the podium in 2011, at Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia. She won an individual gold at the ISA World Surfing Games for a record fourth time in 2024.
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Sally Fitzgibbons (born December 19, 1990, Nowra, New South Wales, Australia) is an Australian surfer who combined power and finesse to win 12 individual surfing events on the professional tour during her career. She is also the first surfer to win four individual gold medals (2008, 2018, 2021, and 2024) at the International Surfing Association (ISA) World Surfing Games.
Childhood
Fitzgibbons grew up surfing with her father and three elder brothers in the small beachside town of Gerroa, New South Wales. She also took part in other sports, competing in football (soccer), touch football, and cross-country and middle-distance running when she was in high school. In 2007 she won gold medals in the 800-meter and 1,500-meter track events at the Australian Youth Olympic Festival.
Surfing career
Fitzgibbons entered her first surfing contest at age 11. Three years later she became the youngest athlete to place first in an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP; from 2015 the World Surf League) under-21 Pro Junior Open event. In 2007, when Fitzgibbons was 16 years old, she switched her focus solely to surfing and thereafter ascended rapidly in the sport. That year she became the ASP junior world champion. She won that title again the next year and also qualified for the ASP world championship tour, becoming, at 17, the youngest athlete ever to do so. Also in 2008 she won her first gold medal at the ISA World Surfing Games.
During her rookie season on the premier professional surfing tour, in 2009, she finished fifth in the overall standings. In 2010 she ended the year in second place, her best results having been runner-up at three events. She finally reached the top of the podium in 2011, at Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia, where she edged out her compatriot Carissa Moore in the final round. In both 2011 and 2012 she again came in second in the year-end standings. From 2013 to 2019 she remained a consistent presence in the upper ranks, finishing in the top 10 each year.
She qualified to compete in surfing at the sport’s Olympic debut in the 2020 Games in Tokyo. At the Games, postponed until 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Fitzgibbons was eliminated from medal contention after a loss in the quarterfinals. Her performance declined somewhat over the next few years, and she was at times relegated to the second-tier Challengers Series on the professional tour. She had a resurgence in 2024, when she won an individual gold at the ISA World Surfing Games for a record fourth time, but she nevertheless narrowly missed out on qualifying for that year’s Olympic Games in Paris.
Other professional endeavors
Besides surfing, Fitzgibbons published two books, Live Like Sally (2014; with Lucas Townsend) and Summer Fit All Year Round (2018), both of which include recipes and a fitness plan. In addition, Fitzgibbons was the subject of the documentary short Sally: Behind the Smile (2014).