Wonder Woman of the Week: Malia Manuel
This week's Wonder Woman is an athlete that quietly rests at the top of her game- a super surfer who's broken a few records in her sport while feasting on humble pie as it's an athlete that typically doesn't appear in front of the camera. That doesn't mean she isn't a major source of inspiration for young women and girls in surfing however. Malia Manuel has been one of the top women's surfers in the world for over a decade and during that time has helped build a place for women and girls in a sport once dominated by male athletes and toxic male fans. Manuel was born in Hawaii in 1993 and started surfing at only three years old. By ten years old, Manuel had already started competing and was making headlines for her early skill in the sport. At just 14 years old, Manuel broke the record for being the youngest female competitor to with the US Open of Surfing- one of the largest surfing events in the world.
Even when breaking barriers, Malia Manuel was relatively quiet with the press- instead focusing on maintaining a healthy body and mind for her sport- and it paid off. Manuel has earned several awards during her tenure in professional surfing and has dominated on the Championship Tour for years- even though she's never yet earned a world title. In 2011, Manuel joined the Qualifier Series- a sort of minor league professional surfing- performed so well she earned a spot on the Championship Tour- the majors of surfing. In her debut year in 2012, Manuel earned the rookie of the year award for her performance among the world's top surfers. While constantly pushing herself to earn a world title- never reaching higher than 4th in the world- Manuel sustained an intense injury in 2017 that put her competitive career on pause. Manuel returned to competition by the end of the season though finished 2nd in the final event of the year, and continuing to progress her surfing in the following season.
One should not mistake Malia Manuel's quiet nature for shyness. Instead, Manuel displays the epitome of stoicism. The reserved athlete constantly pushes herself to improve, never letting the emotional wounds of defeat capsize her morale. She's also consistently been a source of encouragement, friendliness, and sportswomanship towards fellow competitors on the tour and works hard with the league to promote and grow women's surfing. Many diehard surf fans consider Manuel the most underrated surfer on the women's championship tour- so many in fact that the league actually added that to her single-paragraph biography on their website. Regardless of recognition, Manuel is a force for inspiration and empowerment as a heroine in women's surfing.
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