22/04/2024
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Is Kelly the greatest sportsman to ever live, period?
Yes and here is why. He continued to compete at a high level, even at 52. Where have you ever seen a champ such as Slater? Was Roger Federer dazzling minds at the US Open at 50 ? No.
Was there ever a time when Michael Jordan was flying through the air while he was 49- 50 years old? Hell no (He was too busy placing bets).
Did Derek Jeter jack one out of the park in his 50’s?? God no!
It just doesn’t happen, but Slater did win, the evening before his 50th birthday and he won convincingly. Should he have hung it up at Pipe right then and there? Probably, but when you are a competitive genius like a Kelly Slater and you feel that you have more in the tank, what do you do? You continue to hunt for that euphoric feeling of winning again and again. He was addicted to it no doubt and thankfully he continued to hunt down another win. People were saying”Kelly should hang it up,he’s too old”, but what you are missing is what was happening behind the scenes.
Kelly was an enormous mentor to everyone on tour, from John John all the way to Griffin Colapinto who Kelly had his last heat with. He moved everyone on tour, especially the fans, at every stop on tour Kelly packed the most fans on the beach, no doubt. From the young to the old, they all love Kelly, He spanned generations and crossed multinational lines in every country on this planet.
Everyone loves the GOAT.
I’ll say it right here, right now, I will miss you on tour and I thank you for everything you’ve done for the sport of surfing and our culture.
You are all class and there will never be another one like you , EVER.
I thank God that I was alive for your entire career Kelly Slater and fair winds and following seas to you and Kalani and your new baby boy that you named Brent- (Thanks)
Who knows, maybe he will be in Griffin’s final heat of his career twenty years from now, (Brent vs Griffin 2044) weirder things have happened, or is that just my “Slateritis” kicking in….
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