Guess what? She is from Japan and bodyboards for only 7 years.
Not long ago, until she was 18, Kyra Shirahase was known for being an Olympic designated athlete for strengthening and more recently for her amazing shots in the modeling work.
Kyra is now 26 years old, lives in Chiba city, Japan, and practices bodyboarding at Ichinomiya Beach.
She has more than 100k followers on Instagram, but she never won a bodyboarding event. In fact, she is quite new at this sport as she started bodyboarding only 7 years ago, when she decided to quit swimming and embrace the famous boogie board.
“This is my 7th year, and this season it’s my first time on the IBC World Tour. I’m gradually feeling my own growth while being inspired by the other competitors”, she explains.
As we all know, in the past years, Japan has unveiled two world champions, but there’s a long and bright tradition of bodyboarders in the country since the beginning of the world cup at Pipeline.
At first thought, bodyboarding and modeling are activities that may not go together, well, most of the times, but the Japanese bodyboarder assures that the key to success is resilience:
“Balancing my bodyboarding practice with my modeling work in Japan is very challenging, but I’m determined to continue touring and improve next year.”
We got to see this captivating lady for the first time last week, during the Sintra Pro event. Yes, its beauty caught our attention… but not just that. The amazing performance Kyra presented in the waves also suggests more good results in the future – she placed 3rd in Portugal, the first podium after competing in all stops this season.
A competition she said it “feel like I managed to make the most of the timing and opportunities. Even though I still have a lot to learn, I’m proud of myself for seizing this chance.”
You may ask: Is a star born? Maybe… We think so, but only time can tell.
Photos by @joaoaraujo1975 @nobufukuphotography @jmiranda_sportsphotography
