Pierre Rollet

Big Wave Rider

When he answers our phone call, Pierre Rollet is on the road to Galicia, Spain, to join the famous and experienced Basque big-wave rider, Asier Muniain. Cyclone Lorenzo is raging off the coast. Chaos! Three days later, we called Pierre back.
- " So ?"
- "We didn't surf, but spent more than 9h roving the water on a jet-ski to spot potential waves. We were in the rain and wind and even had on our waxed jackets over our navigation suits. It was an epic hunt, a real adventure."

An adventure that now mobilizes all the energy of the young, professional French big-wave surfer born in Bayonne in 1994. On Pierre Rollet’s palmares, the notable victory of the 2019 Punta Galea Challenge, a prestigious big-surf competition that traditionally takes place at the entrance to the port of Bilbao, Spain, in at least six-meter swells. Double glory for the Angloy surfer, to be invited to the competition and to win it too!

Before big waves became an addictive attraction to his existence, Pierre Rollet was an avid, competitive surfer. Trained at Pôle France (French sport training center) and a medalist at the European Championships, he even paid his own registration fees for the European Pro Junior events to be extra motivated to do well there! But another challenge hits him in the gut, big waves. The advantage of learning through Pôle France is you come out with a strong surfing foundation. A good bottom-turn, the right line... And in big-wave surfing, such skills matter a lot, particularly when committing to catch a wave. Pierre is a powerful surfer, his small but muscular physique makes for a useful and solid footing in big surf. Initially assisted by another big-wave surfer from Angloy, Stéphane Iralour, the young athlete learned the tow-in ropes offshore of the Anglet surf spots before venturing to Belharra and getting a taste for the infinite and vertiginous slope of the breaking Basque surf.