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Surf Nation (2024)

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Surf Nation (2024)

Post by bunniefuu »

ANDIA WINSLOW: These young athletes are training

with China's national surfing team.

LOLO LUO LING [speaking Mandarin]:

WINSLOW: They dream of making it to the Olympics.

LI [speaking Mandarin]:

DAISY DONG KEYING [speaking Mandarin]:



WINSLOW: "Surf Nation" onDocWorld.



[exhales]

[rubbing board]

[hatch closes] Let's go.

Oh, my God.

Oh, my God!

Oh, see that?

Oh, my God!

That was a proper barrel.

Oh, my God, look at that one.



[softly]: Look at that.





[people talking in background]

BOY: Oh!

[others exclaiming]



REPORTER [speaking Mandarin]:

[whistle blows]



REPORTER [speaking Mandarin]:



KIDS [speaking Mandarin]:





[talking in background]

[applauding]

LI [speaking Mandarin]:

KIDS [speaking Mandarin]:

LI:

KIDS:

- [murmurs]

[applauding]

[cell phone alarm ringing]

[alarm stops]

[exhales]

And I rent this all by myself, you know,

because they, they will not let me just have a own room.

So I'm just, like, I don't want to stay with anybody else,

so I just rent it by myself.

Check it out.

This one is, like, my super-old board.

When I was ten years old, I was using this board.

Look at its tail.

It's messed up.

I broke my bone.

See that [muted] right here?

See that crack?

I was trying to practice my back flip,

and I think I land on a flat

with my feet like that, and I cracked it.

That's why I have, like, a, two months, a month

to not surf.

That's why-- oof.

So, let's go surf.

[laughs]

[speaking Mandarin]:





[speaking Mandarin]:

[talking and laughing in background]

[laughs]

HUANG [speaking Mandarin]:

KID:

HUANG:

KID:

HUANG:

KID:

HUANG:

[shouting]

[speaking Mandarin]:

[calling]:

[whistle blows]

CLARK: I don't know of many other places in the world

who have designed a program around surfing

like they have at the moment.

[people cheering]

[man cheers, exclaims]

CLARK: And they're bringing in coaches

from other places around the world

because they don't have surfers in China.

GRANT THOMAS: The main thing is, wait for the bigger waves,

because the smaller waves are gonna stop breaking now

because the tide's coming in.

- [speaking Mandarin]



THOMAS: The more time we're spending,

we're learning more about the Chinese culture.

From a coaching point of view,

it's a little bit more regimented.

So probably, they're a little bit more coachable.



You see their willingness to learn.

WOMAN [speaking Mandarin]:

[kids exclaim]

[laughing]

WOMAN [speaking Mandarin]:

MAN [laughing]: Hey!

CLARK: We've explained the time

it takes to become a good surfer,

and the leaders want to short-track it, you know.

If we'd say it takes years to become a professional,

they want to do it in ten.

- There, that's it.

THOMAS:

[onlookers applauding]

CLARK: Every province seems to be jumping on board,

creating teams, and those teams are getting bigger and bigger.

What is their population?

. billion?

I mean, the sport will grow quite fast.

They've actually brought in people from other sports.

So they've got canoers coming in, they've got

sailors coming in, a lot of swimmers,

they have quite a few divers coming in,

and they're giving them surfboards,

and they're seeing how they go.

Ones show potential they hold onto, and the ones that don't

go back to whatever they were doing.

And then, you know, we've got Alex,

who's had a head start on the rest of them.

He's surfing, you, you know, for a -year-old,

it's not too far behind the best -year-olds in the world.

He's got the drive.

He's very passionate.

He's definitely got the confidence.

[laughing]: We know that.

I mean, I, if I had five percent of his confidence, I'd love it.

But I think there's gonna be a lot of hungry kids

come chasing down his title.

The development, because of the opportunities thrown to them,

from a young age, surfing every day,

twice a day, maybe three times a day,

that progression is happening quick.



[water running]

DAISY [speaking Mandarin]:

LAKEY PETERSON [in video]: Surfing is just like

reading the ocean.

Some sessions, it's just extra-special.

I just had so much fun.

I got to finally surf waves with a little bit of power

and have a bit more speed, and I just had the best time.

It's so fun out there.

DAISY [speaking Mandarin]:

[speaking Mandarin]

[yelps]

DAISY:

- [yelps]



DAISY:

[crying]



DAISY:

[man speaking Mandarin]

DAISY:

[man speaking Mandarin]

MA [speaking Mandarin]:

KIDS:

MA:

KIDS:



Yeah. [laughs]

CONNOR: Looking out the back of the wave instead of looking...

[exclaims]

CONNOR: Yes!

See if, let's see if you can slow it from here.

Look.

Look where his eyes are.

Looking straight up there at the lip.

- [speaking Mandarin]

MAN: He's, he's bending his legs

at the top of the wave.

LOLO:

CONNOR: His wave selection is still a bit poor,

so he needs to try and wait for those bigger sets.



LOLO:

[whistle blows]

[speaking Mandarin]:



THOMAS: Question one.

KID [speaking Mandarin]:

THOMAS:

Go.

[talking in background]

ALEX [speaking Mandarin]:

THOMAS: Question two.

KID [speaking Mandarin]:

- [speaking Mandarin]:

GIRL:

THOMAS: Question three,

which coach is fatter?

[all laugh and shout]

But remember who the boss is.

[all laughing]

KID [speaking Mandarin]:

ALEX:

BOY:

[kids exclaiming]

BOY:

BOY :

BOY :

[all laughing]

THOMAS: Ooh!

[all laughing] Here we go.

BOY:

KID:

THOMAS: ..

KIDS:

[all laughing, talking in background]

CLARK:

[all cheering]

KID:

[all laughing]

CLARK:



[speaking Mandarin]:



TEACHER:

KIDS:

TEACHER: Good evening, class.

November, November. KIDS: November, November.

TEACHER: December, December. KIDS: December.

December.

TEACHER: Swimmer. KIDS: Swimmer.

[laughing, speaking Mandarin]

[laughing]

THOMAS [in high-pitched voice]:

[in normal voice]:

- [laughing]:

We like him. [both laughing]





MA [speaking Mandarin]:



THOMAS: So China's plan involves getting their kids competing

in a variety of events around the world.

These competitions basically fit into three categories.

There's the Chinese National Competitions.

These are where the provinces send their own teams

to compete against each other.

For the kids, these are really important events

for competition experience

and to maintain their standing

on the national team.

There's the World Surf League's Championship Tour,

otherwise known as the CT.

This is where the superstars of the surfing world

compete against each other individually.

When Alex says he wants to be world champ,

this is exactly what he's talking about.



And then there's

the International Surfing Association.

They hold the World Surfing Games.

This is where countries

send delegations of their top surfers,

and they're typically seen as the amateur world championship.

But now they're used as a qualifier for the Olympics.

So everybody comes.

This is where China is measuring themselves against the world.

But Olympic qualification isn't as a team.

It's as an individual.

So the Chinese Olympic Surf Team, were there to be one,

may only have one surfer.

[Bob Marley's "One Love" playing on stereo]

Panama!

♪ Gonna be no more doom♪

♪ One song♪

♪ Have pity on those whose chances grow scanter♪

[horn blows, man exclaims]

THOMAS: Obviously, it's a monumental event,

as far as the I.S.A. World Games goes.

You know, we've got a bunch of the world's top surfers

that have come from the WSL

to put in their claim so they can surf the Olympics.

- [singing along]: ♪ Let's get together

♪ And feel all right

THOMAS: To surf against the best

is an amazing experience for any kid.

- ♪ One heart

THOMAS: We told them, you know, like,

just enjoy it.

There's kids all over the world that would dream of paddling out

next to Kelly or Gabriel Medina

or any surfer on the world tour,

and these guys are about to go do it.

- ♪ Feel all right [cheering]

FILIPE TOLEDO:

THOMAS: The challenge for Alex is, he's got the expectations.

You know, he's the best surfer in China.

He's their best chance of doing anything.

There's no doubt he's getting bigger, he's getting stronger,

but he's still a kid.



[laughs]

LI [speaking Mandarin]:

[Thomas and Clark chuckle]

LI:

- [quietly]:

LI [speaking Mandarin]:

[applauding]

ALEX:

LI:

ALEX:

ALEX:

WOMAN: You don't get nervous? - No.

If I surf to my ability, if I lost,

fine, that's okay.

But if I didn't surf to my ability and I lost,

I'll be [muted] pissed, you know?



[whistling]





[people talking in background]

[insects chirping]

THOMAS: You want to be careful of this morning,

because already, I can see a tenseness, a change in you,

and that's going to bring on little mistakes.

All right?

You got to try and keep yourself as level as you can.

Make sense?

No use changing the fun, and the smile,

like, the smile's already gone off your face.

All right? When that changes, the performance will change.

So it's really important that we just keep

the same thing going that you've been doing,

because you've been surfing great,

but you need to know if this all changes,

out there will change.

All right? - Mm-hmm.

THOMAS: Let's go, get in the other side.

You can sit in the front.

Okay, can I drive yet? [alert beeping]

MAN: You're good. [Thomas cheering]

THOMAS: Let's roll.



[seagulls squawking]



ANNOUNCER: The I.S.A. World Surfing Games presented by Vans.

Three, two, one.

[airhorn blows, team shouting]

[crowd cheering]



THOMAS:

[crowd cheering]

[crowd cheers and applauds]



- [exclaims]

ALEX:

- Yeah.

THOMAS:

[laughs]

[horn blaring] We'll soon find out.

Whew, Alex!

[official making announcement over loudspeaker]

THOMAS:

[horn blaring]

THOMAS:

[announcer commentating over loudspeaker]

Here's one.

Go, go, go, go, go, go, go.

Yes, yes.

Keep going.

He'll finish this if it stands up for him.

Go, go, go, go.

He's showing pretty good poise.

ANNOUNCER:

THOMAS:

Just go, go, go, go, go, go.

ANNOUNCER: seconds remaining.



THOMAS:

Keep going.

ANNOUNCER:

First place, red.

- Is he in second?

ANNOUNCER: Second place now yellow.

THOMAS:

[Clark whistles loudly]

THOMAS: Come on,



ANNOUNCER:

THOMAS: Uh-oh.

ANNOUNCER:

- Damn it.

That's all right.

ANNOUNCER: Five, four, three, two, one.

[horn blaring]

CLARK:

- Really? - Yeah.

- What?!

THOMAS: Alex,

- What?

ALEX: [muted]

ANNOUNCER:

[horn blaring]

ANNOUNCER: This has been everything for today.

Thank you very much.

[speaking Spanish]

[speaking Japanese]

See you tomorrow.

[speaking Spanish] Ciao.

THOMAS: It was a loss, but in saying that,

from a coaching point of view, you know,

he couldn't have done it any better.



He's still a kid, you know, and he's got the expectations.

Like, everyone's, like, "When's Alex going to do this?

"When's he going to end up here?

When's he going to do that?"

It's a lot of weight there, really.

If he kind of forgets about what everyone thinks about him,

and if he can control himself

and focus on what he's got to do,

he'll, he'll surprise people down the track.



[speaking Mandarin]:

I don't know if it's working.

I was, like, "Okay."

WOMAN [speaking Mandarin]:

[speaking Mandarin]:

WOMAN: Not ready yet.

- [speaking Mandarin]:

WOMAN:

- [speaking Mandarin]:

Get into the water.

Punched by wave.

Make me feel alive.

[Chinese national anthem playing]

[anthem continues]

[anthem continues]

[anthem ends]

ANNOUNCER [speaking Mandarin over loudspeaker]:

- [cheering]

ANNOUNCER:

- [laughing]

ANNOUNCER:

[drums continue, recorded vocal track playing]

♪ I see you dancing with every girl♪

♪ Looking for someone to rock your world♪

♪ I'm tracking your body, it's looking right♪

♪ Boy, I can tell that you'd go all night♪

[song ends]

[crowd cheering and applauding]

[people talking in background]

MAN and LOLO [speaking Mandarin]:

MOYU [speaking Mandarin]:

[voiceover]:

Alex is just missing out, you know?

DONG [speaking Mandarin]:

MOYU:

DONG:

MOYU:

DONG:

MOYU: Huh?

DONG:

MAN:

DONG:

MOYU:

[laughs]

ANNOUNCER [speaking Mandarin]:

MOYU: Ah-yah... - [grunts]

MOYU:

DONG:

BOY: Ah. - [speaking Mandarin]:

MOYU:

[announcer talking over loudspeaker]

[chuckling]:

[group exclaiming] MOYU [speaking Mandarin]:

[laughs]

[speaking Mandarin, laughing]:



[cheering]

[Moyu exclaims]

ANNOUNCER [speaking Mandarin]:

[horn blaring, group cheering]

Yeah!

MAN: Yeah, nice!



MOYU [speaking Mandarin]:

Yeah!

BOY [speaking Mandarin]:

MOYU:

[talking in background, horn blaring]

[crowd cheers and applauds in distance]

[people talking in background]

[announcer speaking over loudspeaker]



[mock-yelling in Mandarin]:

LOLO [laughing]:

[sighs]

[announcer speaking over loudspeaker]

[announcer continues, crowd cheering]



[horn blaring]

[cheering]



[crowd cheering]

[crowd cheering]

[announcer speaking over loudspeaker]

[horn blaring]



DAISY:

ANNOUNCER [over loudspeaker]:

[Daisy gasps]

DAISY and ANNOUNCER:

WOMAN [laughing] and ANNOUNCER:

DAISY and ANNOUNCER:

WOMAN:

MAN:

[people talking in background]

DAISY:

MAN:

DAISY:

[announcer speaking] DAISY:

LOLO:

DAISY:

[man joking, Daisy muttering angrily in Mandarin]

MA [speaking Mandarin]:

MOYU:

MA:

MAN:

MA:

MAN:

[laughing] MA:

MAN:

MA:

MOYU:

MA:

[people talking in background]

DAISY [speaking Mandarin]:

WOMAN:

DAISY:

FU and DAISY:

DAISY:

FU:

DAISY:

FU:

DAISY:

[woman whistling tune]



LOLO:

It kind of, like, changed my, my feeling about surfing.

So I always care about, like, be the top of things,

so I need to push harder.



Yeah, it's kind of a job.

[speaking Mandarin]:

WOMAN:

LOLO:

[speaking Mandarin]:



[car horn honking]



ALEX [speaking Mandarin]:





MAN [on phone]:

[door unlocks]



BOY [speaking Mandarin]:

ALEX:

- [laughing]

ALEX:

[guffawing]

BOY:

GIRL:

Crazy motel.



WOMAN [speaking Mandarin]:

[people talking in background]

ZHOU:

[water running]

[laughs]

[chopping]

MAN [speaking Mandarin]:

[car alarm chirping]

[boy speaking Mandarin]

[sirens blaring in distance]

[people talking in background]

[sirens continue]

[chuckling]

Oh, my God.

[muted] good.

Hello.

[barking] Oh, [muted].

Holy [muted].

[barking]

Holy [muted].

It means nothing.

I don't know.

[laughs]

Like... [exhales through lips]

[laughs]

[chuckles]

It was, like, it was, like, most of the Chinese kid do that.

[chuckling]

QIU HANG [speaking Mandarin]:



BOY: Hey, is that a chicken or is that a "quack, quack"?

Chicken, chicken.

ALEX: That was a duck, not chicken.

Dude! Dude!

- Chicken!

- Dude!

QIU [speaking Mandarin]:





[car alarm beeps]

ALEX:

Good morning, Grandpa. TOWNEND: What's up, Alex?

ALEX:

Alive. [laughs]

- Still funny.

- How you doing? - Miss you, Grandpa.

- [muted], you got taller, you're nearly tall as me now.

- Nah. - [laughs]

- It was pretty okay-- it's been,

- Not too bad, but you got to do it all the time,

not just once. - I know.

And then you got to be able to do it in minutes.

[laughs] - I know I can do it.

that's your car.

[laughs]

[laughs]

ALEX:



TOWNEND:

- I know.

- I know, I know. - [laughs]





- Are we done?

- Oh, [muted], oh, my God.

[groans]: Oh, my God.



REPORTER: Well, it's an iconic venue here,

as the Huntington Beach Pier

hosts the Vissla I.S.A. World Junior Champs.

nations, over competitors.

The world's best under- surfers.

ANNOUNCER: With all the buzz of the Olympics,

having that opportunity to represent your country

is very unique.

Surfing, it's typically a individual sport.

When somebody wins here, they usually make it

onto the CT around three years after that,

so it's really great snapshot into the future.



- [speaking Mandarin]:

ALEX:

- [speaking Mandarin]:

[Alex responds]

Going to go... [announcer speaking]

ANNOUNCER: .....

ANNOUNCER: ..

- Like it.

Blue. - So, I see the best waves

all being rights, right?

- Yeah, I know, that's my backhand.

- Yeah, yeah, just making sure

you just stay in the pocket and whip a few,

and I'm sure you'll make the heat that way, right?

- Yeah.

I know what you mean.

Okay, I'm going to free surf.

POST: He definitely has potential to go far.

He's a very talented kid.

Will he push through to that top pro level?

We shall see, you know?

I, it's, it's a challenge.

It's one thing to get to, like, that pro level,

but to, like, consistently be there is really hard.

Mentally, emotionally, all of it,

you know, there are so many aspects that go into it.

So...

Uh, it takes a lot to stay at that level, yeah.

Must be challenging, though,

with, like, a whole country behind you.

That would be, that's a whole 'nother spectrum.

[laughs]

For the country,

totally different surfing approach, right?

But I'm sure some of them are going to tap into,

like, they really love it.

- Alex Qiu Zhuo.

TOWNEND:

Thank you.

[announcer speaking indistinctly]

[laughs]

ANNOUNCER: So just hold your head up high

and be proud that you're representing your country.

POST: Well,

- I know.

[laughs]: Okay.

So now coming down to the five-minute mark,

really paying attention to the ocean.

Here comes a little set to look at.

Like...

[announcer speaking]

[man whistles]

POST: He was totally against

anything that I have to say, which is okay.

Let him run his own deal, you know?

He should make this round pretty easy.



TOWNEND: This is going to be a competitive heat.

The one in the red, without question is, to me,

technically a little stronger than Alex.

ANNOUNCER:

But there's a set coming, yeah.

[whistles]

Here it is.



[groans]

That was kind of bad wave choice.

TOWNEND: Right now, he's got two decent ones,

but he needs one now that's better than the two he's got.

He needs the plus-one.

- Come on, be patient.

TOWNEND: The kid in white who's heckling him,

you know, because he knows he just got that good wave,

and he doesn't want Alex to get one to answer it.

ANNOUNCER:

KID: Go! ANNOUNCER:

ANNOUNCER:

- Damn it.

[crowd cheering] MAN:

[muted]

MAN :

POST: You'll get another chance, dude.

[sighs]

- Just so you know, yesterday,

he came to me and asked me if I'd coach him,

and I said, "I can't," I said, "That's Dave's job,

and I'm not going to interfere with him."

I'm just letting you know, when he walked towards me,

he's just looking for my endorsement,

and I told him, "You got to listen to the coach."

- [starts] - So I'm just letting you know,

I'm not going to interfere with anything you are doing.

- No, no, I appreciate it. - [laughs]

- No, no, it's all good, I, I could see he was nervous.

That Canadian kid was hassling the [muted] out of him.

See? He's not used to that.

That guy was intentionally making him uncomfortable.

- Yeah. - [laughs]

Because his first two waves were good.

So, you know, I have that saying, "Two plus one."

You don't go unless it's going to beat

the first two you already have, right?

- He was surfing so good in his free surfs...

- Well, no, his first two waves,

for the waves he had, he, you know,

those were well-ex*cuted waves. - Yeah.

- Finished on the beach, you know,

you can't do more than that.

- Yeah. - [laughs]

Good luck with the rest of the crew, mate.

- Oh... - [laughs]



He got outsmarted in that heat

because he's not comfortable with international competition.

He's just got to have more heats under his belt.

Just got to be in the water more often

with the best guys in the world,

and that's where Beijing has absolutely no clue

in the, in that development process.



[music playing faintly]

[birds chirping]

[car alert beeps softly]

BOYFRIEND [speaking Mandarin]:

[horn honks]

[vehicle horns honking in distance]

- [speaking Mandarin]:

BOYFRIEND:

WOMAN:

WOMAN:

BOYFRIEND:

WOMAN:

BOYFRIEND:

WOMAN:

[all laugh]

BOYFRIEND:

WOMAN:

BOYFRIEND:

MAN:

BOYFRIEND:

MAN:

BOYFRIEND:

LOLO:

BOYFRIEND:

- [laughing]

[lighter clicks]

[laughing]

ALEX:

[woman laughs]

[blowing]

ALEX:



[ukulele playing]

[picking out notes]

[playing soft tune]

[insects chirping]

[birds chirping]

LOLO:

[speaking Mandarin]:





[speaking Mandarin]:

[tape tears]

[muted], my tape is barely finished.

Aww, [muted].

[laughs]

Look how perfect it is.

[muted] tired.







WOMAN [speaking Mandarin]:

- [laughing]:



[waves crashing in background]

ANNOUNCER: The WSL thank the international surfers

who have come here for this event,

which opens the World Surf League season for .

It's fantastic for the fast-developing

Chinese surfers who are participating here.

[audience applauds]

♪ Better have my money, my money♪

♪ Have my money, my money, better have my money♪

♪ My money, have my money, money, money, money♪

♪ Better have my money, my money♪

ANNOUNCER: Five minutes on the clock.

♪ Better have my money♪

[horn sounding]



[no dialogue]

TOWNEND: What I told Alex in the WeChat text earlier today

is, "Just be yourself."

This is your first-ever WSL event.

Just do your thing, don't think about the result.

[laughs]

We'll see if he pulls it off.

[talking in background]

- [speaking Mandarin]:

ALEX:





TOWNEND: Most of the guys that he's against

in this event are in their s.

These guys are experienced individuals,

and you're talking about former guys on

the World Championship Tour-- on the tour, not the QS.

For a -year-old, to get through one round

would be a good statement.

He's out in his local spot,

he should have some idea of what waves to catch.

So let's see what's going on here.

He's in third place, minutes to go.

So here he goes, Alex, on this wave right here.

Does a nice first turn.

He's coming down the line,

comes off the top, pulls it.

Now he's pulling out, it ran away from him.

A couple of good, strong maneuvers,

That could move him up into second right there.

Actually, they gave him a really good score

and moved him up into first.

But early going, minutes.

[laughs]

Anyway, I'm going to have a sip of my whiskey.

[laughs]



The other two guys have just had a couple of good rides.

The kid Osborne basically

tore the [muted] out of that wave.

[laughs]

Alex is probably going to drop back into third,

and here goes Alex again, Alex has picked up another one.

He's got a nice little wall in front of him.

Nice roundhouse wraparound-- fell off, though.

You know, he can't be doing that.

You know, so he's got to get a good wave.

Otherwise, he doesn't stand a chance.



Good.

Awesome, look at that!



It's over-- Alex is through.

That's a historic moment right there.

I am stoked for Alex-- that's big.

[crowd applauding and cheering]

[applause and cheers continue]



REPORTER: Okay, Alex,

this is the biggest event that there's been in China,

and you've just advanced through an international heat.

Just tell me, how are you feeling now

as the first Chinese surfer to ever do that?

- I feel so happy right now.

I just want to represent my country.

I feel pretty good.

I'm made it through on my first heat.

- And you're still quite young.

What are your, uh, future goals as a surfer?

I want to try to be on the CT while,

while I'm being, uh, older.

- [clears throat]

I want try to be on CT.

- And? - Well...

[laughing]: I don't know, pretty much...

- Okay. - Pretty much like that.

- Okay, thank you and good luck

in your next round. - Thanks.

TOWNEND: He's never advanced out of the first round ever.

Now he's on the scoreboard.

That's critical,

and that'll put the naysayers in China at rest.

THOMAS: Everyone wants it done quick,

and it's not going to be next year,

and it's probably not going to be the next year.

You know, realistically, it's five, six years,

and then you'll see how well he's got.

In saying that, in five, six years,

who knows where some of these little kids are going to be?



MA [speaking Mandarin]:

[applauding]

[whistle blows]

Good? - Good.

Go, go, Dong! - Go get it, Dong.

Have fun. - Go get them, Donghe.

- Get 'em, Donghe.

[whistling, cheering]



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