Yolanda Hopkins dreamed of joining the world surfing elite and took to the sea until she did so, this Thursday, October 16th, at the age of 27, in the waves of Saquarema, a month after becoming runner-up in the World.
It was in Rio de Janeiro, where in 2024 she cried about not qualifying, that the Portuguese surfer qualified for the world circuit, by qualifying for the semi-finals of the Saquarema Pro, the competition of Challenger Series (CS), The Portuguese scored 10.67 points with the two best waves and beat Australian Ellie Harrison’s 10.07, continuing in the fight for the trophy in Rio de Janeiro.
Yo-yoas she is treated by her fellow surfers, came out of the sea lifted on her shoulders and gave a heartfelt hug to her coach, John Tranter, with whom she has worked for many years and who now shares with her the success of entering the World Surf League (WSL). “I finally did it. We’re going to be here on the Tour, representing Portugal, I’m really happy and I really want to thank everyone who has supported me year after year. I’m going to try to do my best on the Championship Tour, carry the Portuguese flag as far as possible”said the Portuguese woman in her first words after the historic qualification.
Daughter of an English mother and a Portuguese father, Yolanda could have been a footballer, but her passion for the sea spoke louder. When she was offered a bodyboard, she asked for one “just like the grown-ups” (surf), got up on her feet and felt like she had found the “love” of her life.
He was born in Faro, but moved to Sines to “catch the best waves” and invest in his surfing career, with the help of coach John Tranter. He had difficulties. Her parents had separated and didn’t have much money to invest in the trips she needed to take to go to the exams. THE prize money The championships were the only income she had and this became enormous pressure for the surfer.
She went international with the help of a Surf Camp client, who paid for her trips to California so she could complete her qualifications. And international representation was only possible due to a crowdfunding, which allowed her to save 7500 euros so she could follow her dream.
He competed under the nickname Sequeira (from his father), but prefers Hopkins (from his mother). It was like Yolanda Hopkins who went to the Tokyo2020 and Paris2024 Olympic Games and will compete in the WSL.
The Algarvian team follows in the footsteps of Tiago Pires and Frederico Morais, who had already done so in the men’s sector of the WSL. And you can also have the company of Teresa Bonvalot and Francisca Veselko, the other two Portuguese surfers who can still qualify, at a time when two stages of the Challenger Series circuit remain to be played, both in 2026, the first of them in Pipeline, in Hawaii, and the last in Newcastle, in Australia.