Owen Wright beat two-time world champion and world number 1 Gabriel Medina in a bronze-medal contest, to win the first ever Olympic surfing medal at Japan's Tsurigasaki Surfing Beach.
The 31-year-old won the tight contest 11.97 to 11.77 in challenging conditions, and it went down to the final seconds with Brazilian Medina capable of creating round-winning scores from seemingly average waves.
Cheered in by his team-mates as he left the water, Wright was well aware of this historical moment.
“I feel like I’m walking on a cloud, I couldn’t be any prouder. I know my strengths are good enough and, with the conditions, I got my waves early.
“It’s a very special thing and I couldn’t be any prouder to be a part of surfing, representing surfing and I really felt like I did the Aussies proud today.”
Wright’s triumph is even more momentous considering he had to learn to walk, talk and surf again six years ago, when he suffered a head injury in Hawaii, while preparing for the 2015 Pipeline Masters.
He credited the Olympic movement for a role in his recovery.
“The Olympics to me has been like that beacon of light. It really has,” he told Seven.
“I was going through some really tough times. I had some long-lasting symptoms and I questioned whether or not I would do the sport again.
“To all the TBI [traumatic brain injury] survivors out there, all the people that have had bad brain injuries, I just want to let you know it’s all possible. Don’t give up. I do it for the TBI guys.”
Wright’s team-mate, Sally Fitzgibbons fought through tears after she was knocked out at the quarter-final stage.
The 30-year-old could not find the right wave to overhaul home-beach-hero, Amuro Tsuzuki, missing out on the chance to win a medal.
