HALEIWA, Hawaii (KHON2) — The 2024 Rip Curl Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational winner Landon McNamara spoke exclusively with KHON2 about the adversity he overcame this past year and how he was able to win the most prestigious event in surfing.
Get Hawaii’s latest morning news delivered to your inbox, sign up for News 2 You
For the people who know 28-year-old McNamara, his Eddie win last week is more of an inspirational story than some might think.
“From last January to this January, I made some monumental changes in my personal life that I directly credit to this all happening,” McNamara said. “Being able to stand by who I am and How I’m living versus how I was living last year. To me, everyone has their cross to bear in this life, and I had certain ones I needed to cross myself, and being able to conquer those things led me to be able to conquer this win.”
‘That sealed my fate as the winner,’ Landon McNamara on Eddie Aikau win
Landon started the year behind bars for criminal property damage. He had been following a path of addiction other surf legends have also tried to navigate through.