Kelly Slater Biography

Apr 25, 2018

Birthdate: February 11, 1972
Birthplace: Cocoa Beach, Florida
Zodiac Sign: Aquarius
Height: 5' 9"
Weight: 160 lb

Kelly Slater has revolutionized the way people think about riding waves, has a video game named after him and put out his own album of surf music. There's no doubt that Kelly deserves his nickname of the Michael Jordan of surfing. Read on for the 411 on this surfing superstar.

Learn all about surfing superstar Kelly Slater!

Growing Up

Kelly Slater first jumped on a surfboard when he was a kid near his home in Cocoa Beach, Florida. His dad owned a bait and tackle store near the ocean, so Kelly would be at the beach searching for big waves almost every day after school - and sometimes even before school. His dedication paid off and by the time he was a teenager, Kelly Slater had a reputation as one of the best surfers around. He was appearing in surf magazines and even had an agent. Kelly won his first world title in 1992, at the age of 20, making him the youngest world champion ever. He was also the oldest to win the ASP World Tour Champion at the age of 39.

Pipeline and Kelly Slater The Wave of the Winter 2014 Documentary

Pro Career

In his 25 year pro surfing career, Kelly has a record eleven world titles and 54 WCT (World Championship Tour) victories. He has won all over the world including Hawaii, Australia, France, Japan and South Africa. He's also competed in the 2003 and 2004 X Games. Kelly Slater took the sport to a new level by trying "skate style" tricks and going for big air off waves - rather than long elegant carves, which was the style of most old-school surfers. His accomplishments have cemented his rep as the world's greatest surfer.

Kelly Slater is often called the world's greatest surfer

Did U Know?

Kelly Slater had a reoccurring role on the TV show Baywatch in the early '90s.
Kelly Slater's favorite hobby to relieve stress is fishing.
Kelly Slater has been romantically linked to Pamela Anderson, Gisele Bundchen and Cameron Diaz.
Kelly Slater has a daughter named Taylor.
Kelly Slater once had a band that was fittingly called The Surfers.
Kelly Slater released his autobiography, Pipe Dreams: A Surfer's Journey, in 2003.
Kelly Slater once has a video game named after him called Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer.
Kelly Slater's favorite places to surf are Hawaii and Australia.
In May 2005, in the final heat of the Billabong Tahiti Pro contest at Teahupo'o, Slater became the first surfer ever to be awarded two perfect scores for a total 20 out of 20 points under the ASP two-wave scoring system.
On September 15, 2007, Kelly Slater passed Tom Curren's longstanding WCT tour victory record of 33 with his win at the Boost Mobile Pro at Lowers Trestles.
He did it again on June 2013 at the quarter finals at the Volcom Fiji Pro with two perfect ten waves, only the fourth person in history to do so.
Since 1990, Slater had been sponsored primarily by surfwear industry giant Quiksilver until his recent departure on April 1, 2014 to collaborate with fashion brand conglomerate Kering^.