John John Florence: Ready to make Olympic history 

John John Florence has been making waves in the surfing world since he was a young and eager eight-year-old, paddling out to surf the most famous wave in the world: Pipeline, Hawaii.

It's this break, in his own backyard that has helped the American hone his craft and become arguably the best surfer in the world.

Fast forward to 2021 and the 28-year-old has two world titles under his belt and is preparing to take his career to another level when surfing makes it's Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020.

The Hawaiian born American will fly team USA's flag, but getting to the Olympics has been nothing short of a tenacious and remarkable journey. Read on to see what we mean.

A star is born

Florence was born in Hawaii in 1992. By the age of two he was learning to surf.

The eldest of four brothers, he led the way for his siblings in the pursuit of surfing success, following in the footsteps of their mother Alex who was a pro-long boarder.

While it's widely reported that he is named after John F. Kennedy Jr., who's nickname was John John, in an interview with Olympics.com we asked him why he is called John John: Here's what he said.

"I honestly really don't know the answer to that question. It's just kind of something I've been called since I was a little kid growing up here in Hawaii, and I don't remember the first time or anything about it. I think my mom called me when I was a little kid. She doesn't call me that anymore. But, yeah, it just kind of stuck." - John John Florence.

Surfing career and success

From a young age, Florence was touted for big things.

Not only did he show skill, maturity and talent early, he also carried a quiet confidence.

As a 13-year-old he became the youngest surfer to compete in the Vans Triple Crown of surfing, which involved surfing in three big-wave competitions in his home of Hawaii. By the time he was 18 he won the event and remains, to this day, the youngest winner.

When Florence was a child and his winning days were ahead of him, surfing's most inconic athlete, 11-time world champion Kelly Slater saw his potential, claiming he would understaad the ocean, "like no one we've ever seen before."

Come 2011 as an 18-year-old, Florence made his World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT) debut. Just five years later he won the 2016 world title and followed it up a year year later winning the 2017 crown.

Florence is just the fifth surfer in history to win his first two titles back-to-back.

Injuries have hampered his efforts to clinch a third world title, but he's still the proud owner of eight CT competition wins. His most recent victory was the 2021 season opener at his beloved homebreak in Hawaii - claiming the honour of being a Pipe Master.

Recent injuries on bumpy Olympic journey

After dominating the surfing world during 2016 and 2017, John John has had a string of injuries, undergone several operations and then needed periods of rehabilitation. Here's a timeline of events.

• June 2018 - Tweeks right knee during freesurf in Bali, Indonesia. Results in partial tear of right ACL. Ruled out for the rest of the 2018 season.
• April 2019 - Florence returns for start of 2019 WSL CT Tour and claimed two victories, at Bells beach in Australia and Margret River pro.
• July 2019 - Aggravates same knee, rupturing ACL in Rio, Brazil. Florence opts to undergo knee surgery taking part of his right hamstring and grafing it to his knee, and pulling out of the five following events.
• Florence spends next 6 months rehabilitating in Hawaii.
• December 2019 - On the cusp of qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Florence needs to keep ahead of Kelly Slater on the rankings ladder in order to claim the second USA men's surfing spot, alongside Kolohe Andino. He surfs at the Pipe Masters in a knee brace just five months after surgery and progresses far enough through the competition to take the Olympic spot over Slater.
• December 2021 - Fully recovered and fit, Florence returns to the place where claimed his Olympic ticket and wins his maiden Pipe Masters title.
• May 2021 - Injures other knee (left) during heat at Margaret River in Western Australia. Returns to USA for surgery and rehabilitation.
• June 2021 - Returns to the water and continues quest for Olympic glory.

Speaking to Olympics.com just ahead of the 2021 season opener, Florence was excited about the prospect of big year ahead and focused on the Olympics.

''Right now my main goal is thinking about the Olympics and how I want to prepare for that. How I want to prepare for that is my shorter term goal and so thinking about that excites me. What kind of routine I'm going to get into and what kind of equipment I want to start working on. You know, there's a lot to work on''.- John John Florence - November 2020.

While his latest knee injury has made his journey to Tokyo more challenging, it will makes his Olymmpic debut a more impressive feat.

Passionate advocate

Florence is never sitting still.

He has a vast range of interests, many deeply rooted in caring for mother earth.

Growing up with the beach on his doorstep is what sparked his profound love for the ocean and nature.

While most people associate him with surfing, his love for sailing, ocean conservation, bee keeping, gardening, sustainability and photography also keep him busy.

While Florence is a beach man - he's also a businessman.

In 2020 he also lauched an appareal brand with the philiosphy of ''building products that celebrate the ocean, sustainability, exploration, and overall just doing the right thing.”