Olympics bronze medalist Owen Wright has introduced his retirement from competitors surfing and can use the upcoming Bells Seashore basic as his swansong.
The 33-year-old is not competing on this yr’s World Surf League tour after failing to qualify with the elite area now reduce mid-season.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Owen Wright speaks to Dawn after making historical past by successful Australia’s first Olympic browsing medal.
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The daddy of two, whose sister is two-time world champion Tyler Wright, has opted to not compete on the Challenger sequence to try to rejoin the tour.
Wright completed joint fifth on the Rip Curl Bells Seashore final yr and has been granted a wildcard for the 2023 version, which will get underway on the well-known Victorian break from Tuesday April 4.
With browsing making its Olympic debut in Tokyo in 2021, his bronze medal capped an inspirational comeback after a shattering wipe-out at Hawaii’s Pipeline in 2015 left Wright with a traumatic mind damage.
He needed to be taught to stroll and surf once more, rejoining the highest tour in 2017 and successful his first occasion again, on the Gold Coast, and topping the rostrum once more in 2019 in Tahiti.
Wright mentioned competing in massive waves wasn’t the most effective factor for his well being and he would stroll away happy along with his achievements.
“After my traumatic mind damage in 2015, my want to show to myself and the world that I may nonetheless be nice and overcome this life-threatening incident impressed my restoration,” Wright mentioned in a WSL assertion.
“Now eight years later, after challenges and accomplishments, I can look again fortunately, figuring out I achieved that purpose.
“Given my current historical past with head accidents and concussions, competing at a few of the heaviest waves on the planet is not in the most effective curiosity of my long-term well being.
“I excelled in these situations over my profession, however the dangers related to this sort of browsing are too vital for somebody in my place, given my medical historical past.
“I can’t retire from browsing altogether – simply from browsing heavy waves.
“I hope to maintain browsing for the remainder of my life; I like browsing and thank the game for every part I’ve.”
From the NSW South Coast, Wright gained 4 occasions by way of his WSL profession which began again in 2010.
He grew to become the primary competitor to surf two excellent heats in a single occasion, scoring 10.zero on the 2015 Fiji Professional at Cloudbreak.
Wright mentioned he hoped to proceed to make use of his platform to advertise consciousness about mind damage and concussion in athletes.
