World champion surfer Caroline Marks: "I really want to be in as many Olympics as I can because it's just so special and life-changing"

American professional surfer Caroline Marks recently expressed her desire to compete in as many Olympics as possible as she feels that the Games are special and provide a life-changing experience.

In September 2023, Marks became the world champion after clinching the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour 2023 title. She defeated the Tokyo Olympics 2020 gold medalist and compatriot Carissa Moore in the final.

With the win, the 21-year-old also earned the last quota place available for the United States for the Summer Games in Paris. Moore had claimed the first quota at the Tahiti Pro in 2023 by earning a top-eight finish in the World Surf League Championship Tour season.

Thus, Caroline Marks will be representing the USA in the Olympics for the second time, having made her first appearance at the Summer Games in 2020. She was the youngest member of the American surfing contingent at the Games.

At the Tokyo Olympics, she narrowly missed out on a medal after losing to Japan’s Amuro Tsuzuki in the bronze-medal match, scoring 4.26 against Tsuzuki’s 6.80.

However, Caroline Marks has bigger aspirations at the Olympics. In a video posted by Team USA on X (formerly Twitter), she shared this ambition, stating:

“It's [Making it to the Olympics] like the coolest thing ever. And now I'm like, oh, I really want to be in as many as I can because it's just so special and it's life-changing. It's something I'll never forget.”

Caroline Marks began surfing competitively at just the age of eight, having received support from his siblings.

By 15, she had already claimed 17 national titles and became the youngest ever to qualify for the WSL Championship Tour. Additionally, the American is the youngest female to participate in a World Surf League event.

Caroline Marks is eager to compete at Teahupo'o, the surfing venue for Olympics 2024

Caroline Marks during the 2023 SHISEIDO Tahiti Pro on August 16, 2023 in Teahupo'o, French Polynesia. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

In the short video interview, Caroline Marks also revealed that she is enthusiastic about competing at Tahiti’s Teahupo'o, the location for the surfing event for the Paris Olympics, 2024.

She stated in excitement:

“It's going to be in Tahiti, which is so special. And Teahupo'o is like a dream event to win as a surfer. And so it's such a beautiful, scary wave and machine. Like, it's just so incredible. There's nothing like it.

She added:

“It has the potential to get the wave of your life, and that's what's so cool about Teahupo'o as being an Olympic venue now. So, to have a chance to compete for a medal there is just incredible.”

Surfing at the 2024 Games is scheduled to be held from July 27 to August 5, 2024, at the Teahupo'o Reef Pass, Tahiti. The upcoming Olympics will see an increased number of competitors in surfing, with 48 athletes (24 men and 24 women) participating, a boost from the 40 participants in the previous edition.