Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina gave one of the most powerful performances by delivering the highest score of the Olympic surfing event so far. However, what stunned the internet was the mind-boggling photo of the three-time world champion's airborne celebration, which looked too good to be true.
Medina scored 9.90 during the surfing competition as he powered through a giant blue barrel on Monday. The videos of Gabriel Madina's ride in the gigantic wave have gone viral online. But Gabriel Madina's photograph, clicked by Agence France-Presse photographer Jerome Brouillet, left the netizens in complete awe. Many were left scratching their head, figuring out whether the image was photoshopped or AI-generated.
Gabriel Medina's thunderous performance was against Japan's Kanoa Igarashi. Seconds before the historic photograph was clicked, the Brazilian champion took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti and emerged from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard.
Medina was expecting a perfect wave score of 10 as he was about to sail, but he had to settle for 9.9 which was indeed one of the best scores of the Olympics.
Hours after his performance, the Gabroel Medina wrote on Instagram, “I can do everything through Him who strengthens me.”
Describing the incredible shot as the result of perfect timing and conditions, the AFP photographer said that the waves were taller than expected, and he was aware that the images from the event would generate fireworks on social media. Explaining the moment when he was capturing Gabriel Medina's performance, he said that instead of clicking the photos on burst mode, he prefers to click a limited number of images to capture the crucial moments.
“I got four shots of him out of the water and one of the four shots was this photo,” AFP quoted Jerome Brouillet.
“This shot of Gabriel Medina is ABSOLUTELY UNREAL,” wrote a social media user on X.
“Legendary! The picture of the 2024 Olympics?! Jerome Brouillet captured the moment Brazil's Gabriel Medina reacted to surfing the one of the biggest waves of the day, scoring a historic 9.90, which is the highest single wave score in Olympic history,” wrote another user on X.
“Gabriel Medina had to soar for the photog to capture one of the greatest Olympic photos I've ever seen. The video is even more poetic in slow-mo. Astounding shot by Jerome Brouillet,” read an X post by Latifat Adebayo-Ohio.
“This is definitely one of the craziest photos from the Olympics… It looks like a montage but it's 100% real. Gabriel Medina.”
“Gabriel Medina achieves a perfect wave with a score of 9.90, a feat never seen before at the Olympic Games. Impressive!”
