Maya Gabeira

Maya Reis Gabeira is a Brazilian big wave surfer. In 2009, Gabeira won the ESPY award for Best Female Action Sports Athlete. Later that year, Gabeira surfed the biggest wave ever by a female when she successfully rode a 14 metres (46 ft) wave at Dungeons, a big-wave surf spot in South Africa. In 2010, she was awarded with the Billabong Girls Best Overall Performance Award for a record four years in a row. On October 28, 2013, Gabeira lost consciousness and nearly drowned while surfing a massive wave near Nazaré, Portugal, caused by the St Jude storm; she was saved by her fellow Brazilian big-wave surfer Carlos Burle, ending up in the hospital. Gabeira's current sponsors include Billabong and Red Bull.