A short chat with pioneering UAE surfer Mo Rahma is all you need to appreciate how much he loves his sport. Although for him, calling surfing a sport doesn’t do it justice.
“Surfing is more than just a sport,” Rahma says in the video above (provided by Abu Dhabi Sports Council). “It’s a lifestyle, and that’s what I love about it.”
“It incorporates all my life. It’s my stress releaser, my place to go and zone out, and clear my mind from all the stress.”
Part of that lifestyle for Rahma includes an intense training routine, and he also credits meditation and yoga for helping him develop and improve his surfing ability.
While the UAE may not be famous for its big swells, Rahma makes the most of the facilities available to him in the country, and trains at the wavepool Wadi Adventure in Al Ain,
“Meditation is a big key,” he explains. “It makes my mind clear. Yoga is amazing. it gives you mobility, it gives you strength.
“I also train with a friend to do surf-specific training, and I’ve seen a lot of improvement in my surfing.”
Rahma, who is the UAE’s first international competitive surfer, paid tribute to the local surfing culture, calling the community in the UAE “absolutely amazing”.
It’s that appreciation of UAE’s budding surf scene that is motivating Rahma to do his best and inspire the next generation of young surfers.
“My core idea of pushing myself to the limit is to establish a new generation that can take over,” he says. “Hopefully they can compete and hopefully we can find the next champion of the UAE.”
Slip ‘n slide 🏄 | #MoRahma 🎥 | Clem Mcinerney 2017 #BigWaveAwards @TAGHeuer Wipeout Award Entry pic.twitter.com/IVafhRD6qJ
— World Surf League (@wsl) March 6, 2017
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