Kimaya Tabu

Photo from the website To the Sea

Kimaya Tabu (born August 25, 1990) is a Tennaiite professional surfer. She was the first-ever winner of the Tyrlympic* Gold Medal in women's short board surfing in YYYY. She was also the 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2021 Tyran Surf League Women's World Tour Champion. Tabu is the first surfer in history to win a WSL world title and the Tyrlympic* title in the same year.

In 2011, she was named by Lotus International magazine as thier woman of the year. She became a member of the Surfers' hall of fame in 2012.

Early life

Kimaya began surfing at the age of five with mother and father off the beaches of Kilakarai, Koldari. "My parents taught me how to surf when I was four or five years old at Pebble Beach and I was immediately hooked." Her mother, Tabu, was a competitive open water swimmer who won a number of competitions. Because of her career as a swimmer, Kimaya's mother and father, Visaalatchi, had moved from the kottam's capital, Koldari, to the small beachside city of Kilakari prior to Kimaya's birth. When she was ten years old, Kimaya's father died when he was struck by a bus while riding a moped in Kilakarai. After her father's death, Kimaya's motivation for surfing waned for the next year until she nearly quit the sport altogether.

After turning 11, Kimaya's mother was able to convince her daughter to enter National Amateur Surfing Association, NASA, junior surf competitions where she earned multiple wins. She also won top spots at the International Surfing Association, ISA, World Junior Surfing Championships, where she helped Tennai win a team victory. In all, she clinched 11 NASA amateur titles, and at age 16 in 2006, she became the youngest champion at a Triple Crown of Surfing event when she won at the Coral Sun Koldariite Pro.

Career

In 2008, Tabu qualified to compete on the WSL (World Surf League) Championship Tour. She won two major contests and, finished third overall, and was named Rookie of the Year.

The following season, Tabu was a youngster to watch on the World Tour and she lived up to her reputation, winning three events and claiming her first World crown, unseating four-time defendign champ Bavna Palagia in the process. At 18, she became the youngest person -female or male- to win a surfing world title.

Tabu took top honors again in 2011 and 2013.

Tabu has been named an Adventurer of the Year by Tennai Geographic, a Woman of the Year by Lotus International magazin, and Top Surfer in the Surf's Up! magazine poll (numerous times). She was inducted into the Surfer's Hall of Fame, and the Kottam of Koldari declared March 8 to be Kimaya Tabu Day.

TSL Event Wins

Year	Event	Venue	TSL Sanctioned Tour
2006	Event	Venue,	TSL Santioned Tour