Fiji's best wave was once forbidden to locals, now the country has its first pro-surfer
That year, Fiji's cabinet made a decision, 'to liberalise access to any surfing area'. Cloudbreak was exclusive no more. A decade and a half later, in no small part thanks to that cabinet decision, Fiji has its first professional surfer.
'I'm so lucky,' says James Kusitino, who recently signed a team rider deal with surfwear brand Former. 'It opened in 2010, and I was born in 2009. Cloudbreak is the best wave in the world.'
Kusitino has been in the water since he was a baby. His middle name – Wainisomu – means 'drinking water' in English. Whenever Kusitino was distressed as a baby, his parents would put him in a tub of water and he would stop crying. 'I have a passion for the ocean,' he says.
The Fijian started surfing as a four-year-old and he was charging Cloudbreak – a famously challenging wave – before reaching double digits. Kusitino still recalls his first competition at Cloudbreak, aged eight or nine.
'It was huge, it was massive,' he says. 'I remember seeing the biggest barrel in my life – I was so scared.'
Today, Kusitino surfs almost constantly and he has dropped out of school to pursue the sport. Kusitino's mother tells the Guardian that evenings are the best time to contact her son, 'as he's usually out surfing.'
Kusitino is not the Pacific nation's first high-level surfer; Tevita Gukilau competed in the WSL event at Cloudbreak as a wildcard, while Che Slatter – Kusitino's mentor – is another local standout. But the 16-year-old's team rider deal with Former elevates him as the future of Fijian surfing, the first local with sufficient sponsor backing to pursue the sport full-time.
'I'm so proud to be the first professional surfer in Fiji,' he says. 'There could have been 50 pro surfers from Fiji, but because they locked up the wave – we didn't get to surf Cloudbreak with all these people. I think there would have been already some professional surfers if Cloudbreak was open [in the past].'
Former signed Kusitino after one of its co-founders, South African-Australian free surfer Craig Anderson, spotted him on recent trips to Cloudbreak.
'Every time he's blown me away,' Anderson said. 'His raw talent and unique approach in waves of consequence are like nothing I've seen before. In the water, he's completely in his own world. To me, James is the most gifted 16-year-old surfer on the planet.'
With the brand's support, Kusitino has big plans. 'I want to do a few comps,' he says. 'I want to do the Eddie [the Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational – a prestigious event in Hawaii]. I'm going to Teahupo'o [a famously heavy wave in Tahiti] this year, put in my time there,'
In late August, the world's best surfers will come to Cloudbreak to decide the WSL championships, in the last edition of the 'final five' format. Changes to the competition structure mean that from next year onwards, the Fiji Pro will again feature local trials and a wildcard spot in the main draw.
Kusitino is undaunted by the prospect of surfing against the world's best, perhaps as soon as mid-next year. 'I want to beat the number one seed,' Kusitino says. 'And maybe be the first local to win the whole thing.'
A decade and a half on from the democratisation of the nation's waves the future seems bright for Fijian surfing. Even at the young age of 16, Kusitino says he already sees young surfers following in his footsteps. 'There are already great locals coming out,' he says. 'I'm happy to see them out there.'
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