A week in Japan with Owen Wright

Years after his career-defining Olympic bronze medal, Owen Wright returned to Japan this April for the first time since the Tokyo Games.

While his Olympic trip was cut short due to COVID restrictions, this visit gave him the chance to properly experience Japan’s thriving surf culture, spend time with Rip Curl’s new Japanese partner Murasaki Sports, and test out some of the local cuisine.   

We caught up with Owen to hear more about his time on the ground.  

How did it feel to return to the place where you achieved one of the biggest moments of your career? 

Returning to Japan after winning the bronze medal was incredible. I’ve got so many good memories from the Olympics, but because it was during COVID, we only stayed a few days and then left straight away. I never really got the chance to take it all in. 

This time, I got to soak in those memories and really cherish how special it was to come away with a medal. Going back to the beach where the event was held was pretty emotional. I just stood there quietly and almost teared up because that was a really defining moment in my career and my life. It’s brought me so many amazing things. 

What can you tell us about surf culture in Japan? 

The surf culture in Japan is crazy. We went to this beach one day and it was probably knee-high, howling onshore, just horrible conditions, and there were like 300 people out there having the best time. 

I was tripping out. I was thinking, if this was Australia and the waves were like this, there’d be no one out. But everyone was just loving the beach, loving surfing. It was cold, it was windy, the conditions were terrible, and there were kids out there learning, people just having a great time. Seeing how much froth they had for surfing really inspired me. 

You got your hands on a custom wetsuit while you were over there. What was your first impression?

Yeah, I got this Rip Curl wetsuit made with Japanese rubber, and it was honestly one of the most comfortable wetsuits I’ve ever worn. The rubber felt like you were floating on a cloud. 

I’ve had shoulder issues throughout my career, so I’m always aware of how a wetsuit feels through the shoulders. This one had this little extra pocket around the shoulders, and it just felt so free. Everyone over there was wearing this front-zip style that runs from shoulder to shoulder, and I’d never really seen anything like that in Australia. 

Between the design and the quality of the rubber, I was blown away. It was a bit of a double hit of just how good the wetsuit was. I’m definitely keeping that one and reusing it whenever I’m surfing in colder conditions. It’s hanging up in the garage at the moment. 

What was the weirdest thing you ate while you were over there?

The weirdest thing I ate was this tiny little fish with giant eyeballs, all mixed in this soggy, goopy stuff. I didn’t know what it was to begin with, but I had a rule over there, if someone gave me something, I had to say yes. So, I ate it. And honestly, I can still taste it right now. It’s been about a month, and I’m still scarred for life from whatever that was. 

You surfed with the upcoming Japanese Rip Curl team riders. What was the biggest piece of advice you gave them for their competitive careers? 

Surfing with the Rip Curl team over there was amazing. Riki [Sato], Anon [Matsuoka], Subaru [Yoneyama] and all the crew, we had the greatest time together. I was really inspired by their surfing. They’re so technically correct and so powerful. 

They’ve got huge futures. If anything, they’re already making names for themselves. The biggest thing I could offer them was just to see themselves as the best. They’re surfing just as good as any other nation in the world. They’ve got all the skills. It’s just about believing they can be champions and going for it. The future for Japanese surfing is huge. 

Press play, kick back and check out a behind-the-scenes look at Owen’s trip for yourself.