In 2001, with a small video camera attached to the board, he began to record images of himself to surf ‘tubes’, being considered one of the first surfers to do so.
French surfer Hugues Oyarzabal, one of the first to capture images within a ‘tube’, died on February 21 at the age of 39 at his home in Biarritz, France. The parents now revealed to that the son decided to take his own life.
“His physical and psychological suffering was very great. He chose to leave us, to find the peace and serenity he could not find in recent years,” they said.
Oyarzabal had been diagnosed with a child with bipolar disorder.
At 16, he left school to pursue a career in the sports world and soon became a surf star.
In 2001, with a small video camera attached to the board, he began to record images of himself surfing ‘tubes’ – a maneuver in which the surfer ‘enters’ inside the wave and is covered by the crest.
Oyarzabal is considered one of the first surfers to capture digital images within a tube.
Surfed some of the most challenging waves in the world and in recent years has spent great seasons in Indonesia, looking for places where no one has ventured to surf.
On social networks, the French Surf Federation praised “one of the most talented French surfers of all generations.”
