Surfing has never been short on machismo. But as more women describe what happened behind the scenes, the sport is confronting a much uglier side of its history.
Former professional surfer Holly Beck has added her voice to the growing conversation, sharing accounts of sexual harassment, sexism, and mistreatment she says she experienced during her career. She took to Instagram, to share her experiences.
See her post, linked here, and below.
Beck, who competed professionally for more than a decade, has described how men with influence in the surf industry suggested they could help advance her career in exchange for sex. She says those encounters began when she was just 17, an age when sponsorships and access to powerful industry figures could shape a young surfer’s future.
The problems went beyond unwanted advances. Women of Beck’s generation were frequently marketed for their looks rather than their surfing. A 2002 newspaper profile described her early sponsorship as being “more as a model than a surfer.” Beck has also recalled being told her place in the lineup ranked below even the groms.
In one harrowing memory, when she was just 18 years old, Beck recalled being on the North Shore of Oahu when: “I came home late from a party, passed out in bed, and woke up to a surf shop owner on top of me trying to take my pants off…”
Related: Criminal Investigation Opened in Tahiti Over Alan Cleland Jr. Sexual Assault Allegations
At 24 years old, terrified of losing her sponsors and derailing her livelihood, Beck recounted a surf photographer attempting to get a group of girls naked during a trip.
“You don’t want to know,” she was warned at the time.
She described an industry where young women were systematically commodified, treated as disposable sexual objects, and forced to tolerate foul misconduct simply to survive.
Her experiences speak to a culture in which women often had to fight for respect in the water while navigating the expectations of men who controlled opportunities outside it.
And the conversation is unfolding amid another, far more serious controversy.
As SURFER has reported, Mexican Olympian Alan Cleland Jr. is linked to a criminal investigation in French Polynesia concerning an alleged sexual assault of a 16-year-old Australian girl at a private gathering following August’s Tahiti Pro.
The World Surf League and International Surfing Association have issued provisional suspensions. No arrests or criminal charges have been publicly announced, and Cleland is presumed innocent.
Separately, his former girlfriend, professional surfer Noah Klapp, has publicly accused him of abuse during their past relationship. Those allegations have not been adjudicated.
Surfing’s history of sexism is hardly a revelation. What’s different now is the number of women speaking openly, demanding accountability, and questioning the systems that allowed troubling behavior to go unchallenged.
The question is whether this moment leads to meaningful change—or simply becomes another controversy the surf world leaves behind.
Related: Al Cleland Jr.’s Former Girlfriend Goes Public With Abuse Allegations After WSL Suspension
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