Brisa Tomi Hennessy Kobara (born September 16, 1999) is a Costa Rican professional surfer who competes in the

World Surf League The World Surf League (WSL) is the governing body for professional surfing, surfers and is dedicated to showcasing the world's best talent in a variety of progressive formats. The WSL was originally known as International Professional Surfing ( ...

(WSL). In 2019, Hennessy's standing in the WSL qualified her to represent

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

for

Surfing at the 2020 Summer Olympics Surfing made its Summer Olympics debut in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. The Olympics were originally scheduled to be held in 2020, but were postponed to 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Setting In 2018, the International ...

in Tokyo, Japan.Costa Rican Surfer Brisa Hennessy Qualifies for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, ''The Costa Rica Star'', 5 December 2019
(accessed 29 March 2021) The Tokyo Olympics marked the first instance for surfing to be recognised as an

Olympic sport Olympic sports are sports that are contested in the Summer Olympic Games and Winter Olympic Games. The 2024 Summer Olympics included 32 sports; the 2022 Winter Olympics included seven sports. Each Olympic sport is represented at the Internation ...

. She participated at the 2024 Olympic Games achieving the fourth place, one of the best performances for a Costa Rican athlete.

Early life

When she was three years old, Hennessy stood up on her first wave. She was born in San José, but grew up on the

Osa Peninsula The Osa Peninsula () is a peninsula located in southwestern Costa Rica, in the Puntarenas Province, with the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Gulf of Dulce, Golfo Dulce to the east. The peninsula was formed geologically by a Geologic fault, faul ...

of Costa Rica, where both of her parents ran a surf school. Hennessy lived in Costa Rica until the age of nine when she moved to

Oahu Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northwe ...

to pursue a professional surfing career.About Brisa Hennessy, World Surf League
(accessed 30 March 2021) She also spent summers in

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

, giving her exposure to some of the best conditions the sport has to offer at a young age. Brisa still lives somewhat of a nomadic lifestyle to this day, traveling from place to place wherever her career takes her. She does not have a permanent residence.Costa Rican Olympic Dream: Brisa Hennessy, ISAsurfing, 3 September 2019
(accessed 31 March 2021)

Career victories

Professional career

Hennessy qualified for the World Surf League Championship Tour in 2018 at the age of 18. She became the first Costa Rican to qualify for the tour. She recorded her highest finish ever at the WSL Corona Bali Protected event in 2019, where she took home third place at the annual event. In 2019 she had seven Top 10 finishes throughout the season. In December 2019, Hennessy's standing on the WTC Championship Tour earned her direct qualification to the Tokyo Summer Olympics. She was one of the final two surfers to qualify for the games through the WSL. She became the first

Central American Central America is a Subregion#North America, subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Ce ...

surfer to earn a spot in the Olympic Games as well as just the fifth Costa Rican athlete to qualify for any competition in Tokyo. In a 2019 interview with the

International Surfing Association The International Surfing Association (ISA) is the world governing authority for surfing, SUP racing, SUP surfing, para surfing, bodyboarding and all other wave riding activities. The ISA is recognized by the International Olympic Committee. ...

, she said that bringing a medal home to her homeland of Costa Rica would give her “goosebumps.” When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020, Hennessy relocated to

to live with her parents who had recently established a permanent home on the remote island. She is represented professionally b
Athelo Group
a sports agency based out of

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, outside of New York City. It is the sixth-most populous city in New England. Stamford is also the largest city in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, Weste ...

. Brisa Hennessy qualified for the 2024 Olympics in Paris. She secured her spot thanks to her strong performance on the Championship Tour. This will be her second consecutive Olympic appearance, following her impressive fifth-place finish at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics on which got defeated by surfer

Caroline Marks Caroline Marks (born February 14, 2002) is an American professional surfer. She is the 2023 World Surf League Women's World Tour Champion and an Olympic gold medalist at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She has won multiple national championships and ...

in the quarterfinals.

Current life

Outside of surfing, Hennessy enjoys cooking. She is a

plant-based A plant-based diet is a diet consisting mostly or entirely of plant-based foods. It encompasses a wide range of dietary patterns that contain low amounts of animal products and high amounts of fiber-rich plant products such as vegetables, ...

athlete who started her own YouTube channel during the pandemic to share her vegan recipes with fans and followers.Seven Dinner Ideas From Brisa Hennessy's Plant-Based Menu In Fiji, World Surf League, 6 September 2020
(accessed 30 March 2021)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hennessy, Brisa 1999 births Living people Costa Rican surfers World Surf League surfers Surfers at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic surfers for Costa Rica Sportspeople from Puntarenas Province Costa Rican female surfers Surfers at the 2024 Summer Olympics