Jesse Richman (born July 22, 1992) is a big-wave

kitesurfer Kiteboarding or kitesurfing is a sport that involves using wind power with a large power kite to pull a rider across a water, land, or snow surface. It combines aspects of paragliding, surfing, windsurfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, and wak ...

and a big-air kiteboarder. He is a two-time

world champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

and the first kitesurfer to get barreled at

Jaws Jaws or Jaw may refer to: Anatomy * Jaw, an opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth ** Mandible, the lower jaw Arts, entertainment, and media * Jaws (James Bond), a character in ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' and ''Moonraker'' * ...

. He is also known for his world record 790-foot tow-up and 170-foot jump over land.

Early life

Richman was born on July 22, 1992, in

Haiku, Hawaii Haiku ( haw, Haikū) is an unincorporated community in Maui County on the island of Maui in the state of Hawaii. For United States Census purposes, it is part of the Haiku-Pauwela census-designated place, which also includes Pauwela Haiku ...

. He began kiteboarding when he was nine years old with his father and older brother Shawn. He started competing against his brother in events a few years later, including King of the Bay in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, and in 2003 they both signed endorsement deals with Naish Kiteboarding. At the age of 14, he transferred into an online school so that he could travel for world tour kiteboarding events. In 2008, he became the Kiteboard Pro World Tour (KPWT) World Champion, and the following year earned the title of

International Kiteboarding Association The International Kiteboarding Association (IKA), is the only kiteboarding class inside the International Sailing Federation (ISAF). The IKA class rules fall in the category of a development class. History The International Kiteboarding Associ ...

(IKA) Overall Kitesurfing World Champion.

Career

After being crowned back-to-back World Champion, Richman joined the Naish International Kiteboarding Team in 2011. He stopped competing full-time the same year, to turn his focus to big wave riding at

. Despite the change in focus, he went on to win back-to-back AWSI Kiteboarder of the Year awards from 2012 to 2013, as well as the 2013

Red Bull King of the Air Red Bull King of the Air is the premier big air kiteboarding competition featuring the best athletes from around the World. Riders are judged based upon the height of their jumps, variety of tricks, and style. The competition began in 2000 at Ho ...

competition. Richman then got involved with MaiTai Global, a non-profit organization founded by pro-kiteboarder Susi Mai and entrepreneur-investor Bill Tai comprising entrepreneurs, innovators, and athletes focused on giving back to the environment, where has fulfilled roles as a kiteboarding instructor as well as a speaker. He has also participated in the Ocean Gala, a collaborative fundraising event between MaiTai and the Ocean Elders to raise money to expand protected ocean areas.

Record jump

Richman attempted a world-record tow-up on July 26, 2013, on the Columbia River in

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idah ...

. Richman was towed behind a

wakeboard Wakeboarding is a water sport in which the rider, standing on a wakeboard (a board with foot bindings), is towed behind a motorboat across its wake and especially up off the crest in order to perform aerial maneuvers. A hallmark of wakeboardin ...

boat, allowing his kite to take him to previously unreached heights. He released the rope and used his kite to safely sail down to the river 790 feet below.

Kite the Reef

In August 2015, Richman and a team of six other kiteboarders attempted a world record run for the longest kiteboarding journey along the northern section of Australia's

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

. The goal was to raise funds and awareness for

motor neuron disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most comm ...

, as well as highlight the importance of the reef's conservation. The team completed the run in eight days on 21 August, after kiting 1237 km from Vlasoff Reef to Cape York and raising over $125,000 for MND Research Centre at Macquarie University.

Competition results

2020

* 1st place, Red Bull King of the Air

2016

* AWSI Kiteboarder of the Year * 2nd place, Red Bull King of the Air

2015

* 4th place, Red Bull King of the Air * 3rd place, Big Air Virgin Kitesurf World Tour Morocco

2014

* 5th place, Red Bull King of the Air

2013

* 1st place, Red Bull King of the Air *2013 AWSI Kiteboarder of the Year

2012

* AWSI Kiteboarder of the Year

2011

* 4th place, Mauritius Kitesurf Pro Tour

2009

* Kiteboard Pro World Tour: 1st Overall World Champion

2008

* Kiteboard Pro World Tour: 1st Overall World Champion

2007

* 3rd place, US Nationals Course Racing * 1st place, US Nationals Course Racing Juniors

2006

* 2nd place, Velocity Games Corpus Christy Texas

Filmography

* Don't Crack Under Pressure Part 2 (2016) *Chapter One: The Kiteboard Legacy Begins (2016) * Don't Crack Under Pressure (2015) * Nuit de la Glisse: Addicted to Life (2014)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Richman, Jesse American kitesurfers Sportspeople from Hawaii 1992 births Living people Male kitesurfers Kitesurfing