Youngest surfer to win a surfing World Qualifying Series event
- Who
- Gabriel Medina
- What
- 15 years 202 days year(s):day(s)
- Where
- Brazil (Florianópolis )
- When
- 12 July 2009
The youngest surfer to win a surfing World Qualifying Series event is Gabriel Medina (Brazil, b. 22 December 1993), who won the 2009 Maresia Surf International aged 15 years 202 days in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil, on 12 July 2009.
The WQS (World Qualifying Series) is the second tier of professional surfing run by the World Surf League (previously Association of Surfing Professionals) and the best surfers are promoted to the World Tour. Medina's historic performance in 2009 saw him appear in the World Tour aged just 17 in 2011 and in 2014 he became the second youngest World Champion ever – aged 20 years 362 days.
He was also the first ever Brazilian to win the title and the first champion from somewhere other than USA or Australia since 1989 (when British surfer Mark Potter was crowned champion).
In 2015 Time magazine named Medina on its "100 Most Influential People in the World" list.