Giant wave surfer Márcio Freire dies after falling in Nazaré
The giant wave surfer Márcio Freire, 47 years old, died this Thursday (5) after falling from one of the water walls of Praia do Norte, in Nazaré (Portugal). The death was confirmed by the National Maritime Authority of Portugal.
According to an official note from the entity, the Volunteer Firefighters of Nazaré received an alert at 4:20 pm (local time) for an accident with a surfer. Márcio was pulled out of the water with the help of swimmers on a jet-sky, but arrived on the sand with cardiorespiratory arrest. Resuscitation maneuvers were carried out upon the arrival of the Volunteer Firefighters from Nazaré and rescuers from the National Institute of Medical Emergencies (Inem), who continued to try to revive the Brazilian. However, “after several attempts it was not possible to reverse the situation”.
Thiago Jacaré, also an expert in big waves and a contemporary of Márcio, mourned his friend's death on social media.
Outside of professional surfing circuits such as the World Surfing League (WSL), Márcio Freire was one of the pioneers of giant waves. At the age of 23, the Bahian went surfing in Maui (Hawaii) and made a name for himself when riding down Jaws – considered the best big wave on the planet – just paddling.
In 2017, Márcio Freire's pioneering spirit was portrayed in the documentary Mad Dogs - Hawaiian slang whose free translation is "Crazy Dogs" - directed by Roberto Studart. The work tells the story of Márcio and two other Bahians - Danilo Couto and Yuri Soledade - who surfed Jaws in faith and courage, when at the time it was already customary for helpers on jet-sky to pull surfers to the formation of the wave. In addition, the use of safety equipment (life jackets) was already common.
