There are champions who, even far from the podiums, leave their mark in the spray. Figures whose silhouette, gliding gracefully on a longboard, evokes less sport than art. Antoine Delpero is of that caliber.
And in May 2025, at the age of 39, he returns to shine under the Salvadoran sun as a mentor. Not for himself this time. For others. For France. For his brother.
An extraordinary record for a sliding legend
Born in Marseille on November 1, 1985, raised by the Basque swell, Antoine Delpero has continuously navigated between disciplines with disarming elegance. Surf, longboard, stand up paddle… everything suits him.
His record? A masterpiece. Three ISA longboard world championship titles (2009, 2013, 2023), a world title in SUP (2012), two team world titles, countless podiums and national and European victories that would make any waterman envious.
Based in Biarritz since he was 14 after joining the Pôle France, he has won everything, or almost. The WSL world title in longboard? He came close, brushed it, caressed it... before seeing the dream slip away under the wax. Yet, in the hearts of enthusiasts, Delpero has long been the uncrowned king, the one who embodies French longboarding, combining fluidity, mastery, and flair!
2023: the resurrection of a champion
After retiring in 2019, Antoine seemed to have turned the page. But the wave is persistent, and the call of the open sea, irresistible.
Four years later, he puts the fins back on. In El Salvador, for the ISA 2023 World Championships, the king returns. And what an epic! A perfect final, controlled gliding, an unaltered style: Antoine Delpero wins his third individual world title. At 37, he proves that talent does not fade with time. He inspires, again, always!
2025: the passing of the torch... in gold
But this year, destiny is written differently. Antoine is no longer on the board, but on the sand, strategy board in hand. Coach of the French team, he guides, advises, channels. His younger brother, Edouard Delpero, three-time unlucky finalist (2019, 2023, 2024), is trying once again to reach the top.
And this time, that's it. Edouard breaks the curse and becomes ISA World Champion 2025. A clear victory, an undeniable domination, a final in zero gravity. In the golden shadow of the coach, Antoine smiles. His surfing expertise, his Olympic calm, his legendary experience have borne fruit.
"In 2023, Antoine's victory was a magnificent moment. This year, he came back as a coach... and I won," says Edouard, tears in his eyes. The story is beautiful. The story is fair.
France on top of the world
This individual crowning is accompanied by a world title of the Nations for the French team. Thanks to Alice Lemoigne's second place, the strong performances of Roland Lefeuvre (7th) and Ophélie Ah-Kouen (13th), and the spirit of a team led by Antoine Delpero, the Blues achieve a new peak.
A tribute dedicated to Zoé Grospiron, finalist in 2024, absent this year but ever present in our hearts.
A living legacy
Antoine Delpero is not a champion like the others. He is a craftsman, a poet of sliding. Both a guiding figure and a man of transmission, he embodies a certain idea of surfing: one that links the sea and men, style and soul, technique and tradition.
Today, he is no longer just the one who wins. He is the one who makes others win.
And when the foam settles on the beaches of El Salvador, it is a name, more than a title, that remains engraved: Delpero.
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