PORTRAITS – SURF OJ 2024: Jérôme Brouillet, the photographer who went to heaven after immortalizing Gabriel Medina by levitating

It’s 9:30 a.m. at the Teahupoo surf break. The waves are certainly there, the waves are impressive and spectacular. Brazilian Gabriel Medina takes off on one of them, making the best score of the day. He gets out and flies over her, celebrating his hit. Exactly seven seconds pass between these two moments. Time passes quickly, but the photographer’s eyes are glued to the viewfinder of his camera. He doesn’t waste a moment, Waves of clicks and follow the track of the surfer. He knew this prodigy, multiple world champion, and he knew he would celebrate his ride. Jérôme Brouillet immortalizes this moment.

The moment was perfect, but the thirty-year-old didn’t know it yet. The photographer, who was on orders from the Agence France-Presse (AFP), selected two photos from his series without realizing what he had just shot and sent them live to the agency’s editors on his phone. Ten minutes later, as he was on a media boat on the edge of Teahupoo’s waves, the phone in his shorts pocket kept beeping. His photos were broadcast all over the world.

« I didn’t expect this because there are 40 water photographers, among them well-known and very talented photographers from all over the world, whose content I often check for inspiration. I didn’t expect to get the shot of the day, the Olympics or whatever… » –

Jérôme Brouillet, AFP photographer

The outsider of surfing photographers thus becomes the “” photographer of the 2024 Olympic Games in Tahiti. The mysterious symbolism of Gabriel Medina’s suspended image, with his finger pointed to the sky by the clouds and his leash connected to his surfboard, also suspended, makes this photo iconic. A dedication and reward for this lover of the sport and surfing who grew up in Marseille. When he was young, he spent his holidays surfing in the southwest of France with a group of friends. At that time, he followed all the big surf photographers and watched the competitions live. He knew Tahiti only through the screen. His encounter with the Teahupoo wave took place during the 2014 WSL stage. At that time, he used his vacation to meet real-life surfers and this wave that was already famous in the industry.

“I was like a child going from posters in my room or what I saw on the internet to reality! I was so happy to see the surfers and this artistic wave. My partner is a midwife and she was here for a few months doing a replacement so I came to visit her on holiday. But when we returned to France we felt sad. Then a new opportunity presented itself in Tahiti and we tried the adventure”

Jérôme Brouillet – AFP photographer

This young man in his thirties with a surfer look, blond hair and a cap on his head, started sports and surf photography out of passion. He discovered Teahupoo and took up photographing the waves as a hobby, but didn’t expect to make it his job. It must be said that there are already many photographers on the scene, among them talented ones like Tim Mckenna. A humble and respectful man, Jérôme has allowed himself to be rubbed shoulders with the big names, but in the end he has taken his place. He attends the big sessions more and more frequently and takes as many shots as possible. In August 2021, big waves are expected and local surfers are heading out to sea. Among them, the children of Vairao Kauli Vaast. The wave is impressive, even sublime, and it cannot escape the keen eyes of today’s photographers, nor the eyes of the young surfers who share it on the web.

“When I posted it, he re-shared it and it went all over the world. It was nothing compared to today, but I was very happy. I was nobody but from time to time I got opportunities. Then Paris Match contacted me and I was very happy because it was more of a surfing photo, not like the one in the Medina which was a celebration photo. She did a double for the competition… We prepare, we work, we come often, nothing happens to our meetings, we lose money because we have to pay for travel, and one day we get the photo and that’s what we get rewarded for. There’s also an element of luck in all this”

Jérôme Brouillet – AFP photographer

Today, the photographer is taking advantage of the whirlwind that follows the publication of his photos. Despite extreme fatigue, he gives interviews and seizes the opportunities that arise. His partner, Laurie, has also become his press secretary since yesterday. She manages the information and sorts it, while Jerome sometimes conducts interviews until one in the morning. The couple is a little overwhelmed by the scale of the event, but they are enjoying this well-deserved moment, because Jerome and Laurie are well aware that it can be fleeting. Today, his image goes around the world, tomorrow it may be another one.