GoPro Welcomes Top-Ranked Female WSL Surfers to the Team

Pros Feb 29, 2016

GoPro welcomes #4 ranked Bianca Buitendag and #8 ranked Johanne Defay to the 2016 GoPro surf team

Bianca Buitendag's father first pushed her into a wave as a child. Growing up in Victoria Bay, South Africa, she has developed a deep love for the ocean, and compares surfing to art. This 22-year-old finds a creative outlet in her sport working with a medium she's able to practice around the globe. Last year on the World Championship Tour, she made it to the finals in three events. Buitendag loves to win and has held a competitive spirit since she was a little girl. However, her determination extends beyond the water, following her into academics. She is currently taking online courses at Northeastern University in pursuit of a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Accounting Management. Buitendag says her life changed after she joined the GoPro team and started shooting with the HERO4.

I realized how much of what I considered to be ordinary should be shared with the world, capturing places others don't easily have access to and blessing them with that first hand experience they would have not seen otherwise. GoPro has made me fall in love with surfing even more and has given people the opportunity to see the beauty and majesty of my sport- exposing its splendor and serenity to anyone that is interested.

Biancas Favorite GoPro Mount: I love the custom mouthpiece, as both hands are generally occupied when I surf. This allows for an all inclusive angle and POV of the experience.

Biancas GoPro Expert Tip: Make sure the lens is clean with no water drops and the rest is up to fate.

Johanne Defay shares her new teammates love for the ocean. When Defay was seven years old, she started surfing with the support of her father. The salt water challenged her to adapt to the varying ocean conditions and she enjoyed pushing her limits and improving her skills in and out of the water. When she is home in Reunion Island, she cross-trains every day, be it mountain biking, trail running, skating, diving, swimming or yoga. And it's paid off. Last year she won her first World Tour event, the US Open in Huntington Beach, California. Defay first joined the WCT in 2014 and to her excitement, she re-qualified for the 2016 season and has joined GoPro in the same year.

Last August, I went on my first official GoPro trip to Tahiti with my friend Bianca [Buitendag]. It was actually my first trip that didn't revolve around a surf comp. GoPro treated us like princesses. The brand has such a solid image and has really helped me build content on social media.

Johannes Favorite GoPro Mount: For surfing, my favorite mount is The Handler. I shoot photos in time lapse mode, on every .5 second.

Johannes GoPro Expert Tip: Experiment with night lapse mode- it takes amazing pictures!

Buitendag and Defay join fellow female WSL competitor and GoPro athlete, Lakey Peterson (#6), along with the rest of the 2016 GoPro surf team: Alana Blanchard, Anthony Walsh, Filipe Toledo, Harley Ingleby, Jamie O'Brien, Kala Alexander, Kalani Chapman, Kalani Robb, Kamalei Alexander, Kelly Slater, Mark Matthews, Shane Dorian, Leo Fioravanti and Aritz Aranburu.

LINK:	http://gopro.com/news/gopro-welcomes-top-ranked-female-wsl-surfers-to-...
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