Believe it or not, Shane Dorian has never sought out the job of a surf coach. And yet, Dorian has landed himself in a unique position: the head coach of Team USA’s surf squad for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Studious and insightful, Dorian makes sense for the role on multiple levels. He’s well versed in high-level competition (after 11 years on the CT) and at the Olympic venue, having bagged numerous Teahupo’o barrels in and out of a jersey (like these paddle-in gems and this 2008 tow bomb). Now, he’s tasked with helping John John Florence, Griffin Colapinto, Carissa Moore, Carolina Marks and Caity Simmers bring home Olympic hardware.
Photo: Ryan Miller
Back home in Hawaii after a three-week stint in Tahiti, SURFER caught up with Dorian to talk about his role in the upcoming Games, how he’s preparing his fellow Americans for the remarkable opportunity, and why scheduled practice sessions could lead to unexpected performances.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
SURFER: Congratulations on earning this position. What were your initial thoughts on being named head coach of Team USA?
Shane Dorian: First off, it’s a huge honor for me. Being a surf coach was never something I pursued, and it’s not something I want to travel full-time for. For one reason or another, it’s worked out in a really auspicious way, and I’m really grateful for the experience and opportunities I’ve had.
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And how did you get into this role? The job’s not exactly on LinkedIn.
It had a lot to do with feedback from athletes on the US team. As the athletes qualified, there were a lot of names thrown around as far as potential head coaches. When the dust settled, they offered me the job. I wasn’t really involved in that process. But I’m really happy, and I feel like I have some fairly unique qualifications in that I have a history with that wave in a jersey. I know what it’s like to compete at the highest level with a lot on the line.
The other thing I think was a factor is that I don’t have a history of being an individual coach for one of the athletes on the team (apart from the brief stint with Moore). I think that put me in a good position, because of my neutrality. It’s not like they were hiring one of the athlete’s personal coaches to be the coach for the whole team.
What are your responsibilities as the coach for Team USA?
The short answer is my job is to help them achieve their goal in relation to the 2024 Paris Olympics. I’ve been doing a lot of work over the last year. I was anticipating hopefully getting this job about a year ago. So I’ve been working with the US team along the way to formulate a structure and a plan. I’ve been reaching out to individual surf coaches like Tommy Whitaker, Luke Egan and Ross Williams just to formalize relationships with the athletes. I want to make sure my rapport is really good and we can have deeper relationships.
I want to let them know I’m there for them and help them feel as prepared as they can be for day 1 of the Olympics. So even though this was just announced with my role, I’ve been working on this for months. I think I’ve got great relationships with the team and I’m super excited to work with them.
Photo: Ryan Miller
What are your thoughts on the overall skill set of the five surfers on the team?
I think we have an extremely strong team. When you look at each surfer and their strengths and comfort level with that break, I’d say it’s pretty impressive. That said, there are areas to improve. And it’s pretty obvious to each individual where they can improve. I think that’s something they’re excited about, to level up as we get closer to the Olympics. All of them were just in Tahiti for the CT event, so they had a ton of freesurfs. They also left a lot of boards at our compound in anticipation of being back soon.
We have a pretty long structured training camp leading up to the Olympics. That’s when we’re doing a lot of work diving deep into each one of them so they can feel the most prepared and feel like they have the best chance of meeting their goals.
You were charging at Teahupo’o this month after the CT left. Does that recent experience factor into your new role?
Yeah, I would say so. I’ve been surfing there for almost 30 years. I competed there for a long time, so I have a pretty good relationship and fondness for the wave. I feel really comfortable there after having so much history with that wave. But it was really good to get reacquainted, especially with size. There were a few days where the waves were 8-12 feet, and I got a few that I didn’t think I wanted anything to do with. So I kind of surprised myself and that was a cool experience. They also built the new tower, so I got some new lineups.
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Given that surfing is happening in Tahiti, it should make for easier viewing compared to Japan in 2021.
It was nearly impossible for me to find surfing to watch because there were so many sports happening at the same time in Tokyo. Surfing was way in the background. As a viewer, it was hard to follow and watch. But because of the time difference now, when Paris is asleep, the US is awake. And when the surfing part is actually happening in Tahiti, it’s a great time slot for America to watch. It’s one of the only sports that’s happening when none of the other sports are happening. I’m assuming this, but I think it has a really good chance of being easy to watch, and for the rest of the world to focus on.
And of course, the venue provides an opportunity like no other. To showcase world-class surfing at what many people would argue is the best (and most challenging) wave on the planet, it’s easy to tell a story around. And the wave is already famous in Paris. The French media has been covering Teahupo’o for a decade now. It’s headline news when a huge swell comes in. Which is cool, I’ve seen it when I’ve been to France before.
When the heats are going, are you able to sit in the channel like a CT event, or is the setup different because it’s the Olympics?
It’s different for sure. There’s a lot of rules. A lot revolves around branding and controlling what’s being televised. They want to focus on what’s happening in the water, and I don’t think the interaction between coaches and athletes is something they want to showcase, by the sound of it. My understanding is that head coaches and assistant coaches will be in boats right next to the lineup. But there will be interaction with the surfers when they’re in the heats.
Photo: Ryan Miller
Are there any other unusual rules in place for the Olympics that surf fans may not know about?
It’s just a different situation than your typical surf competition. The town is basically going to be an Olympic village. The last few miles at the end of the road will be locked down. And you won’t be able to go to Teahupo’o to watch the event. There are so many safety protocols in place, and they’ve put in all these rules and regulations to where it’s completely locked down.
They also have an official practice window six days before the Olympics start. That’s something that’s never been done in a surfing competition. So for six days, you won’t be able to surf Teahupo’o unless you’ve got the right credentials. I think it’s like from 6 a.m. to 4 or 5 p.m. So you can’t surf there unless you’re in the Olympics. Of course, there are two sides to that story.
But let’s say you’re a 14-year-old girl from China in the Olympics, you’re actually going to be slated for two sessions with only 11 other athletes. You’re going to get your waves and time to practice at that venue. For a lot of people, Teahupo’o is the scariest wave on Earth. It’s a wave some might never have to surf. Now they’re in the Olympics, and they don’t know how to practice or overcome their fears.
It can be terrifying because normally (if you go to practice), there are 25 people out and everyone is harassing each other. It’s dog-eat-dog in that lineup. It’s very difficult to practice. So from an athlete’s perspective, it’s cool they’ll actually get a chance to get prepared.
That’s fascinating. I was not aware they get time slots out there.
The cool upside of that is you’ll see the level go up a whole lot for those athletes who have never been there before or have limited experience at that break. I’ve talked to Caity about that in Hawaii. She basically can’t get a wave at Pipeline, and she’s out there. She’s not complaining on the beach. She’s trying her absolute hardest trying to get waves. And it’s brutal. It’s not like, “There’s Caity with the yellow jersey, she should get the next wave.” It’s not like that at all. There are 15-year-old boys trying to snake her.
And you saw the women’s performance at this year’s Pipe event was groundbreaking. I think everyone on Earth who pays attention to surfing was baffled by how good the women were surfing. It was so cool, I was so impressed. Now imagine if Caity, Caroline or Tatiana and a lot of these women got a lot of practice out at Pipeline. Imagine how good they could surf then? They’re already surfing so well in heavy waves, and they didn’t get that many waves. My point is that from an athlete’s perspective, they all get practice leading up to the Olympics. And I think that will raise the level.