'Flying Scotsman' Ben Larg lights up the Nazaré Big Wave Challenge

Scottish surfer Ben Larg made a dramatic debut appearance in the annual Nazaré Big Wave Challenge in Portugal, placing third in the men's division ahead of some of the most famous names in the sport.

At age 20, the Tiree native was the youngest competitor at Tuesday’s event. Yet in 25 to 40-foot surf, he still finished ahead of big wave legends, including Kai Lenny of Hawaii and Nic von Rupp of Portugal.

Larg only found out he would be competing in the event the day before, after record-breaking big wave surfer Garret McNamara of Hawaii decided to pull out and offer him his spot.

"I think maybe Garrett decided it was time to pass the baton," Larg​ said. "He was like 'yeah, you go for it kid'."

Designed to showcase tow-in surfing, in which surfers are towed into waves behind jet skis, the Nazaré Big Wave Challenge brings together elite big wave riders from across the globe and divides them into pairs, with the members of each team taking it in turns to surf and drive the ski. Larg was paired with Andrew Cotton from Devon, and the duo, who train regularly together, also finished third in the team competition.

"It was kinda my dream to team up with Cotty for the Challenge," Larg said. "If it could've been anybody, it would've been with him."

Andrew Cotton and Ben Larg | Oscar James

Unlike most of the competitors, who aimed to ride lefts - waves breaking from surfer's right to left - towards the beach of Praia do Norte, Larg and Cotton decided to tackle the rights breaking towards the cliffs beneath Nazaré's iconic lighthouse. It was a high-risk strategy, requiring a couple of heart-in-mouth jet ski rescues, but one that paid off.

Larg’s most spectacular wave, however, turned out to be a left, which ended with him launching himself high into the air to avoid an oncoming avalanche of whitewater - a move that caused Red Bull TV commentator Chris Coté to dub him “the flying Scotsman”.

To watch a recap of the 2024/25 Nazaré Big Wave Challenge, visit https://www.redbull.com/int-en/videos/tudor-nazare-big-wave-challenge-2024-25-highlights

To ​watch the full event, visit www.redbull.com/int-en/events/tudor-nazare-big-wave-challenge