Women in Sport: Surfer, scientist and writer Easkey Britton

Dr. Easkey Britton is a renowned Irish surfer, author, artist and marine social scientist from Donegal who channels her passion for surfing and the sea into social change.

The five time women’s national surfing champion pioneered big wave surfing in Ireland, becoming the first Irish person to be nominated for the World Surf League’s Global Big Wave Award.

In 2013, she introduced the sport of surfing to women in Iran, which led her to be invited to give an inspiring TEDx talk: Just Add Surf and filmed the award winning documentary Into the Sea. She currently works as a blue health researcher with Liquid Therapy and is the author of several books on our human relationship with water including her new book Ebb and Flow: Connect with the Patterns and Power of Water.

Name: Easkey Britton

Profession: Surfer, scientist, and writer

Earliest sporting memory?

Curled up in the back of the family van with my parents and little sister parked by the coast next to my dad’s favourite surf break, being woken up by the sound of a new swell arriving in the early morning, the waves breaking on the reef outside and the feeling of excitement, willing the sun to come up so we could go surfing.

How did you become involved in your sport?

I have saltwater in my blood! I was born to pioneering surfing parents, named after a wave on the west coast and grew up in Donegal next to one of the best beaches for learning to surf – it would have been impossible for me to escape the ocean and surfing quickly became my first love.

What message would you like to share with young women and girls interested in pursuing a career as an athlete?

Don’t listen to anyone who says you can’t, listen instead to your heart, do what feels good and trust your body.

Proudest moment so far…

Pioneering surfing with young women and local Baluch surfers in Iran. It became an unexpected journey spanning over a decade and counting that completely opened my mind and heart in new ways. It was a journey that involved breaking barriers, meeting new challenges, creating new ways of knowing, doing and learning through surfing and its capacity to transform oneself and others. Witnessing the birth and rapid emergence of surfing in Iran over those years, has shown me how surfing can be a unique lens to facilitate a deeper understanding of the world around us, and each other. I write about this transformation and the importance of sharing our passion with others in my memoir ‘Saltwater in the Blood.’

The female athlete I admire most is…

Hawaiian surfer Rell Sunn and the legacy she left. It’s no surprise her Hawaiian name, Ka-polioka’ehukai, means “Heart of the Sea”. She was a real embodiment of the aloha spirit of surfing and an inspiration in terms of bringing kids into the sport and blazing a trail for women’s professional surfing at a time when they were getting little or no support in the 1970s, co-founding the women’s first pro tour.

Favourite sporting memory…

Is the day I rode the biggest wave of my life at Mullaghmore Head. A 20-30ft swell was building and we had a window of a few hours between storm fronts with just a handful of friends in the surf, waiting for an unexpected moment of magic where the elements align. I had one of my most profound experiences of letting go and entering a state of flow, that also turned out to be one of the biggest waves of my life.

Do you think there is still stigma around women in sport?

Yes. Great progress is being made, especially in surfing with the World Surfing League (WSL) introducing pay parity for male and female athletes in 2019 and seeing the power imbalance when it comes to leadership shifting with Jessi Miley Dyer becoming the first female Chief of Sport at the WSL. That said, inequalities persist, especially when it comes to considering the complex role of women in society as their sporting career develops. For example, if female athletes become mothers they are up against a lack of childcare support or financial security when so many are on short fixed-term contracts. Or the huge changes the female body undergoes in teenage years and the lack of understanding of the importance of that initiatory journey, both the potential to tap into a whole new power and the extreme sense of vulnerability that comes with the menstrual cycle kicking in, linked to body confidence, identity and belonging.

What is the biggest barrier to driving visibility in women’s sport?

There is a lack of support for women to document and share their stories — there needs to be far more funding, mentoring and support for women in leadership positions across the industry, especially when it comes to storytelling and considering whose voices are we listening too.

If I wasn’t an athlete I’d be…

An artist.

My favourite pre-surf meal is…

A bowl of porridge in the morning loaded with honey and berries.

My pre-surf playlist…

Depends on the surf and my energy. If I need to feel amped up I’ll listen to Led Zeppelin, Johnny Gallagher or Black Sabbath! On bigger days I prefer to listen to music that will calm me down, like Fionn Rogers, London Grammar or even something classical.

My daily routine is…

Challenging now I’m a new mum to twin babies but it still includes some form of body movement when I wake, especially spinal rolls, breathwork (even if it’s just focusing on taking three slow and deep breaths), getting exposed to natural light first thing, and getting in the water even if it’s for a quick dip if there’s no surf. I try to take time to reflect on what I’m most grateful for at the end of the day.

My biggest sporting goal is…

Longevity – to keep surfing for as long as I can, hopefully until the day I die.

Sports brands I love…

I’m an ambassador for sustainable surf brand Finisterre based in Cornwall. I love their eco range of plant-based Yulex swim and surfwear.

Biggest splurge to celebrate a win…

Attending the Global Big Wave Awards in LA in 2011 with my mum when I was one of five female athletes nominated for the Biggest Wave of the Year award — there was a blue carpet instead of a red carpet! It was all very glam like a Hollywood awards night.

How do you mind your mental health?

Connect with nature, connect with my breath, connect with loved ones and laugh.

My three desert island beauty products are…

Reef-safe mineral sunblock, water, and ashwagandha!

I need 8 hours of sleep, because…

I need all the rest and energy I can get while parenting twin toddlers, but it can be a luxury getting enough sleep sometimes! Confidence to me is feeling a sense of connection and belonging to my environment, especially the natural world and feeling at home in my own skin.

How do you get over a bad performance…

Get back in the water and surf just for pleasure. Or maybe even bodysurf which creates this immediate sense of play and there is no pressure to perform.

Lastly, why is sport such an integral part of community?

Sport creates connection through a shared experience regardless of who you are or where you are in the world. The ocean has the power to connect.

This article was originally published in September 2023.