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Home to 213 millions people, Brazil overflows with diversity, beauty, and life - and nowhere is that more true that the country's second largest city, Rio de Janeiro. With its 700 kilometers of dazzling coastline and tropical climate, Brazil is an idyllic playground for surfers. For centuries, indigenious people took to the ocean in hand-built canoes. Surfing reaally took off in the 1960's, as Brazil were drawn to the joy of riding waves and to surfing's culture of freedom and fun. Today, some of the world's best surfers come from Brazil and stood up their very first waves right here.

MEET ERICA PRADO

SURFER AND FOUNDER OF SURFISTAS NEGRAS

With her bright smile and boundless energy, Erica Prado is leading a significant cultural shift in women's surfing. During her fifteen years as a pro surfer, Erica often struggled to find sponsorship support. She even slept in bus stations on her way to events to save money. When she looked around, she didn't see black women like her represented. So, she decided to create Surfistas Negras to bring visibility to black women in surfing - and it's quickly grown from a simple Instagram account to a whole movement for change. We headed down to Recreio to meet some of the girls from Surfristas Negras for a morning surf. It was uplifting to watch this diverse group of women share their love for riding waves and to see Ericas's vision brought to life.

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MEET ANDREA LOPES

SURFER AND SURF SCHOOL OWNER

From Rocinha, we drove south to Barra to meet Andrea Lopes. In 1991, Andrea becam Brazil's first ever Championship Tour surfer. She is also the first Brazilian surfer to win a CT event, and even better, Andrea won right here in RIo, in front of her friends and familiy. Today, she owns a surf school where she passes on her knowledge and love of surfing. In Barra, we scored some fun little waves and felt lucky to share a session with Andrea.

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SURFISTAS NEGRAS

Surfistas Negras, founded be Erica Prado, strarted as an Intagram account with the intent to bring visibility to black women in surfing but has since grown into a movement for change. Located in Brazil, Surfistas Negras is changing the lineup to reflect the rich and varied culture that exists there and support women in surfing.

LEARN MORE ABOUT SURFISTAS NEGRAS

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