Surfing icon found dead
Australian surfing icon John Shimooka was found dead in his Sydney home on Monday morning. He was 51 years old.
The news was confirmed on the Surfing New South Wales Instagram page on Monday afternoon. “The team is deeply distressed at the passing of one of our own, John Shimooka, in the early hours of Monday morning,” the caption read.
“A talented former world tour surfer, commentator, Jiu-Jitsu black belt and general manager of partnerships for Surfing NSW since 2018, ‘Shmoo’ was a much-loved member of the global surfing community and the Surfing NSW family.
“He will be remembered for his passion for the lifestyle as well as his energy and enthusiasm. Everyone in our organization joins his son, Brandon, immediate family, and his extended worldwide network of friends, in grieving his loss. It is our saddest day. We will commemorate and celebrate John’s life in the days and weeks to come.” Surfing Australia also left a heartfelt message on Instagram on Monday. “Shmoo will be remembered around the world for his flamboyant surfing on tour, epic commentary and love of the core surfing values and lifestyle.”
Originally from Hawaii, Shimooka, known affectionately as “Shmoo,” rose as high as 19th in the world in surfing rankings in 1995, and moved from Hawaii to Cronulla in 1999. He had been working for Surfing New South Wales for the past three years.
Prior to his success, Shimooka was a legend of the tour in the late 1980s, but as he hit rock bottom by the early 90s, getting out of shape and low on cash, his friend Sunny
Garcia convinced him to return to Hawaii from Los Angeles to dedicate himself to surfing once again. Soon after, the pair made the final together at Bells Beach.
Following his successful career, Shimooka took up commentary and hosting, and was praised for his work around the world. He will be remembered for his unique style in and out of the ocean and for his dedication to the promotion of surfing.
American surfing great Kelly Slater posted an image of himself alongside a smiling Shimooka on his Instagram page. “My heart’s ripped out. I’m sorry, Shmoo. I thought we had this,” Slater said. Australian surf legend Tom Carroll responded: “No sense. I thought so too.
Shmoo RIP.”