Surfers in tribute to wetsuit hero

Thousands of surfers have taken to the waters off California in tribute to wetsuit pioneer Jack O’neill, who died last month aged 94.

Surfers gathered for a “paddle out” service near O’neill’s cliffside Santa Cruz home. Many of them wore O’neill wetsuits and eye patches in honour of the covering he donned following a surfing injury.

A paddle out is a traditional way surfers pay tribute following the death of one of their own. It consists of surfers forming a circle in the water and tossing flowers.

O’neill invented the first neoprene wetsuit in the 1950s.