Christian sports stars: Gabriel Medina

Brazilian Gabriel Medina quoted Philippians 4:13 as he won the bronze medal in the men’s Olympic surfing in Paris.

The three-time World Surf league world champion also became synonymous with what will surely be remembered as one of the images of the Games, which saw him point skywards midair above a wave in Tahiti during a ride which was scored 9.9 out of 10, ranked as the greatest score in Olympic history.

The 30-year-old finished in fourth place at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, and his victory over Canada’s Alonso Correa in the bronze medal match saw him go one better this time round.

Medina took to his Instagram page after his performance which secured him 17.4 points, leaving him as the initial favourite to win the gold medal. His post, which has been liked about nine million times quoted Paul from Philippians alongside the iconic image of his spectacular 9.9-scored ride, saying: ‘I can do everything through him who strengthens me.’