Celine Gehret is a fantastic all-round surfer and previous winner of the Animal Beach Ball Surf Contest and four times Swiss Surf Champion.

Originating from a land locked country, Switzerland, surfing of is not the first sport you would expect her to excel in. Although an accomplished snowboarder and skateboarder, surfing was the sport that really captured Celine’s imagination.

“I remember trying to save every penny so I could go travel and go surfing in the school holidays. I was definitely infected by the surfing bug…”

Céline even managed to find a way of surfing at home in Switzerland, on a stationary wave in the river Reuss. Although it wasn’t quite the same as the hollow beach breaks in France and it was absolutely freezing, Céline’s enthusiasm for the sport never died. Free surfing and competing in surfing events has taken Céline all around the world and she names Hawaii and the island of Nias off the coast of Sumatra as her favourite destinations so far.

In 2009 Céline retained the Swiss national surfing championship title, held in France for the fourth time, qualifying her for the ISA World Surfing Games 2010. Celine has competed in the ESF European Championships and ISA World Surfing Games numerous times. She was a member of the Plymouth student team in 2003 and finished fourth in the BUSA Student Nationals. Her passion and dedication to succeed paid of when she won the Animal beach ball event in 2004.

Céline is a model and a team rider for GUL international and Pure Blue Water and a team rider for SurfTech Surfboards, Kaenon Polarized Sunglasses and The National Trust. Celine has also been a model and team rider for C-Skins wetsuits, Saltrock and Animal. It’s been eleven years since Céline fell in love with surfing; she now lives in Cornwall where she has completed an honours degree in Surf Science and Technology at the University of Plymouth.

Céline is currently working as a surf instructor for the British Surfing Association.

“Now that I’ve finished my studies I just want to go travelling and surf as much as possible. I was born in Switzerland where it snows and its cold but I’ll end up on the beach and in the surf…”