Name: Tyler Wright
Country: Australia
Sport: Surfing
Previous Olympic experience: None
Social Media: Instagram
Who is Tyler Wright
Tyler Wright, 30, is star in surfing-mad Australia, a two-time world champion from a family of surfers, including brother Owen, who won a bronze medal in Tokyo.
In a 2022 interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Wright, who is 5-foot-7 and 145 pounds, talked about the culture of surfing and why she called it a “f—ing sausagefest.”
Get off the sidelines and into the game
Our weekly newsletter is packed with everything from locker room chatter to pressing LGBTQ sports issues.
“As a young girl becoming a woman in surfing — 12 years ago — it was an era of ‘sex sells.’ ‘We want sexy, straight, blonde, female surfers.’ I was clearly not that,” she said. “I’m built like an athlete, I’m not straight, I don’t have blonde hair. And while men were allowed to go out and be athletes — and get paid for doing it — a lot of women weren’t. It’s funny: the minute equal pay came to the World Surf League, some of the hardest-working women went from being non-sponsored and non-backed to high world rankings. If you invest in women, you’ll see them excel.”
Wright has been open about her bout of chronic fatigue syndrome in 2018 (“I thought I was gonna die”), her struggles with her heavy periods, her push for positive mental health and a surgery to allow her to breathe better that required seven screws in her head. She also shares her thoughts to her 221,000 followers on Instagram and is not shy about her love for her wife, Lilli Baker.
Related
Gay swimmer, bi surfer latest LGBTQ athletes to qualify for Paris Olympics
Nick Albiero of Brazil and Tyler Wright of Australia have qualified for the Paris Olympics as Team LGBTQ takes shape.
By Jim Buzinski | May 10, 2024
Bi surfer Tyler Wright adopts Pride jersey, triumphs in Maui Pro tourney
After coming out following a 14 month battle with illness, Wright dominates the surf representing the LGBTQ community.
By Ken Schultz | December 23, 2020
Wright, who identifies as bisexual, met Baker in 2021 and the two have been together since.
” Lily is just a vibe,” Wright said. “She was working in a cafe in Newcastle [in 2021] when I was in town for a contest. I felt so respected and appreciated [by her]. Eventually, I asked her out, she said yes and here we are.
“There’s an ease and openness. There’s genuineness, love, respect and appreciation. Being with someone who encourages you to be more you is always a good time.
“I’m the only queer person on tour, so my wife is the only other queer person I know most of the time. I love everyone around me but she makes such a difference in a way only she really can.”
Tyler Wright at the Paris Summer Olympics
Wright won’t be competing in Paris, but rather in Tahiti, the French territory where the surfing competition will be held. Wright won one pro event in 2022, one in 2023 and her best finish this year was second place at a March event in Portugal. She has a serious shot at a medal.
