Ethan Ewing follows in late mother’s footsteps with emotional Bells Beach win

When Ethan Ewing lifted the iconic Rip Curl Pro trophy at Bells Beach on Tuesday, it was a moment imbued with significance. This was no ordinary World Surf League (WSL) victory.

As Ewing rang the bell – famously, “you’ve got to win it to ring it” – he was following in the footsteps of his late mother, Helen Ewing (née Lambert). A prodigal talent in women’s surfing, Helen won the Rip Curl Pro in 1983 aged just 18. Four decades later, it was her son’s turn to win the longest running event in competitive surfing.

“It’s been my biggest goal in my career to win this,” said an emotional Ewing afterwards. “All my heroes have won this – Joel [Parkinson], Mick [Fanning], Kelly [Slater], the girls – Steph [Gilmore], Carissa [Moore], and then my mum back in ‘83. It is an honour to compete here. To put my name up there with her – it’s really special.”

Ewing, 24, had a break-out season last year, winning the Corona Open at J-Bay in South Africa and finishing fourth overall. The Australian has had a slower start to 2023, but over the past week Ewing emphatically returned to form.

On Tuesday he was the first surfer in the water, beating three-time world champion Gabriel Medina in the round of 16. He then saw off South African talent Matthew McGillivray in the quarter-finals and reigning world champion Filipe Toledo in the semi-finals. No-one would come close to Ewing en route to his second career WSL event victory, ultimately defeating compatriot Ryan Callinan in the final. “Everything just rolled really smoothly,” he said. “It was definitely the biggest win of my career to date.”

The Ewings are now the first mother-son duo to secure victory at the same WSL event. Helen was a trailblazer in women’s surfing, but had her career cut