Grant "Twiggy" Baker: Nazaré Challenge winner 2018

16 Nov 2018Won the Nazaré Challenge

25.04Winning score

Their story

Grant Baker, known everywhere as Twiggy, is one of South Africa's greatest big wave surfers, and a specialist at paddling into giant waves rather than being towed. On 16 November 2018 he won the WSL Nazaré Challenge, a paddle-in event, beating a young Lucas Chianca in the final. The waves were clean, with faces of 25 to 40 feet through the day.

He's still winning. In 2026 he took the paddle Biggest Wave prize at the Big Wave Challenge awards.

Best ride, 18 Apr 2018

Paddling in beyond the lighthouse, 2018

His paddle wave beyond the lighthouse at Praia do Norte, 18 Apr 2018. A Ride of the Year entry at the 2019 WSL Big Wave Awards.

World Surf League

More legends

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António "Tony" Laureano, big wave surfer

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António Laureano

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Local Nazaré charger

See the next one live.

One email when giant waves (10 m+) show up in the models, usually 5 to 7 days ahead.

Alert me when it's big

Photos: Walterpeitz (header), CC BY-SA 4.0; Web Summit (Hugo Vau), CC BY 2.0; Walterpeitz (wave photo), CC BY-SA 4.0; Luis Ascenso (wave photo), CC BY 2.0; Carlos Eduardo Joos (wave photos 1, 2), CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.