Surfer Caroline Marks Declares ‘Dreams Come True’ After Winning Gold for Team USA

The American athlete earned the top spot on the podium after narrowly missing it at the 2020 Tokyo games.

Caroline Marks / Ed Sloane/Getty Images

Congratulations are in order for American surfer Caroline Marks, who took home the gold medal in the Paris Olympics surfing competition on Aug. 5.

From the very start of her second Olympic Games, the 22-year-old was locked in. After narrowly missing the podium at the 2020 Tokyo games three years ago (with a fourth place finish), she headed to Tahiti this year with something to prove. And, after five rounds in French Polynesia, she did just that.

En route to the top spot on the podium, Marks outlasted 2020 gold medalist, fellow American Carissa Moore, a favorite to win gold again this year. In the final day of competition, she narrowly bested French surfer Johanne Defay (the bronze medalist) in the semifinals before taking on—and defeating—Brazilian Tatiana Weston-Webb in the gold medal match.

For Marks, it was a dream come true. “It hasn’t really hit me yet,” she said immediately after the win. “I’m just trying to soak it all in, because it’s probably the best day of my life ... Your whole life goes into a moment like this, so it’s just super special. It’s beyond my wildest dreams.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Caroline Marks (@caroline_markss)

Since the first day of the women’s Olympic surfing competition on July 27, it was clear that Marks was in the gold medal mindset. She kicked off her Paris games performance with the highest total score and the highest single wave score between both the men’s and women’s competition. So, it’s no surprise that she will leave Tahiti with a little more hardware and a new point on her résumé.