21 November
Movie Review: Piece by Piece 
November 21, 2024 Movie Review: Piece by Piece
November 14, 2024 "Humor on the Margins: Cartoons in the Turkish Jewish Newspaper Şalom" by Rakel P. Meşulam
November 7, 2024 The "Ottoman and Turkish Ketubbot" Exhibition
November 4, 2024 TV Show Review: Nobody Wants This
November 1, 2024 The Irresistible Drunkenness of Reading Books
Chasing the wind
Although it’s way too hard to accept, after the last bits of sunny days we came to realize that the summer is almost over. Not sure how or when it ended, we found ourselves getting washed away with the autumn rain. But among us, there are some exceptional people that keep chasing the summer, wind and salty waters instead of living up to the seasonal necessities. Here, I want to introduce you a professional surfer who actually lives this exceptional life.İdil HAZAN KOHEN
October 15, 2014
He, who has won the first place in the PWA World Cup last week, is a famous surfer from Israel; Arnon Dagan. You may remember him from my previous article about the PWA World Cup, which took place in Turkey a month ago. Yet the fourth place he has won in Turkey must have deepen his ambition that he came back with the first cup from Germany. So, I wonder in order to attain such a success what kind of a process, a life style one needs to go through? Let’s hear the answers straight from the horse’s mouth and keep on admiring or instead stretch in our beds and enjoy the warmth. The choice is yours…
I have read that you started surfing with your brother when you are 14. Now you are 37 (Though it’s hard to believe) and still surfing… Could you please tell us a bit about how your life and career shaped around this sport?
I was always fascinated by sports. When I was young and still today, sport and music are my biggest passions. I tried and enjoyed many types of sports when I was young, but one day my older brother showed up with a windsurfing board.
The minute we stepped on we knew that this is by far the best thing in the world. We both developed our skills and realized the possibilities of this sport are endless. All the other sports were still great but nothing like this! Windsurfing has a huge verity - you can go in big storms and waves, you can go very fast, you can invent new moves, you feel very free and it is opening my mind. That moment I’ve decided that I want to perceive it as a life style and become professional.
It was a very long and hard journey with many ups and downs. It was not a normal thing to be doing in Israel, but my passion and love for it was unstoppable. Nothing could stop me for living my dream. This passion is burning stronger then ever today at age 37.
I am pretty sure that a passion that burns for 23 years must have positive and negative consequences, especially on your body. Did you have any severe injuries?
A person who devotes his whole life into the sports, especially to one that competes against the nature all the time, surely have injuries. I have had many as well but I was lucky enough not to have anything serious.
You are really tall; 1.94 cm (Thank God we are not doing this interview standing side by side). Does it bring you advantages or disadvantages in surfing?
In the racing discipline to be tall is a big advantage. The height is creating lift and power. In strong winds the height can create too much lift so it is hard to control the board and sail, but if you are heavy enough you are able to control it and go even faster. Knowing that, I pay attention to keep the necessary balance between these two so I don’t really have many disadvantages.
How about age? Usually in many sports age matters a lot. For example in tennis, the young and the new successors always challenge the elders. How about in surfing?
In windsurfing the experience counts a lot. You have to know about how to tune your equipment to different locations and water conditions. You need to have racing experience and a lot of knowledge. Physically the racing windsurfers are big and heavy and this comes better when you are a grown men and a little bit older. The cardio is also important but not like in tennis.
Chasing all these competitions, I am pretty sure that you get to see many places, many countries around the world. Among these, which is your favorite place to surf? Are there nice places in Israel to surf?
I love windsurfing in Maui Hawaii, South Africa. I visited Chile and Australia, they were amazing for windsurfing.
Israel is an amazing place to windsurf! We have the Mediterranean Sea, the Lake of Galilee and at the south, Red See in Eilat. All have perfectly good winds.
I windsurf mostly in Bat Galim-Haifa, my hometown. This place can produce fantastic conditions wind and waves and it is one of my favorite beaches in the whole world.
You are the only yet the best surfer I usually hear competing for Israel. Do you have any successors?
Israel has a very proud history in windsurfing. In fact the only gold medal Israel has ever won in the Olympics in any sports was in windsurfing. There are many great windsurfers in Israel but I believe I am the most consistent and the successful one in the PWA World Tour.
As an outsider, a surfer’s life looks so cool and free but I would like to take some insider’s comments on this. Could you please describe us your life a bit? I believe you must be travelling a lot… Do you ever plan to settle down?
Windsurfing is cool and free so what you see is very true. I get to travel a lot and see the world and this is amazing. However, this is also a job and needs hard work. It has the plus and minus like everything else in life.
Traveling with a lot of equipment is the hardest part. It is a punishment to show up to the airport with 400kg of gear.
Relationships are hard and you don’t get to see your family often, but I plan to settle down in few years.
You were here in Turkey a while ago for the PWA World Cup. Do you like Turkey? Do you feel uncomfortable coming here after all the tension between Turkey and Israel continued the whole year?
I have come to Turkey since 2005 many times. I love the people and especially the food. This year I had to take into consideration the tension and the political situation before I came.
I have so many friends in Turkey and I’m always open for desiccations with any type of people and type of religion. I always find the way to respect and agree in the end with everyone. Tension is many times between governments and not between people. So I have decided to come and I’m very happy that I did. I look forward to come again.
How about the competition with your rivals? Is there too much ambition or is it based more on fun and friendship.
This relationship is actually very nice in the windsurfing world. We are like a big family helping each other and traveling together all around the world.
During the competition, we fight like lions and sometimes yell and get angry at each other, but once the competition is over, sooner or later this hassle ends up too with a friendly handshake and we move on.
You have to keep a good relationship with your competitors as you are going to see them all year and you want to keep a good vibe and friendship.
As far as I know NeilPryde is your sponsor. Could you please tell us a bit about your relationship with NeilPryde?
Apart from competition carrier I have the ability to develop equipment. I work for NeilPryde as a head tester and developer for the racing sails. The windsurfing race sail uses a very advance and high tech material. We use carbon components and the sail is very dynamic and acts like an airplane wing. Testing new gears and materials is very interesting for me and I love doing it.
I have noticed that you have won many prizes, trophies, medals… Could you please tell us the most memorable ones?
Winning the Storm Rider event, which takes place in Israel, has always been an amazing experience. The Storm Rider is jumping and wave-riding competition where we wait for the biggest storm of the year, strongest winds and biggest waves. When the day finally arrives, we go out there and fight against the nature. To win this a few times was awesome! On the international level I was 2nd and 3rd in world championships and this was very special as I always came alone as the only Israeli competitor with no team and no couches, so it was a great achievement for me.
Just recently I won the biggest contest in the windsurfing world –PWA Super Grand Slam Sylt in Germany. This is the biggest achievement of my carrier as this event is like the Wimbledon of Tennis. On top of all, to hear the Hatikva (Israel’s national anthem) in Germany in front of thousands of Germans, was a very special and emotional moment for me.
Devoting all your life into this sport, what are your future plans?
I’m part owner of a surfing company – BG Surfing. I also couch one of the best Olympic windsurfers in Israel. I’m working with two of the best international windsurfing companies to develop gear. So there are a lot of options. Maybe I’ll even become a musician who knows. The possibilities are endless.
Sitting in front of my computer and writing about Arnon Dagan, I felt a bit lazy, empty and even lame but witnessing such a successful life that is courageous enough to live it up to his dreams and able to keep his passion burning, is always inspiring. Not all of us may be able to chase the wind, waves and storms but I am pretty sure that we all have different dreams that we wish to chase…
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