Gold Medalist Caroline Marks Reveals the Nickname the USA Surf Team Called Themselves in Tahiti (Exclusive)

Caroline Marks’ performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics was a reflection of her team’s name.

While it can be difficult to stay calm under pressure when you’re competing on the world’s biggest stage in the sport, the 22-year-old professional surfer proved she can keep her cool in the heat against Brazil’s Tatiana Weston-Webb to win Team USA gold.

For Marks, it was a mindset not unfamiliar to her as the defending WSL Championship Tour world champion who appeared at the Summer Games this year after her debut in Tokyo 2021. That, plus the energy of her teammates that helped lead to her success on gold medal.

The US Surfing roster included Marks, John John Florence, Griffin Colapinto, Caitlin Simmers and 2020 Olympic gold medalist Carissa Moore. “We kind of called ourselves ‘The Good Vibe Tribe,'” Marks tells PEOPLE exclusively about the moniker Team USA surfers used during the Games.

“Everyone was so excited,” she recalls. “We just cruised as a team. It was a lot of fun.”

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Caroline Marks surfs during the Paris Olympics.

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The Florida resident, who now lives in San Clemente, California, tore his team’s accommodations in the Tahitian version of the Olympic Village apart from the accommodations the other Olympians had in Paris. “We had a top-notch lineup,” Marks says of their space off the Polynesian coast near Teahupo’o.

“It was pretty great. We hung out as a team, actually every day, all day,” she continues. “We would talk about our intentions for the next day every night over dinner and it felt so positive. It was really cool to be around that energy.”

For surfers, Marks notes that “it’s pretty rare to stay with other teammates for that long” since surfing is typically an individual sport — so being able to “eat with them, train with them and do everything together” was an aspect of the Olympic experience she “really tried to enjoy”.

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Caroline Marks (right) celebrates at the Paris 2024 Olympics in Tahiti.

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While the connection on land was an asset to her success at the Games, Marks says “it was really cool” that she and her teammates “all pushed each other in the water as well.” In fact, she pointed out that the socializing is just as special as the grand prize.

“Obviously I’m here for the medal and to do my best, but I just want to focus on all the details,” Marks recalls of his mindset midway through the Olympic journey. “I don’t want to be so concerned about the results that I miss everything in between, so I’ve been doing my best to stay up to date.”

Marks also relied on five-time world champion and Olympic gold medalist Moore for her expertise, after topping the podium in Tokyo. “Watching Carissa win in Tokyo was really inspiring for me,” she says of the native Hawaiian.

“We’ve been to the Olympics twice together, which I’m really proud to say – and to have her with me again… it’s pretty amazing,” Marks continues of Moore, who previously announced she would perform after returning from professional surfing. after the 2024 Olympics “It was really cool to have her energy.”

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Caroline Marks (centre) celebrates at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Tahiti.

Ed Sloane/Getty

Meanwhile, just because Marks won Olympic gold doesn’t mean there’s more pressure for the athlete. In fact, she’s in the thick of it as the 2024 WSL Championship Tour resumes on August 20 at Cloudbreak off the coast of Tavaru, Fiji.

“I’m on such a high from winning the gold and I’ve had the achievement of a lifetime, but I’m also thinking, ‘OK, I’ve got to compete and put the jersey back on in a week,'” says the reigning world champion. “I’m just going to convey the confidence of winning gold in Fiji.”

The WSL Final 5 will be determined at the Fiji event, where five men and five women will battle it out for their world titles at Lowers in San Clemente, California. The expected event will take place from September 6 to 14.

He says of Marks that he “hopes” that he will “defend his title” there.

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Source: HIS Education