The coast of Portugal is home to some of the world’s biggest waves – and fearless Sebastian Steudtner caught one perfectly, giving a masterclass in big wave surfing.
Gripping footage shows the daredevil dwarfed by the towering roller as he skirts along underneath it.
A crowd looks on from the the shore, in awe at his performance.
The 32-year-old looks in total control throughout the clip, shot from the Nazaré shoreline in the Silver Coast area of Portugal.
The son of a German and Austrian, Sebastian Steudtner grew up in Nuremberg in northern Bavaria, Germany.
His first taste of surfing came at nine when he took up boogie boarding on a trip to France.
In 2001, the then 16-year-old went to the Hawaiian island of Maui when he began a career as a professional wind surfer.
Without a steady source of income from windsurfing Steudtner looked around for work, spending time in construction as he developed a passion for big wave surfing.
In December 15, 2004, he met a personal goal and took on the world’s largest wave – the Peahi off the north coast of the island. That day waves were nearly 70 feet tall.
The next year he conquered Teahupoo, a wave situated off Tahiti and the most dangerous in the world.
The daredevil surfer is also a Laueres Sport for Good Ambassador and implements surf therapy for young people from difficult circumstances in Germany.
