Did you know that first surfboards could weigh up to 70kg?

Hawaiians made them by hand from whole pieces of wood. The level of innovation found in modern lightweight surfboards can be astonishing. Just take the electric surfboard alone.

The Hawaiian Islands is considered the birthplace of surfing, although it really began somewhere else — in Polynesia many centuries ago. This is where it spread to Hawaii from.

Conquering the waves on surfboards has become part of traditional rituals for Hawaiians that were initially available exclusively to the royal family members. The Hawaiians combined sports and art in a perfect balance just like the Greeks in the Olympics. The first surfing competitions were also run in Hawaii. If the king competing in the games would lose control of the wave and fall off the board he risked losing the throne.