Leihani Zoric Wins Australian Indigenous Surfing Titles
The 13-year-old Leihani Zoric presses her fingertips to the top of her surfboard, her heart pounding and saltwater stinging her lips as she waits for the perfect wave. 'C'mon Leihani, I know you can do this,' she whispers to herself. 'You're good enough, you can do anything in the world. I believe in you.'
She repeats her mantra to herself - paddle, stop, paddle, wait - willing her positive-self affirmation to become reality. Sometimes, when there's heaps of pressure, she talks to herself, reminding herself to push through. She does use this technique even when she's doing well in the heat. She likes to repeat it to herself to keep pushing herself to get better and better with each wave.
On Sunday, Zoric triumphed at the Australian Indigenous Surfing Titles, winning the junior girls and the open women's divisions at wind-whipped Bells Beach. This was the second consecutive time the Bryon Bay prodigy had won both titles. Zoric is a striking figure, in and out of the water. While waiting for the competition to start, the 13-year-old dons a bright pink unicorn beanie while warming-up on the sand.
As she waited for a wave, halfway through the women's final on Sunday, Zoric had not caught a wave. Then, finally, the perfect one came, and she exploded into action. She drove down the face of the wave, gathering speed before snapping off the lip, sending a curtain of spray skyward. The swell gathered height, and Zoric fed off its energy, producing impressive snaps and carve-ups, scoring eights and nines.
At just 13 years old, she's building an impressive resume. A proud Yued Yorga woman from Bundjalung Country, she has won multiple state titles and championships, including Surfing Australia's prestigious rising star award in 2025, following in world champion Molly Picklum's footsteps. Her lineage explains her natural talent - the teenager hails from a family of surfers. Her mother Kirsty is a Western Australian state champion.
When Zoric was two days old, her father and grandfather placed the tiny newborn on a surfboard at Broken Head Beach in northern NSW. Zoric laughs about the memory - the waves weren't big, so it was perfect conditions for her, and she had nothing else to do. They took her down on a little surf mat they had bought for her, and her dad was holding her, her mom was filming, and her pa was standing next to her dad - the memory still brings a smile to her face.
For Zoric, surfing feels like home - she feels a deep connection to country and her family's culture the second she steps into the ocean. Her chosen individual totem is a dolphin - known as kwelena in Noongar-Yued language. Every time she's out there, she sees dolphins, and she just feels really connected through her culture. She loves going in the water because she can really feel the connection to Mother Nature.
Zoric's commitment to pursuing her surfing dreams requires a rigorous schedule. She aims to do two to four hours of schoolwork a night, while also balancing gym training and surfing. She used to do acrobatic training and karate, and she still makes time for breath-work, stretching days, and mindfulness workshops to help with high-pressure scenarios. She's got time in her schedule to keep up with the latest television shows and movies - she loves crime movies and action-packed films, and she's still got a special place in her heart for cartoons, with Lilo and Stich and cult-classic Surfs Up one of her favorites.
'Sometimes, when there's heaps of pressure, you're not winning, there's a couple of minutes left and no waves are coming, I talk to myself,' Leihani Zoric, winner of the Australian Indigenous Surfing Titles, says.
I do use that quite a bit, even when I'm doing well in the heat, I'll still use it to keep pushing myself to get better and better each wave.
Her resilience was tested in January 2025, when she suffered a grade-three tear to the medial collateral ligament in her knee - the most serious injury of her career. It took her two months to get back in the water, but the teenager said she came back 'bigger, better, and stronger than ever'. Articulate and candid about the importance of mental strength and resilience, she speaks with the maturity of someone far older and wiser. She regularly uses positive self-affirmation before and during competitions - something she's worked on.
'I do have a mental coach, but I also feel like I've naturally taught myself to believe in myself,' Zoric says. 'I guess because I did start competing early, and I did lose quite a bit, so it taught me that I need to be a bit confident and have confidence in myself, so I can achieve my goals and perform well.' In January this year, the teenager travelled to Western Australia for a few weeks to surf at North Point Beach - a surfing hotspot renowned for its heavy-duty waves and fast-breaking barrels. While paddling out, Zoric was hit by a series of 12 to 15-foot high waves, holding her underwater.
'It was just constant,' Zoric says. 'I was just like, 'Oh my god, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die' and I swear it was like the third-last wave, and I think I blacked out.' Zoric's brain was racing - 'Oh my god, get me out of here, I'm gonna drown.' Zoric managed to get back to shore and escape the treacherous conditions. 'I was just like, 'oh my god, I'm alive' and then my mum came and said 'you're safe, you're safe'', Zoric says.