Former CT Surfer Chris Davidson Passes Away At Age 45
A radical life tragically ends outside a bar in New South Wales.
Former CT surfer Chris Davidson has passed away after an altercation at a bar in New South Wales.
“Shortly after 11 PM (Saturday 24 September 2022), emergency services were called to Sportsmans Way, South West Rocks, after reports a man had allegedly been punched to the face outside a licenced premises and fell to the ground, hitting his head on the pavement.
Officers from Mid North Coast Police District attended and located a 45-year-old man unconscious.
He was treated at the scene by NSW Ambulance paramedics before being taken to Kempsey Hospital, where he died a short time later.
A man has been charged with assault causing death.”
The victim was Chris Davidson.
Davo was an former professoinal surfer from Narrabeen. He defeated Kelly Slater twice as a wildcard in the 1996 Bells Beach event— once on a borrowed board without a leash. He also traveled the world with Tom Curren for the early years of the Rip Curl Search, and amassed a reputation as a fiery, powerful rail surfer. Davo was on the WSL CT in 2010 and 2011, and his top result was a semifinal finish at the 2010 Rip Curl Pro Portugal.
Like many other professional surfers of his era, Davidson’s life was littered with complexity. He racked up a string of drunk-driving offenses over the years, one of which included a car accident he was lucky to survive.
Life is a complicated task for any normal person, much less as a professional surfer who grew up in an era of glorified substance abuse. We have lost one of our own today.
Our hearts are with Chris’ loved ones.
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