Having the presence like that of an enforcer, Paul John is one of the many well respected locals from the Philippines showing that Pinoy surfers can compete against an international field. After taking out several international names and sealing his spot into the prize money level, Paul John was asked what he would do with his guaranteed minimum 600.00 USD prize? (more so, if he wins the entire event)
John Paul simply stated in a soft spoken, gentle tone... "I am happy with my performance, proud of my fellow pinoy surfers, and if I win, I would like to use the money to continue my schooling."
With so much temptation and vices where you can easily blow your hard earned prize, Paul John humbled me with his simple statement of wanting to further improve himself over any short lived pleasures.
On a small island, where the average daily salary earns barely a few hundred pesos per day, Paul John shows giant wisdom for his youth. He makes me proud to be pinoy and extremely proud that he rides under the Freesurf label and Billabong Asia.
Congrats Pare, Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!
Image ©2011 Mark Dimalanta for Billabong
