Tim Elter competes for Germany at Paris 2024 Olympics; breaks stereotypes with German flag in draws

A blend of passion and “cold blood”: Tim Elter relishes breaking stereotypes as a German surfer

Raised in Spain to German parents, the Paris 2024 Olympian brings a unique mix of cultures into his surfing and a fearless mentality that makes him one of the most exciting surfers to follow in and out of competition.

Tim Elter loves breaking stereotypes. And he is good at it, too.

A Canary Islands-born surfer competing under the flag of mostly land-locked Germany who towers above the rest at an imposing height of 1.92 metres (6 ft 4 in) and dedicates his free time to hobbies that intentionally have no competitive aspect to them, Elter seems to go against the grain at every competition he enters.

“I do introduce myself very often as someone from the Canaries, but then if people ask more, I’m like, ‘Hey, look, my parents are Germans. I represent Germany’. And then they do get sort of confused,” Elter told Olympics.com. “I still think there’s some competitions where I rock up and people are like, ‘What’s that German flag doing there in the draw?’ And then to break the stereotype is always really fun .”

Born and raised in Fuerteventura to German parents, Elter says he “grew up both the German and the local Spanish way”.

His Spanish upbringing is reflected in his choice of sport. Surrounded by waves and sunshine, surfing became a passion for Elter as a child. His German side, on the other hand, is reflected in his rational approach to it.

That unique mix of love and logic has driven Elter to seek out and tame the most intimidating barrels in the world, including Teahupo’o during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games .

But Elter is much more than a talented and fearless surfer. As soon as he puts away his boards, the 22-year-old undergoes a complete mind shift. The quest for medals forgotten, he finds joy in the simple pleasures of fishing , cooking and writing poetry where there is no competition at all.

Olympics.com spoke to the German surfer about his versatile talents and the power of “radical acceptance” .

From planning a casual Tahiti trip to getting an Olympic ticket to compete there: Germany’s Tim Elter on upgrading his travel itinerary

Tim Elter, the “cold-blooded” surfer and spearfisherman

Tim Elter piques interest from the moment he introduces himself. After all, one does not come across an Olympic surfer from Germany too often. But the 22-year-old athlete is much more than an unusual entry at surfing competitions. Fearless in his strategy and relentless in his pursuit of adventure, Elter is heralding a new, bold era in European surfing.

Tim Elter: A character forged on “waves of consequence”

As a native canario , water pursuits such as surfing and fishing are a part of Elter’s earliest memories.

He followed his father, also an avid surfer, into the sport at age six and quickly discovered an appetite for surfing competitions. Starting off with local competitions on the Canary Islands, he later moved up to the national tour, Liga Pro .

Elter’s first trips to the German championships yielded a handful of medals, after which the young surfer was brought into the national squad to represent Germany at the World Surfing Games and other international competitions.

He has turned a few heads when he rocked up in German kit at surfing events, but Elter has never been one to do things the conventional or easy way.

Looking back, he draws parallels between this defiant streak in his character and the intimidating waves he learned to surf on.

“I loved growing up on rocks because it’s waves of consequence, reef breaks ,” Elter said of the powerful Atlantic swells around Fuerteventura. “The first times I used to go out compete, I felt really uncomfortable in beach breaks because I felt like I was getting more smoked on a four-foot day at a beach break than on a point break because I had to actually learn duck dives and stuff. And all of this led to, I think, a surfing personality which I am now, that really enjoys heavier, bigger surf, especially barrels.

“It really marked my way as an athlete.”

Even without competition as an incentive, it is those fear-inducing waves that Elter seeks out in his free time. He has gone hunting for swells in Ireland, Scotland, Africa and the South Pacific and there is no obstacle – neither distance nor cold weather – that can stop him.

“I like the cold,” Elter said of the many waves he has surfed not only wearing a helmet, but also a full wetsuit. “I actually like surf trips in cold destinations. I don’t mind it. I think it’s an extra rush, an extra X-factor being in really cold environments.”

Tim Elter grew up surfing volcanic reef breaks near Fuerteventura, Spain and says he still feels most comfortable on bigger waves.

Even injuries can’t hold Elter back for long.

He hit a reef on a bad wipeout while surfing at home in January 2025 and needed to get eight stitches on his face . The injury took him out for two weeks and, as soon as he was able to surf, he injured himself again, this time ripping his right ankle ligament in the gym.

The ankle took three months to recover, but Elter had no trepidation to get back on the waves once it did.

“As soon as I could surf again, I went for a strike mission to Scotland to surf a pretty gnarly slab,” Elter said.

“There was a swell coming and I just went straight (for it). I hadn’t surfed in two months, and I had an ankle brace. Water was freezing cold, but I had a lot of fun. And I really rejoiced in it. It was a bit of shock therapy because I swear I had had two or three sessions, that’s it, no barrels, ever since the first injury. And I got back to it and I was stoked.”

Could Elter have chosen a softer reintroduction to surfing after his back-to-back injuries? Definitely. But then, he says, he would not have been true to his character.

“I have these two things as an athlete: I want to compete on the top level and I want to get swells when I have the time for it. And you got to push out of the comfort zone ,” Elter said. “And we were looking at the forecast for almost a year and it never happened, never happened. And then just as I got back from the injury, the swell was coming. And we were like, ‘OK, we have to go! We have to go’.”

Tim Elter celebrates obtaining Germany an Olympic quota for Paris 2024 after his heat at the 2024 ISA World Surfing Games.

Tim Elter and the power of “radical acceptance”

Tim Elter’s fearless streak mixes in with another mental approach that gives him an edge in surfing competitions, something the athlete calls “radical acceptance”.

While he uses visualisation to prepare for his heats and anticipate possible problems, given the unpredictable nature of surfing, Elter also knows that many things remain outside his control.

And then the best solution is to simply accept the outcome.

“When you’re in the moment of competing in the heat, I think it’s about radical acceptance,” Elter said. “It’s a mix of confidence and belief and just accepting failure .”

Accepting any outcome with calmness is a skill that did not come naturally to Elter. Starting out in the sport, whenever he had to face top athletes in his heats, he would get so intimidated that he would sometimes choose not to surf at all.

“I used to freak way more when I was a kid. I used to freak out in heats. I would have, let’s say, a major regional name, and I would already lose it,” Elter said. “So I definitely had to actively work on not looking too much at other people , but more on myself and what I can control. But I think there’s a bit of cold blood in German DNA that comes with (it).

“In competitive surfing it’s everything because it’s all about taking the right choices in the right moment and just converting opportunities.”

Whereas in the past Elter would study his opponents intensely, looking up videos of their heats on YouTube or Instagram, he discovered that the more he knew about them, the more intimidated he got. Now he does not research them at all, sometimes to the point that he does not know which surfers will paddle out into the lineup with him.

“Everyone has this one little thing where you’re actually also scared of your opponents,” Elter said. “But I think it’s just the radical acceptance of proving what you’ve got and not being scared to lose .”

Win or lose, Tim Elter said he has learned how to accept all outcomes in surfing with a calm mind and that has made him a stronger athlete.

Fishes and sonnets: Tim Elter’s diverse hobbies outside of surfing

Tim Elter’s calm approach to the outcomes of surfing competitions is reflected in his meditative hobbies as well. The surfer is passionate about spearfishing , and occasionally also writes poetry .

Elter got into spearfishing to join his friends on strike missions in the Canaries and quickly fell in love with the process.

“I feel like you’re almost more connected to nature than surfing because it’s nothing but you,” he explained. “In the water, you can get screwed over by other people or by falling on waves, not getting enough waves, not meeting your own expectations. But with fishing, you dive down, you’re in the deep blue, and when a fish comes, you shoot. And if you get it, well, you’re happy. If you (don’t), then try again.”

There are no medals in spearfishing, but the side perks are arguably just as good: being able to provide food for his family and friends. Elter sometimes helps host massive barbecues and at other times cooks smaller portions of his signature dish – barracuda filets baked with sweet potato, carrots, onions, and garlic.

While spearfishing and surfing have Elter constantly on the move, he also has a hobby that does not require any travel at all. For the last four years the Olympic surfer has kept a little book where he writes poems in different languages.

He is native in German and Spanish, fluent in English and French, and understands some Portuguese.

“I would be bored sitting in my room and all of a sudden I have a couple lines in my brain and I just felt like writing it down and turning it into poems,” Elter said. “They are sometimes about a mental approach and about love as well.

“Just for fun. I normally don’t share them either.”

Is it no coincidence that these pastimes have no competitive aspect to them. That is exactly why Elter – an athlete who has learned to accept all outcomes with grace – chose them.

“Absolutely not," Elter said about whether he competes through his hobbies. “That’s why I love it.”

Picture by Sean M. Haffey