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MARK OF A CHAMPION: MARCILIO BROWNE

17/09/2021
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One of the very few windsurfers in the world to have won both a PWA wave and freestyle world champion title, Marcilio Browne is widely recognized as being one of the best windsurfers in the world right now. From our May Issue, the extremely talented, yet notably humble, the Brazilian star tells us about his winning ways.

Photos: Fish Bowl Diaries, John Carter / pwaworldtour.com 


BEST  

For me its important to know that I am doing my personal best, thats more important than trying to be the best. I definitely sleep better at night when I have that feeling that I’ve done all I can that day, rather than could’ve, should’ve, would’ve. 

I think people become their best when training is a lifestyle and something that you really enjoy, something that you don’t think about or see as work, but is just a routine you like repeating. It means to be like those athletes that can really perform at their best when it really matters, and they don’t let outside things influence the way they do their thing. Like Federer or Nadal when they have 3 match points against them, the other guy is serving and they just hit back like its the first point of the match. 

PIVOTAL 

There has been a lot of pivotal moments in my career, so its hard to pick just one. Winning the PWA wave event in Denmark in 2013 was very important because before that I don’t think I really believed I could beat the best guys.

IDOLS 

I look up a lot to tennis players, because the matches are so long and there is so much back and forth that the mental side is so important. I like watching Kai Lenny charge at Jaws, his approach over the past few years has been amazing and I also like watching guys like John John Florence and Gabriel Medina compete. 

I like watching Ricardo sail as you never know what you going to get. I also really enjoy watching Levi, and Victor is always ripping no matter what the conditions are like. Philip rips, Thomas does these really cool big wave missions around Europe, Swifty is always ripping and Polakow at Jaws or big Hookipa is always goodtheres so many good guys. 

DECISIONS 

I spent a lot of time hanging out with my son this past year, which has been so amazing, that was my best decision. My worst decision was probably to carry on sailing when I was very exhausted and kind of knew I shouldn’t be out there for so long, I ended up hurting my ankle and staying out of the water for a while. 

WISE WORDS 

My motto is do it good or don’t do it. 

 BALANCE 

I think balance is when you can enjoy the things you love without overdoing them; giving yourself rest when you need it and going for it hard when its the right time. 

MOTIVATION 

Plenty of things motivate me – just getting wet which gives that little bit of adrenaline that helps chill you out for the rest of the day, trying new gear, getting a workout in, seeing other friends sailing on the water …theres many things to get excited about.

GOALS 

My goals always change event to event. I try and ask myself what are the reasons I am doing something each time to make sure I have the right goals. I also try to not let my mind run and just focus on the task at hand, whatever that is, and keep bringing myself back to that. 

COMPETING 

I dont like being under pressure, but I like being in the heat of the moment. Those moments where you really do your best and put a good heat together and when things are all working for you feel awesome. Also the amount of adrenaline that you have in those times, its almost like you have extra strength and don’t feel as much pain when you crash. 

I have my routines and things I like to do during competition, so I always stick to those and thats why I spend some time alone during events, but I enjoy hanging out with the boys on the beach. At the end of the day I am only competing against myself to do my best, it doesn’t really matter what they do.  

I really enjoyed competing against Kauli in the past. He always kept a good vibe, sometimes we would even talk to each other while waiting for waves and no matter who won between us it was all done once the red flag went up and whoever lost would just help the other guy to keep going. I also enjoy competing against Philip in Pozo, he is the top guy over there and it really pushes me to give all I have, so I enjoy that a lot.

STRENGTHS  

I don’t know what my strengths are exactly; maybe someone else should answer that one! I think I work hard and I try my best to always be there for my family, but they would be better at answering if I actually achieve that ha ha. 

DISCONNECT 

Hanging out with my son has been the best thing; I love taking him surfing. When I am with him I fully disconnect and it makes me feel fresher when I go sailing again. I also disconnect by doing yardwork on our property, and I go road biking a lot, as well as surfing and tow-in surfing.

DREAMS 

Definitely winning my world titles were life accomplishments and childhood dreams, so I really cherish them. But yes money is also important, I have had such a great life and getting paid to windsurf has allowed me to follow my dreams for all these years and not really ever need to have a full time job. I realize how lucky I am and I definitely don’t take it for granted. Thats also why I always work hard to give back to my sponsors and to keep this going because I really love what I do. 

POWER FOODS 

In the morning I usually have eggs with avocado on toast, than around 11 I will have a smoothie or something like that before sailing. During the day if I am doing more sports I just eat bananas or something light and quick to digest, usually no meats during the day. Then at night I will have a big dinner – steak, fish, chicken, potatoes and vegetables. Generally I eat pretty simple things; I avoid processed foods as much as I can and I try to not have too much in my belly while doing sports. 

WORK OR TALENT  

Hard work or talent, its very hard to separate those two factors in success, but I think mostly for me it comes down to hard work as I feel like I sail better when I am sailing every day. Some guys like Ricardo will not sail for a couple of months, but are ripping right away when they come back. I feel like I am not like that and I have to be constantly working at it to be at a high level.

TRAINING  

I usually sail between 3 to 4 hours a day, than I train with Sarah Hauser 3 to 4 times a week after sailing. On the other days I cycle, stretch or surf, depending on how much sailing I did that week. For me sailing comes first, and than I think about the rest. If there is no wind for a couple of weeks I will go hard at the gym, but when we are sailing a lot the gym is just for maintenance, mobility and to avoid injuries. 

ROCKY MOMENT  

My Rocky moment was definitely Sylt 2019. I had this horrible flu and I felt like I could barely get out of the house I was feeling so ill. I literally went to the beach thinking I was not going to be able to make more than a heat, but I was also not going to just give it to the other guy. Somehow I made 6 or 7 heats and finished second. Luckily I had Francisco Goya and Mateus Isaac helping me, it would have been impossible without them. After those heats I started vomiting that night and the next day I had to go to hospital! 

 

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