Duke Kahanamoku won an Olympic swimming gold medal at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics and helped popularize surfing worldwide.
Born in Honolulu in 1890, Kahanamoku became one of the great freestyle swimmers of the early Olympic era. He won the 100-metre freestyle in Stockholm and later earned additional Olympic medals at several Games.
Kahanamoku also performed surfing demonstrations in places including Australia, California, and the eastern United States. These exhibitions introduced many audiences to Hawaiian wave riding and helped establish surfing beyond the Pacific islands.
He is often called the father of modern surfing, although Hawaiian surfing traditions are centuries older than his international career. His sporting fame and demonstrations made him an influential ambassador rather than the inventor of surfing.