Phyllis O’Donell
More than 60,000 spectators crowded onto Manly Beach in Sydney, Australia back in 1964 to watch surfers from all over the globe compete in the first World Championships of Surfing. When it was all over, Australians Bernard “Midget” Farrelly and Phyllis O’Donell would make surfing history as they ascended the podium to accept the trophies, and the glory, of being called the first.
In the women’s division it was the American Linda Benson who was originally favored to win but when the competitors hit the water it quickly became clear to judges and spectators alike that a combination of grace, strength and surfing aggression would propel Phyllis to the title. For her efforts she would receive $250 in prize money, several cartons of cigarettes and a surfboard which she quickly sold to fund her surfing career.
O’Donell, a native of Sydney, was born in 1937 and started surfing in the 50’s. Her early career would be heavily influenced by her mentors C.J. ”Snow” McAlister and Bob Evans. At a time when the sport of surfing itself was considered to be on the fringe, women’s surfing was even further out on that fringe. In those early days Phyllis fought hard for acceptance on the Australian breaks and earned a reputation for being tough and aggressive among the leading male and female surfers of the time.
In the early 1960’s O’Donell relocated to the Gold Coast to be closer to the action and to hone her skills. A founding member of the ASAQ (now Surfing Queensland) she would win the Queensland Women’s Open title eight times. She further cemented her position as a world class competitor by wining the 1963 Australian Women’s title, a feat she would repeat in both 1964 and 1965. After wining the 1964 World Championships she remained a fierce competitor and added a 3rd at Makaha in ‘66, a 1st at Newcastle in ‘67, a 3rd at Puerto Rico in ‘68, and a 2nd place finish at Bells Beach in ’69 to her trophy haul.
Phyllis was inducted into the Australian Surfing Hall of Fame in 1996 and today, at 73 years old, she remains totally connected to the sport through her friendship with the leading female players on the World Tour.
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With the help of Mal Sutherland we recently brought Phyllis together with Joe Larkin, the man who originally shaped the board she rode in the 1964 championship, to accurately reproduce that board for the museum. The whereabouts of her original board are currently unknown.
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