San Clemente, Calif. (December 17, 2018) – Joey Buran, the winningest coach in the history of USA Surfing, announced today he is retiring. USA Surfing’s elite technical coach Chris “Gally” Gallagher Stone will continue to play a leading role in the coaching efforts of Team USA’s 2020 Olympic team, which will be named in 2019. Assistant coach Brandon Phillips will act as interim junior national team coach while a search is conducted to fill Buran’s role overseeing USA Surfing’s Under 18 Junior National teams.

CEO Greg Cruse thanked Buran for his extraordinary career with USA Surfing. “USA Surfing, its staff and athletes are all stronger having had Joey as our coach,” Cruse said. 

Highlights of Buran’s career include leading the 2017 USA Surfing junior national team to a gold medal, the 2018 team to a team silver and Aloha Cup gold, and the 2018 World Surf Games team won bronze. This weekend USA Surfing’s adaptive team won the first gold medal in the history of the International Surfing Association’s World Adaptive Surfing Championship. Buran was a Pipe Master’s champion and founder of the Professional Surfing Association of America. When he was 17, he was the youngest member of the USA Surf team.

Buran announced his retirement in an e-mail to team members, citing the end of the year and commitments to family and his job as senior pastor of Orange County’s Worship Generation church as factors in his decision. Reflecting on his 20-year coaching career, Buran reminded team members that they are not only elite athletes, but team members with character to develop and dreams to pursue: “I do not now, nor have I ever considered myself a great coach, but rather a teacher of life skills that transcend sports. This is what I would hope my lasting impact will be upon all of you.”

Cruse said future team trainings and competitions will go on as scheduled. “We are fortunate to have exceptional support from the surf world and a strong program and plan to carry forward,” Cruse said. “We wish Joey all the best in his retirement, and know we’ll continue to see him on the beach supporting USA Surfing when his schedule allows.”  

Contact: becky (at) usasurfing (dot) org

USA Surfing is the National Governing Body for surfing in the United States, recognized by the International Surfing Association (ISA) and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC). USA Surfing’s mission is to promote and grow the sport of surfing and support United States athletes of all backgrounds to achieve sustained competitive excellence in Olympic, Paralympic, Pan American and Parapan American competition. USA Surfing will oversee and support America’s Olympic team as surfing makes its debut in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and surfing and stand-up paddleboarding athletes compete in the 2019 Pan American Games.

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