Irish big wave legend Fergal Smith has announced that he will stand as a candidate for the Green Party in Ireland’s next general election, taking place this year. Fergal, who helped put Irish big wave surfing on the map back in the early 2000’s, has since taken a step away from the limelight to focus on a community farming project he has set up in Lahinch.

Here’s what he had to say as he threw his hat into the ring:

“I am running for the Green Party, for my daughter and all Irish children. We all appreciate the major problems our children are going to have to deal with, but perhaps less apparent is that the solutions for them already exist. The next generation needs leaders who are not afraid to lead them into these changing times. My priority is the environment; without healthy soil nothing exists: trees, vegetables, grass, grazing animals and their produce.

I am a professional surfer who has returned to the land to start a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm near Lahinch, as I believe wholehearted this offers the most realistic, scalable solution to the issues surrounding rural life in Ireland. My conviction has led me to offer myself as a Green Party candidate in the 2016 General Election. Politics was never my intention, but there is a responsibility on us all to be part of the solution, and I will take every step, no matter how challenging, to implement solutions that will safeguard our children’s future.”

You can follow Fergals campaign on Facebook here and Twitter here.

Cover photo by Pujol