Welcome Leo Belime- ASI Trainer In Portugal

Leo Belime is an ASI Surfing Instructor, based at Sagres, Algarve, Portugal. He is also an ASI Trainer and an experienced surf judge.  At a young age he was travelling to different surfing locations, entering competitions and having fun.

The surf addiction didn’t stop and now he judges surfing competitions, delivers surfing training courses and hopes to use his studies in psychology in the surfing world. 

1. What is your background? When and why did you get involved in the surfing world?

In 2000 I tried surfing for the first time at Algarve Surf Clube, trained by Sérgio Brandão. It started out as a summer thing, but quickly became a full-year thing. Sérgio gave us his passion for surfing. He motivated us. For those of us who stayed with the “thrill” bug, he made surfing a real adventure. Fun, challenging and crazy at the same time.

We were always looking for the best waves on the coast, sometimes even driving for hours and then returning to the first beach we had seen. We used to be in a jeep full of boards on top of us, to the point where we couldn't move, walking along the sandy path towards a secret spot and sometimes catching perfect waves, sometimes not really.  We went into all kinds of seas, with all different sizes and winds, nothing stopped us from going surfing.

We skated clinging to the jeep, always being pushed to the limit. We used to go to Volcom parties to be on “mochadas” (“moche” is the act of throwing yourself at one or more people, usually at concerts or festivals).

Deep down, I feel like we lived the true rock'n'roll of surfing in all its dimension. The addiction stuck and I never stopped, nor did anyone in our group. With the surf team, we started the national competition in 2001 and the European competition from 2005 to 2010.

Sérgio took us by van to France every summer. He dedicated his life to training us. He was and still is a second father to me. Throughout my adolescence I was regional champion in my category for several consecutive years, I reached 3rd place in the national ranking of Esperanças, and got a 5th place in a competition of the national Open in 2009. While we were training, the results were the most important.

Looking back, what is really saved is the journey. And what a journey!
 

2. What are you currently doing?

Currently my main role is being a psychologist. And in parallel, I'm a judge in surf championships. I was head judge on several regional and national competitions, and judge on international WSL competitions (junior and QS).

3. When did ASI get in your way?

I discovered ASI through Sérgio Brandão, who brought it to Portugal.

4. Like to belong to Team ASI? What do you teach?

I identify myself with ASI because this is an innovative and efficient entity. It focuses on providing training based on the important aspects for future surf coaches, reducing bureaucratic complications that are not fundamental to the exercise of the profession. I currently teach the Judging Module on the Treinadores de Surfing Grau I course.

5. Tell us some funny/interesting situation that happened during a course.

Not a particular situation, but during trainings, I like to ask trainees to judge a WSL battery. It is generally a very dynamic and interesting moment and sometimes students demonstrate excellent surf analysis skills.

6. What are your plans and prospects for the future? Continuing in the Industry?

Yes, I intend to stay involved in the surfing world. At the moment, I am temporarily living in France, which is considerably reducing my practice as a judge. When I return to Portugal, I hope to return in force to the trials. Until then, I hope to continue to be there to form the future, to the best of my abilities.

About ASI

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