Occy: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Mark Occhilupo

Mark Occhilupo & Tim Baker

ISBN 10: 1741666430 / ISBN 13: 9781741666434

Published by Ebury Press, Australia, 2008

About this Item

' Kelly Slater, eight-time world champi on Child star at sixteen, ranked third in the world at seventeen, winner of the Pipeline Masters at nineteen - Mark Occhilupo looked set to sweep all before him with a radical, spontaneous, irresistible brand of surfing. Yet a spiralling descent into drug abuse and depression snuffed his flame out p rematurely when he quit the pro tour at just twenty-two. Faltered comebacks , spectacular bursts of free-surfing and manic breakdowns followed, as the surfing world watched a freakish talent self-combust. After years spent imm obile and overweight on the couch, in his so-called 'Elvis period', Occy ev entually emerged from his cocoon, reborn and ready to tackle a whole new ge neration of surf stars. His celebrated comeback to win the world title in 1 999, sixteen years after his career began, is a sporting fairytale without equal. Now for the first time, in his own words, Occy tells the complete, r emarkable story of his spectacular rise, terrifying fall and miraculous reb irth. 'By going down so hard, by fully falling apart, he was able to give h imself longevity. It's like the Buddhist teachings about birth and death - something has to die for new birth to happen, and that happens inside us to o. Occy was the ultimate example of that.' Tom Carroll. 'I think it's one o f the great sports stories of all time.'.

Seller Inventory # 006305

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Occy: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Mark Occhilupo
• Publisher: Ebury Press, Australia
• Publication Date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1741666430
• ISBN 13: 9781741666434
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: Very Good
• Seller catalogs:
  • Sport, Games and Martial Arts
  • Biography
  • Sport and Games

About this title

Synopsis

Child star at 16, ranked third in the world at 17, Mark Occhilupo looked set to sweep all before him with a radical, spontaneous, irresistible brand of surfing. Yet a spiraling descent into drug abuse and depression snuffed his flame out prematurely when he quit the pro tour at just 22. Faltered comebacks, spectacular bursts of free-surfing, and manic breakdowns followed as the surfing world watched a freakish talent self-combust. After years spent immobile and overweight on the couch, Occy eventually emerged from his cocoon, reborn and ready to tackle a whole new generation of surf stars. His celebrated comeback to win the world title in 1999 is a sporting fairy tale without equal. In this no-holds-barred account, Occy tells the complete, remarkable story of his spectacular rise, terrifying fall, and miraculous rebirth.

About the Author

Tim Baker has contributed to GQ, Playboy, and Rolling Stone, and is the author of Go Surf and the coauthor of Bustin' Down the Door.