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South Africa's Bianca Buitendag will retire from Olympic surfing competitions, she said after emerging victorious from the water following her semi-final heat in which she crushed tour top five Caroline Marks.

“This is my grand finale,” she said when asked by DUKE why she would not return to the world tour with the surfing she is showing. She was asked again if she would not compete anymore and she said she would not.

Seeded 17th at this event, she beat the 2nd, 3rd and 9th seeds to reach the grand final and guarantee herself at least Olympic silver.

Buitendag's medal is South Africa's third at Tokyo 2020.

Buitendag competed on the world tour between 2013 and 2017 and had several impressive results, being a finalist in Fiji, in Rio de Janeiro, in Lowers and on the Gold Coast.

In 2019, when she was already off the tour, she placed third at the ISA World Championships in Miyazaki and thus qualified for the Olympic Games where she will compete for the last time.