Hawaii's first world champion, Derek Ho, died yesterday in a hospital in Oahu, several Hawaiian media outlets and people close to his family reported on social media.

According to reports, the 55-year-old Hawaiian was admitted to a hospital on the island yesterday morning after suffering a heart attack. The former Hawaiian pro posted a request for prayers for his health on Instagram but hours later his death was reported.

Stab quotes a surfer who says he had seen him getting ready to go surfing with all his characteristic energy.

At his age, the Hawaiian was riding down Pipe on giant days and was one of the most respected surfers in the queen of the wave.

In 1993, after a long wait, he became the first surfer from the islands to win the world tour, at the very beginning of the Slater era.

Ho was a goofy footer who, despite being Hawaiian, knew how to combine good surfing on giant waves but also on the small waves that the circuit presented around the world.

He was the brother of fellow respected professional Michael Ho and uncle of Coco and Mason.