For Eri Tenorio, stand-up paddle boarding isn't simply a sport. It is his career, his lifestyle and a pursuit that has shaped much of the person and athlete he is today.
From growing up in Brazil and working around kayaks and paddleboards as a kid, to becoming a three-time Brazilian national SUP champion, standing on an ICF World Championship podium and recovering from spinal surgery, Eri's journey is a story about technique, discipline, resilience and continually searching for what he calls the best version of himself as an athlete.
Today, Eri lives in St. Augustine, Florida, with his wife Lisa and their young son, Caio James, close enough to the beach that water remains part of everyday life.
But his relationship with SUP started thousands of miles away.
From Brazil to Stand-Up Paddle Racing
Eri was born in Alagoas, Brazil, and moved to Rio de Janeiro as a young boy. By age 12, he was already working with kayak and paddleboard rentals.
Interestingly, SUP wasn't exactly love at first sight.
When he first saw stand-up paddleboarding at around 15, Eri thought it looked boring. Once he tried it, his opinion quickly changed.
He loved the sensation of standing just above the surface and being able to see the surrounding environment from a completely different perspective than from a kayak.
And his background was anything but conventional.
At the time, Eri was attending circus school, so naturally he began incorporating tricks into his paddling.
The real turning point came after he won his second SUP competition.
During his first year racing as an amateur, Eri won every race except his first. That success convinced him to leave the amateur category and pursue a much bigger goal: becoming the best paddler in Brazil.
His first professional national championship resulted in seventh place.
Rather than being discouraged, he saw it as a promising beginning.
Year after year, he improved.
Eventually, the goal he had set for himself became reality. Eri became Brazilian national champion in 2023 and again in 2024, going undefeated across technical, long-distance and marathon racing. He added another Brazilian title in 2025, becoming a three-time national champion.
Coming to America to Chase a Dream
SUP also brought Eri to the United States.
In 2017, he traveled from Brazil to compete in the Pacific Paddle Games, an event he describes as the "Super Bowl" of paddleboard competition.
He returned to Brazil afterward, but later that year moved back to the United States to live with his girlfriend, now his wife, and pursue his dream of becoming a professional athlete.
Competition remains one of the things he loves most about the sport.
"I love putting my body to its full potential, and I crave the feeling of breaking through what was supposed to be my limit. When my body wants to give up, my mind takes over."
Given a choice between flat-water racing and the ocean, Eri doesn't hesitate.
Ocean.
"The energy we find in ocean waters is something else."
From 17th Place to a World Championship Podium
While Eri is particularly proud of his three Brazilian national championships, one race stands out.
At the 2024 ICF SUP World Championships in Sarasota, Florida, Eri had a disastrous start.
He fell from his board and found himself in 17th position by the first mile.
Instead of accepting that the race was lost, he began working his way back.
He paddled into the front of the leading pack and produced a powerful finishing sprint to claim the bronze medal in what he describes as the most competitive race of the year.
That ability to keep fighting when circumstances are going against him would become even more important during another chapter of his athletic career.
Seven Years Paddling With a Herniated Disc
For more than seven years, Eri lived with a herniated disc.
Remarkably, he believes paddling actually helped him manage the condition for as long as he did by maintaining a strong core.
Eventually, after a month filled with traveling, driving and prolonged sitting, the disc compressed a nerve and the pain became unbearable.
After two weeks without improvement, Eri flew to Brazil for urgent spinal surgery.
The first days were extremely difficult. Constant pain made sleeping difficult, leaving him exhausted despite being unable to do much physical activity.
Mentally, however, Eri remained confident.
"I knew this was just a phase and eventually I would be able to walk and exercise again, so I was just embracing the pain and allowing time to do its part."
Back on a Paddleboard Three Weeks Later
For two weeks after surgery, his physical activity was limited to walking.
Three weeks later, he stepped onto a paddleboard and completed an easy 8-kilometer, approximately 5-mile, paddle.
He still remembers the feeling.
"It was magical. I had a feeling of belonging. Back on the ocean, back on my board, I felt that I was where I was supposed to be."
There was no fear that he wouldn't return to paddling.
After several weeks of recovery and easy sessions, Eri gradually returned to hard training. Three months after surgery, he raced the 12-mile Carolina Cup and finished second.
But while the injury didn't take competition away from him, it did change his philosophy toward training.
Before the injury, Eri believed harder was always better.
Not anymore.
"Quality for me matters more than quantity. Now I'm more focused on doing less, better."
Today, rehabilitation exercises, back extensions and maintaining his core strength are regular parts of his routine.
It's also a lesson he shares with other athletes recovering from injury:
"Never stop believing in what you can achieve. Working your mind is just as important as working your physical. Believe it and work towards your goals."
Technique First: Eri Tenorio the SUP Coach
That experience as an athlete also influences Eri's work as a SUP coach.
Ask him what comes first when learning to paddle better and his answer is clear:
Technique.
Eri believes proper paddling technique isn't simply about going faster. Good mechanics can also help paddlers manage physical demands more effectively and avoid unnecessary stress caused by poor movement patterns.
For Eri, paddlers need to understand the fundamentals, from how they hold the paddle to how they take advantage of the power phase of the stroke.
And there is one part of the stroke he thinks recreational paddlers should pay particular attention to: the catch.
"The stroke catch is one of the most important parts of paddle technique. If you are doing a good catch, digging the whole blade in the water in the beginning of your catch, this right there is getting you ahead of most recreational paddlers."
This is important even if you have absolutely no interest in racing.
Eri believes recreational paddlers have plenty to learn from competitive athletes, particularly when it comes to proper form.
"If they are paddling in good form, the paddle becomes so much more enjoyable."
Want to Start SUP Racing? Get the Fundamentals Right
For paddlers interested in making the jump from recreational SUP into racing, Eri recommends getting instruction from an experienced coach.
Learning entirely on your own can mean spending months or years reinforcing inefficient movement patterns. Once those movements become automatic, correcting them can become much harder.
His advice is simple: get guidance, develop your technique and then build from there.
Equipment matters too. Finding an appropriate race board and paddle can make a difference as a paddler progresses.
Strength, mobility and cross-training also have an important role.
"Paddling will get you in good shape for competition. But doing cross training will get you to the next level."
Still, when asked whether a new racer should prioritize technique, endurance, strength, equipment or racing strategy, his answer remains the same:
Technique first.
Redefining Success
Perhaps one of the most interesting changes following Eri's surgery wasn't physical at all.
It changed how he defines success.
"Money really isn't worth anything if one doesn't have the physical and mental capacity to enjoy life."
For him, some of life's most valuable things don't have a price tag.
"Success for me is having the time and energy to live the life you really want to live."
That doesn't mean his competitive fire has disappeared.
Far from it.
What continues to motivate Eri is finding out just how good he can become.
And there is another major goal ahead: Eri wants to become the next Brazilian to win a gold medal at the 2027 Pan American Games.
SUP as a Lifestyle
Today, SUP touches nearly every aspect of Eri's life.
"SUP for me is not only my job, but also my lifestyle. Everything I do, everywhere I go is with SUP in mind. And I love to share this stoke with people I meet along the way."
His favorite place to paddle remains close to his roots: BΓΊzios, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Given a ticket anywhere tomorrow, he'd head to Punta Roca in El Salvador to paddle the waves.
His current favorite setup is a Starboard All Star 21.5 paired with a Quickblade V-Drive, and if you ask which piece of equipment he couldn't live without, his answer is a good paddle.
And here's something many paddlers probably wouldn't guess about a three-time Brazilian SUP champion:
Before becoming a professional paddler, Eri was a circus artist.
Maybe that unusual beginning fits his story better than it initially appears.
His SUP career has involved balance, calculated risk, discipline, setbacks, performance and a willingness to keep pushing beyond what seems possible.
When asked how SUP changed his life, Eri returns to the philosophy that runs throughout his story:
"It taught me that anything we set our minds to and work for with dedication and consistency, we can achieve nearly anything."
And if today's Eri could speak to the 15-year-old boy who climbed onto a paddleboard thinking the sport looked boring?
His message would be simple:
"Never stop believing. Follow your heart and enjoy the process."
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