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Odd Grimm Persson is a funny-sounding name, in our language; but in his native Swedish tongue it means ‘the tip of the arrow’. He was raised in a tiny village on the Baltic sea, where the only waves are the ones that come at night, with ferocious wind storms.

“Chasing big waves is a calling,” he tells me. “My dad, Joachim, took me to Mullaghmore when I was 16. We watched the guys towing in. I was very jealous, because all I wanted to do was to be out there.

“The next day, I paddled into 15-foot waves for the first time. I was alone. I was used to surfing alone, because that’s how it was for me in Sweden. I would surf alone in the darkness, sometimes by Dad’s car headlights. But mostly, I would surf by the lights of the nearby fishing harbour. I learned not to be scared of the sea. Instead, I learned to love the strong wind and wild waves.

“My dad is extreme. He and his friend were the