At first glance, 48-year-old Cass Collier is just an ordinary surfer. However, two decades earlier, he made history as the first coloured South African to win a big wave world championship. Collier broke the odds, but his journey has not been an easy one. Collier spoke to Kesia Abrahams about his journey.
*Cass Collier certainly stands out amongst the mass of tourists at Muizenberg’s Surfers’ Corner. Whether it is his tanned skin, dreadlocked hair or the wrinkles beside his eyes, his appearance depicts a man that has spent most of his life in the surf.
To someone who is unfamiliar with the surf scene in South Africa, 48-year-old Collier might look like your typical Muizenberg local, but behind the tanned skin, smiling eyes and dreadlocks, there is a story. It is about a man who was judged by the colour of his skin, that fought long and hard for the sport he loves, and who broke the odds when he changed the face of big wave surfing in South Africa. This is his story.
Cass Collier’s appearance depicts a man that has spent most of his life in the surf. PHOTO: Facebook/Cass Collier
Where it all began
Born and raised in the Cape Flats, Cassiem “Cass” Collier, spent most of his life in the water.
“I started surfing when I was very young. I was born into it because my dad was surfing,” said Collier. His father taught him how to surf at 9 Miles Beach in Strandfontein. At the time, it was one of the few coloured-only beaches in Cape Town.
“My dad used to take us to the beach where the environment wasn’t really nice. It wasn’t like [Muizenberg],” said Collier. Ahmed Collier, Cass’s father, was one of the first pioneers of non-racial surfing in South Africa.
“He was like the first ‘black’ surfer [in Cape Town],” said Collier. Collier’s father fought hard for his place in the surfing community and constantly challenged the law of racially segregated beaches.
“My dad was very political in terms of ownership; ownership of yourself and your own space,” said Collier. It was because of his father’s views that he didn’t allow the apartheid regime to prevent him from excelling in the sport that he loved. His father passed away in November of 2017 after battling a short illness.
As a child, Collier swam competitively for the South African Council of Sport. It wasn’t until he entered his pre-teens that he became more interested in surfing.
“I was a good surfer back then, but I realised that I needed to take it seriously because the white boys were taking it seriously,” said Collier.
“Because I was such a strong swimmer, I took to big waves quicker and that’s why I excelled in big waves,” said Collier.
Collier in his element. PHOTO: Facebook/Cass Collier
The road to the world championships
Collier grew up in Grassy Park, a coloured area in Cape Town. Growing up in apartheid South Africa, Collier endured a lot because of the colour of his skin.
“The coloured male had a certain connotation to it [and] at the end of the day, they painted everybody with the same brush,” said Collier about his experience of growing up as a person of colour during apartheid.
Not only was he at a disadvantage in the South African scene because of the colour of his skin, but also because of his financial circumstance.
“The best waves were in exclusive areas. Those guys lived right there, their parents were surfers as well, so they had that advantage,” said Collier. Despite his circumstances, Collier persevered until he eventually made it to the international arena.
Relatively unknown in the international big wave scene, Collier, alongside his fellow teammate, Ian Armstrong, turned heads when they took part in the 1999 Reef ISA Big Wave World Champs in Todos Santos, Mexico. Mouths dropped when these outcasts ended up winning the event.
“When we won the Big Wave title, it sent major shock waves through the industry [because] we were unknown at the time,” said Collier. The international surf scene couldn’t understand how two bearded Rastafarians from Africa could dominate at such a prestigious event.
“It is such a beautiful sport…[but] it is elitist,” said Collier. Collier’s name gained prominence after the event, as he was not only one of the first South African surfers to make it big in the international arena, but also because of his circumstances back home.
It seemed as if Collier was making a name for himself, but after winning the world champs, Collier slowly started to remove himself out of the big wave scene.
“Big waves are serious, man. It’s like life or death situations. It’s not fun anymore,” said Collier.
“When you’re surfing 20ft waves, one wrong move and you’re gone,” said Collier about the harsh reality of big wave surfing.
Collier saw the dark side of big wave surfing early on in his career.
“When I was in Tahiti [in 2000 for a competition], the day before the contest, one of my friends died,” said Collier. Collier saw his friend, an avid surfer, die at the hands of the big waves.
“It was traumatising and the next day the swell was bigger. We as surfers thought they were going to postpone, but the media craze was mad,” said Collier as he reflected on that day. Collier ended up competing in the event, before heading back home where he took part in another contest, the Big Wave Africa event.
“I came back into another extreme event and it made me realise… how much more could my body take? I had just witnessed my friend being killed in the water,” said Collier. After that incident, Collier saw the surf industry in a different light. He felt that they did not respect the surfers and because of that, he stopped surfing competitively.
“I had a young family at the time, and I realised that I couldn’t carry on,” said Collier. Despite leaving the scene, many were still moved by Collier’s story.
In 2005, the documentary Taking Back the Waves was made about Cass Collier and Ian Armstrong’s journey to winning the Big Wave World Champions as outcasts. Nicolaas Hofmeyr, the director, wanted the film to highlight Collier’s struggles as a coloured surfer in South Africa during the height of the apartheid regime.
Nic Hofmeyr’s documentary highlights Collier’s struggles as a coloured surfer during the height of apartheid in South Africa. PHOTO: Supplied/Nicolaas Hofmeyr
Diversity in surfing
As a coloured surfer during apartheid, Collier had to fight to continue with the sport that he loved. Part of his fight involved leaving home as he wasn’t allowed on certain beaches, because of the colour of his skin.
“When I started surfing [professionally], I started overseas because I grew up in apartheid,” said Collier. Most of the best surf spots in South Africa were at the white-only beaches.
Disturbed by the way people of colour were being treated, Collier resisted apartheid every day of his life and constantly fought for diversity, especially in surfing, in any way that he could.
“The diversity of surfing only came now. It was exclusively white,” said Collier. Although there have been improvements, surfing as a leisure activity and as a sport is still associated with whites in South Africa.
“Our contest scene in South Africa doesn’t cater for diversity. It’s still elitist,” said Collier. “The diversity in surfing is so beautiful, but it stops here [in Muizenberg],” said Collier. South Africa still sends out surfing teams that are majority white and it is not right, explained Collier.
The South African Para Surfing team that went to the 2020 World Para Surfing Championship in March, only had two non-white members in the team of 10.
“At the end of the day, we can’t allow it to keep happening. Someone somewhere is going to have to sacrifice and shed a tear,” said Collier.
Collier believes the lack of unity in surfing in the country is a reflection of the South African society.
“We live in South Africa where Constantia and Wynberg are two different worlds. The value of people is not the same,” said Collier.
After leaving the competition scene, Collier shifted his focus on uplifting his community.
Collier with a student fresh out of the surf. PHOTO: Supplied/Cass Collier
“When I came back in 2000, I started coaching,” said Collier. Collier now runs a surf school that operates from Muizenberg, where he teaches children from disadvantaged communities how to surf.
“I coach because I get a lot of joy out of teaching people how to surf,” said Collier.
When asked about prominence, Collier said that it is about taking care of your own community.
“Every community has good people and those good people could give back to their community,” said Collier. “I think I played my part in doing work with the kids.”
*Please note: This interview was conducted before the nationwide lockdown regulations were implemented.