Mark Richards (b. 1957), surfer and surfboard shaper, began his competitive career in 1973, when he came second in the Australian Titles Open division at the age of 16. He won the Smirnoff World Pro Am, an early professional competition, in 1975. After the International Professional Surfers' Tour began in 1976, Richards competed in Japan, Hawaii and Australia while continuing to refine his boardmaking techniques with some of the world's great shapers. He designed the boards he holds 'directly responsible' for his winning World Championships in 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1982. Richards held the record for most surfing World Championships until 1997, when he was overtaken by American Kelly Slater (although Australian surfer Layne Beachley holds six women's world titles). After 1982 Richards retired from competing full-time, to resume concentration on shaping, although he competed in selected events until 1986. He is still based in Newcastle, where he has a retail surfshop and manufacturing business, dividing his time between 'mowing foam' in the workshop and surfing both locally and overseas. Richards was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985, and was the first surf champion to receive a stone on California's Huntington Beach Surfing Walk of Fame when the Walk was instigated in 1994.
