The 22-year-old Costa Rica-based Italian ripper Angelo Bonomelli tells us a little about himself and how he’s come to spend his summer hols in Hossegor.

On the ASP website it says you live in Tuscany but say your homebreak is in Costa Rica. How’d you pull that off?
I have been living in Costa Rica since I was 8 months old. But for the last 6 years I have been living 6 months in Costa Rica and 6 around Europe for surfing, partly because I was sponsored by Volcom Europe.

Where’s your homebreak in Italy and what’s it like?
My homebreak is San Vincenzo a small town two hours north of Rome. The scene in Italy has slowed down in the last few years, but there are still a couple of good contests around.

How long have you been on the WQS circuit?
To tell you the truth I haven’t actually done more than one WQS per year. But one day I will try to do as many as I can in a year. This year I’m planning to attend the one in Lacanau and the one in Zarautz hopefully. I take part in some Alas contests too , a Latin American circuit during winter.

Are there any other Italian surfers do you hang out with?
When I am in Europe, I spend most of my time with Roberto D’Amico! He is one of the only ones doing comps around Europe, and we shoot and film together too.

We noticed you’re riding for SUPERbrand. They seem to be pretty popular in Italy right now?
Yeah, I have been riding for SuperBRAND for about 3 years now. The boards are great, super smooth and fast! I was contacted by the shaper from Portugal, Nuno Matta, who asked me if I would like to join their team. And I was super stoked to do so! In Italy they’ve become really popular the last year or so since they started importing them!

Was this the first time you’ve spent all summer in France?
For the last 6 years I’ve spent my summers going back and forward between France and Italy, mostly competing in the European Pro Juniors and training with surf coach Didier Piter. It’s been a great experience and I’ve had some promising results too.