About
BORN AND RAISED IN DURBAN, NOW LIVING IN CORNWALL, UK, IAIN HAS BECOME ONE OF THE MOST PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES IN THE BODYBOARDING WORLD.
Iain Campbell is a professional bodyboarder from Durban, on the east coast of South Africa. He started bodyboarding when he was 10 years old being introduced to the sport through lifesaving nippers. Iain began competing in 2003 at the age of 11 and has managed to achieve 2 national titles as well as over 6 national tour titles. At school Iain also played water polo and then, after university made his move to the world tour.
Iain has competed in Hawaii, South America, Australia, Europe and South Africa for a number of years where he has achieved 1 world title, 7 world tour event wins and 21 podiums since 2015. He bases himself out of Cape Town as this allows for waves throughout the year with an amazing group of doctors, sports professionals and trainers to help Iain get to his peak performance before events.
At the end of 2012, Iain completed his studies, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Social Science in Housing from the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal. Prior to this Iain was working a part time job at a bar, studying and traveling at any chance he could get.
Bodyboarding has now become an obsession and career for Iain. After winning his world title in 2017 after a run of 7 podium finishes and 2 event wins in the year, Iain set his sights on a second world title in 2018 only to come up short in 2nd to fellow South African, Jared Houston. Iain had many successes winning events like Pipeline Mike Stewart Invitational, Arica Chilean Challenge and the Itacoatiara Pro to name a few. During these two years he worked hard with biokinetics, Philip Nel, to get the most out of the bodyboard specific training and mental coaching that he could offer Iain.
Iain brings a very professional approach to his bodyboarding career, both in and out of the water. He trains with professional coaches, working on both physical and mental strategies to get his to the top of his game. Out of the water Iain has been widely respected for his approach to professionalism in both competition and content creation throughout all of his social media platforms.
In early 2018, Iain turned his skills to YouTube where he wanted to start to bring awareness to the bodyboarding scene through vlogs and tutorial videos. This has seen his gain a mass following through his YouTube channel, creating a community of bodyboarders being helped by his tutorials and enjoying his vlogs. This has been a big success and something that Iain works on weekly!
In 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Iain decided to start his own clothing and merchandise line called Boogie Everyday. The idea for the brand is to bring like minded bodyboarders together to form a sense of community around a common brand or idea of bodyboarding every day. This has turned into a passion project with Iain’s girlfriend, Rosie, helping along when she can.
Currently Iain has a number of brands supporting him through his efforts as a professional bodyboarder. He will again be looking to the world tour to compete for a chance to win a world title, all while continuing to produce quality content across his social media platform and run his own brand. Iain is determined to take on the world armed with his team of professional coaches and specialists to achieve nothing short of the best once again.
