/ 2026 / Sports / Extreme Sports

• Prize
  Honorable Mention
• Photographer
  Marc Lenfant, French Polynesia
• Date of Photograph
  20/06/2025
• Website
  https://www.marclenfant.com/
• Instagram
  www.instagram.com/marclenfant_images

Caught inside the power of Teahupo’o, the surfer raises his arms as if thanking the wave itself. The gesture transforms a moment of extreme sport into something more intimate: an instant of respect between the rider and the ocean. In black and white, the image emphasizes the fragile balance between control, danger and gratitude.

Marc Lenfant is a French photographer based in French Polynesia for more than twenty-five years. Trained as a geographer, he explores the relationship between people, the ocean and island territories. His work moves between documentary approach and poetic vision, focusing on gestures, traditions, landscapes and the fragile balance between human presence and nature, in Polynesia and during his travels beyond the Pacific.

Awards OPY – Ocean Photographer of the Year 2025
Finalist in the Adventure category

IPA – International Photography Awards 2025
3 Honorable Mentions

PX3 – Prix de la Photographie de Paris 2025
2 Bronze in Nature / Water; 2 Silver in Extreme Sport / Sport

TIFA – Tokyo International Foto Awards 2024
Gold in Editorial / Sport

PX3 – Prix de la Photographie de Paris 2024
Silver in Nature / Water; Bronze in Press / Sport