Kolohe Andino on working through an ankle injury while preparing for the Olympics

Kolohe Andino is preparing for the upcoming Summer Olympics in Tokyo while rehabbing his ankle injury. 

The 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo are quickly approaching and although still in danger of being canceled, athletes are getting ready. This year is special for surf athletes around the world as the sport will be making its debut at the games. The United States is only sending four surfing athletes, two men, and two women. Among those who earned a spot on the U.S team in Kolohe Andino. FanSided caught up with Andino as he gets ready for his first trip to the Olympics and how he feels about making the team.

“I don’t think it’s really sunk in, watching all the Olympic commercials and everyone it’s kind of strange to think of myself as like a parallel to a Michael Phelps or Simone Biles or something,” Andino explained. “So, it’s been kind of weird, because I just look at myself as a normal dude who surfs. But yeah, I think it’ll really sink in once you’re at the parade and doing all the Olympic stuff. So, yeah, I’m excited.”

Andino recently suffered an ankle injury that forced him out of the World Surf League Championship Tour. He has been spending his time rehabbing in order to be ready for July when the Tokyo games are set to begin. Being injured so close to such a big competition can get hard, but Andino is working hard to make his way back to top shape.

“I was in Hawaii training pipe for the tour, and obviously pipe is one of the heaviest waves in the world,” Andino said. “So I was just in a barrel and as I was coming out, I think it just kind of collapsed me and just kind of fell down on top of my back leg as I was coming out. Originally, I didn’t think it was that bad. And then I surfed again. And I think that made it a lot worse.”

Andino is at the end of his rehab and hopes to get back in the water soon. He will be ready to compete in Tokyo and on the WSL tour when he is back. The tour, which is the main source of competition for professional surfers was canceled last year due to coronavirus, but Andino took that time to travel and start some new adventures.

“I went to Indonesia at the beginning of September, right when it opened up and that was cool,” Andino said. “I got to surf a bunch there. Then I shaped a couple of boards in my garage, which I’ve never done before so that was pretty cool. It’s kind of all things surrounding surf worlds that I do. I garden a little bit with my wife but like really wouldn’t consider gardening I just dumped stuff into a bucket really Yeah, not much.  I got a lot of stuff going on, I guess. I got a movie coming I made with my friends. It’s coming out in September so we’re going to tour around the country and show that off. It is like a little bit of a legacy project for me. So it’ll be cool to show it around the country and show kids. what surfing is really all about.”

Andino isn’t worrying too much about the unstable future of the Olympic games at this point, he is focused on getting better and being able to be his best for when and if the games are able to run this year.