An Australian surfer has broken the record for the biggest-ever paddle-in wave surfed by a woman.

Laura Enever set a Guinness World Record on 22 January when she surfed a 43.6ft (13.3m) wave at Outer Reef on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii.

The Australian called the wave “a gift” as she described the “perfect spot” she was in moments before she set a new record.

The 31-year-old said: “So many people were being taken out that day and I was kind of like just paddling around and sort of found this position in the line-up that I just felt like was kind of just a spot where if the wave came that was sort of big enough I would’ve been able to ride it.

“When that wave came I just… I was in the perfect spot. And that’s why I say it was such a gift, I was just right in the perfect spot and I turned and I had to take a few paddles.

“And I felt it pick me up and I looked down the face and I knew it was big when I was paddling into it but it wasn’t until I looked down the face and was like, it’s a long way down!”

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Enever’s accomplishment was certified by Guinness World Records on Thursday at a ceremony in Sydney.

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Paddle-in waves mean a surfer entered the currents unassisted. A tow-in wave instead is where surfers are pulled by jet-ski so they can access bigger tides.

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The title for the biggest wave ever paddled into by a woman was previously Andrea Moller’s, who rode a 42ft wave on 16 January 2016, at Peahi, also known as Jaws, in Maui, Hawaii.

The Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever surfed by a woman is held by Maya Gabeira after riding a 73.5ft wave in Nazaré, Portugal.

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