We sat down with Tessa Thyssen, the talented champion surfer and St Barth native, to talk all things St Barth. As part of our series on the fascinating residents of St Barth, and their tips for anyone interested in its paradise.&nbsp;

L&rsquo;OFFICIEL ST BARTH: You're a St Barth native, could you talk a bit about the island through your eyes?
TESSA THYSSEN:&nbsp; I love the &ldquo;old&rdquo; St Barths where it was more wild, more private and calm. People were relaxed, very kind and simple. I know it changed a lot but in my heart that&rsquo;s how I still see St Barths.
L&rsquo;O: The nature of St Barth is one of a kind, can you name some of your favorite surf spots on the island?
TT: I really enjoy surfing all the different spots on the island, though I'm very attached to St Jean since I was living there and surfing walking distance from my Dad&rsquo;s. I think it&rsquo;s so cool to see while surfing the planes land and take off. When I was younger I really loved surfing in Tortue and also Pointe Milou, they were challenging spots for me and I loved pushing my limits there.

L&rsquo;O: Could you talk about how you started surfing?
TT: I actually started surfing in Guadeloupe, before St Barths I was on Guadeloupe living nearby the beach at 4 years old, I was bodyboarding and my challenge was to stand up on it. When I succeeded my father told me to try surfing ! I loved it but it&rsquo;s only when I was 11-12 years old that I started to compete.
L&rsquo;O: You're a champion surfer, could you talk about the experience of doing your passion professionally? How has the environment of St Barth impacted your career?
TT: I&rsquo;m very lucky to be able to make a career out of my passion, even though there&rsquo;s no luck, it's a lot of work and sacrifices. The Caribbean is known for surfing, it&rsquo;s definitely not the most &ldquo;perfect waves&rdquo; because we do have a lot of wind that affects the waves, but it makes us better surfers with more technique in tricky conditions. It is warm all year long so we don&rsquo;t struggle with the wetsuits and cold weather unlike in other countries. St Barth actually has a lot of different waves and surf spots for how small the island is, a lot of talented surfers are from here !

L&rsquo;O: St Barth has so much to offer visitors, is there something you recommend everyone see during their time here?
TT: I know that Colombier is a &ldquo;must do&rdquo; while you are on St Barth, but I really enjoy going to the lagoon in Grand Cul de Sac and swimming around the turtles. To me it&rsquo;s a moment of discovery and reconnection with nature, I enjoy going there.
L&rsquo;O: Can you name a few of your favorite places in St Barth: restaurants, shopping and beach clubs?
TT: Since I live in St Jean, I really enjoy going to Eden Rock for breakfast, it&rsquo;s a must ! When I need to grab something healthy in between surfing I like to eat at SoCuisine. When I feel like eating something sweet I really enjoy Natural Delights IceCream in town, and I also love Kaz a Juice that offers healthy food and smoothies/juices !

L&rsquo;O: Who are your icons and role models in sport?
TT: I think the Williams sisters in tennis are true icons&nbsp; in female sport but also Simone Biles in gymnastics. In surfing I always admired Carissa Moore, Stephanie Gilmore and the French best surfer ever Johanne Defay. It&rsquo;s important to inspire the next generation, I think they did a great job by pulling women into sports at a higher level.
L&rsquo;O: You have a partnership with Vilebrequin, can you tell us about that and how it started?
TT: I love Vilebrequin, it&rsquo;s truly about how to be chic at the beach, but it&rsquo;s also a family brand where every member of the family can shop. I love the people behind the brand as well. I'm very lucky that we met and had this opportunity to have Vilebrequin as a partnership for the last 2 years. This will be my last year with them but I&rsquo;ve had great memories and feel very grateful for the support they gave me.

L&rsquo;O: Fashion and surf go hand in hand, what&rsquo;s a good after surf look? What fashion brands do you like to wear?
TT: After surfing I love to wear wide pants and a crop top or a dress, something that makes you feel good, and I cannot see myself without sunglasses! I would love to learn more about fashion brands and see which ones could fit with surfing. I think it&rsquo;s super interesting to combine both.

L&rsquo;O: Do you participate in any philanthropic activities for ocean preservation? Tell us about how you raise awareness for the environment.
TT: We should all feel concerned about protecting nature, I can see all around the world the climate changing, the oceans full of plastic and the reefs dying. It is very heart breaking and you can not even imagine it until you see it. I try my best to be an example for others and to raise awareness among people around me. We are lucky that on St Barths we are aware (even though it could be better, we can always do better) and there&rsquo;s many associations. I try to exchange and connect with them when I'm there, I think it&rsquo;s important. Lately I've been with l&rsquo;INE to check on the Eden Reef (in partnership with Eden Rock): it's a BioRock coral reef restoration initiative. I've been able to see the reef changing over the years so I'm glad to be part of taking care of our beautiful corals.

Photography by Martin Boisson @ManaMoana_Prod

My Island: Tessa Thyssen

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