For many people the sea can be a daunting place to be, with sharks, jellyfish and who knows what else to contend with. For Brazilian surfer Maya Gabeira, though, it’s where she feels at home, as proven by the fact that she has scooped one of the highest accolades for female surfers.

That’s right, Gabeira has only gone and smashed a Guinness World Record: largest wave surfed (unlimited) – female.

The 31-year-old, who’s been a life-long surfer, rode a 68-foot wave earlier this year during the World Surf’s League in Praia do Norte in Nazaré, Portugal.

Picking up her award in Portugal on Monday 1 October, the sportswoman spoke of the challenges she’s faced in reaching her incredible career moment.

“To set the world record has been a dream of mine for many years,” Gabeira said. “But of course, after the accident in Nazaré 2013, it felt like a very distant dream.”

This incredible female surfer just smashed a world record