Surfing: How and Why: Britain's Martin Potter has rejoined the elite world of surfing

Martin Potter has surged back to prominence by finishing fifth last week in the Association of Surfing Professionals' ranking after the final contest of the year at Hawaii's notorious Banzai Pipeline. Potter, who was born in Blyth, Northumberland, raised among perfect waves in South Africa and now lives near Sydney, was in second place going into the event but failed to produce the radical manoeuvres necessary to repeat his world title-winning style of 1989. But the Briton's performances during the season, when he finished in the top five in five out of 10 contests, showed a marked improvement on his poor showing in the years following his championship. The 1993 champion is Derek Ho, the first Hawaiian to win the title.

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