John John Florence Reveals He’ll ‘Go Back to Competing’ After His Two-Year World Surf League Break Under 1 Condition (Exclusive)

John John Florence. Credit: Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times via Getty NEED TO KNOW John John Florence caught up with PEOPLE amid his two-year hiatus from the World Surf League Championship Tour The four-time world championship surfer opened up about his off-grid excursion with his wife and young son, setting sail on a near year-long adventure at sea He chronicled his travels and surf exploration in his new six-episode series, Vela John John Florence is going with the flow.

The three-time world champion surfer, 33, caught up with PEOPLE about his decision to leave the World Surf League (WSL) tour to sail around the world with his wife and newborn son nearly two years ago, while opening up about his future competition plans — with the 2028 Olympics on the horizon. After winning his third WSL Championship Tour in September 2024, Florence — who's arguably one of the best, if not the best, surfers in the world — opted to forgot competition to spend more time with his wife, Lauryn Cribb, and their first child , Darwin, who was born in May 2024. John John Florence surfs.

Credit: Parallel Sea/Erik Knutson The Hawaii native has a connection to nature given his upbringing, born on O'ahu's scenic North Shore and raised by the waves. Sailing is a passion of Florence outside of surfing, and the reason for his nearly year-long, global excursion with his wife, brothers and now nearly 2-year-old son. Florence documented their off-grid travels in Vela , a new six-episode series named after his high-performance sailing catamaran.

The project is inspired by the Jacques Cousteau travel documentaries of the 1970s mixed with the surfer's innate drive to push his knowledge of the ocean to its limits. "It's just always something that I've wanted to do, but never had the time to do it," Florence tells PEOPLE exclusively of why now was the perfect time to create this series. "The competitive schedule is so busy," he adds, noting that his third title win and having his son was the push he needed.