When people think of Jeremy Flores they think of France, but that’s not exactly accurate, is it?

I was born in ReunionIsland in 1988. My parents used to live on the most popular beach, where my dad had learned how to surf. I was just a baby when he took me for a dip in the sea. We started surfing waves on a bodyboard when I was about a year old and I was 3 when I started surfing on my own.

And you were pretty young when you started competing?

I was real young, probably 5 years old. We were still living on Reunion. Then we moved to Madagascar, my mom’s birthplace. My parents were running a hotel there. It was a magical time. It was just my dad and me surfing with a few of the young Malagasies we were teaching. They were living in wooden huts, sleeping on the floor, and had nothing other than their big smiles. When we went surfing, they had to bring some fish back to the village to feed the family. It opened my eyes to the harsh reality of life. These people had nothing and never complained. The Malagasy have taught me a lot and I love going back there when I can. I’m really proud about the Malagasy nationality I hold from my mom.

And from Madagascar you got sick and had to return to Reunion. That’s when you started competing again and eventually moved to France to compete in a larger pool. Now you’ve emerged as the representative for European surfing. How does that feel?

I’m proud. It’s not always easy to be the only European on the WCT, but my eighth-place finish on the tour has shown that European surfing is up to standard. The proof is there will be four of us on tour in 2008. I want to prove that Europeans are not rejects. On the other hand, I warned them all, being a European means you have to be a real warrior on the tour, because they don’t make it easy for us.

You were just a pup when you went on the WCT, do the surfers on tour view you differently now?

Oh yeah. At the start of the season, I was just a new kid on the block. When I was freesurfing I never got it easy. It was almost funny seeing the veterans look down on me. Except by the end of the season they weren’t saying “good luck kid,” they just looked at me suspiciously. I’m pretty proud about that.

There are only seven surfers ahead of you on this planet, do you see yourself in their league?

At any given time, everyone is beatable. It depends on so many details that add up: fitness, mental strength, boards, confidence, the waves. But I am in no hurry to beat them, I have so much to learn. I know I need to build up and put some muscle on if I want to play in the same league as them. It’s just a matter of time. I’ll start the 2008 season as the eighth seed. If I work out hard and the results follow, I’ll rise in the hierarchy. It’s no secret that hard work pays. Kelly won eight titles because he was dedicated 100 percent during those eight seasons. To be a world champion you have to be serious. No going out, no parties, no alcohol. You’ve got to be a warrior. Look at Mick Fanning, he came back from a serious injury, he trained like a mad man, and he won his first title last year. There’s no secret.