Mary Setterholm
Mary Setterholm, Hawaii 1974
* 1972 United States Surfing Champion
* 1975 WISA Women’s International Surfing Association Co-Founder
Mary grew up in Los Angeles where she learned to surf in the late ’60’s. Soon the family moved to Corona del Mar, CA. where she excelled in surfing the great waves of Newport and Huntington Beach. Mary competed in the Western Surfing Association in the 3A and 4A divisions in the early 1970’s, going on to win the 1972 US Surfing Championships.
During high school, she made sporty bathing suits for women in surfing and rode her bike with board under arm every day from CDM to Huntington Beach to train at the pier. In 1974 Mary graduated from Corona del Mar High School, where she met Shannon Aikman, travelled to Oahu to surf and talk about a professional women’s circuit with the pro surfing directors. She came back realizing there was no chance of that ever happening. She knew that there was a great need for amateur and professional women’s surfing events. Jericho Poppler joined Mary and together they launched the first meeting of the Women’s International Surfing Association WISA on March 8, 1975 (international women’s day). This inaugural meeting was held on a Saturday afternoon at Nancy Katin’s surf shop where over 40 enthusiastic women attended and voted Mary Lou Drummy in as WISA’s 1st President. WISA was launched and carried on amateur surfing contests monthly in Southern California and sic months after this meeting, the first all women’s Hang Ten Women’s International Pro Surfing Championship was held with 24 competitors in Malibu on September 20, 1975.
Mary continued to grow a family, worked as a designer for Body Glove, and landed back in Manhattan Beach. She and her daughter founded the Surf Academy surf school for women and her daughter, Marion Clark, continues the Academy to this day. Mary resides in Boston, MA., and surfs the east coast. Favorite surfing is Huntington Pier and Manhattan Beach.
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