Sarah Almagro and the Banana Team go from strength to strength.Credit: SA Instagram
Marbella’s Sarah Almagro, the reigning Spanish and European ParaSurfing champion and world runner-up in the Prone 2 category, has once again proven her dominance in adaptive sports.
In June, the 25-year-old claimed the Spanish ParaSurfing Championship title at the Gran Canaria Surf Fest, achieving her best ever score of 9.67 under difficult conditions.
Representing Andalusia, Almagro credited her success to her “Banana Team”, coaches Aleb Barbosa and Nicolás Huercano, who assisted her in the water. “We beat our best score ever,” she celebrated on social media, thanking her team, event staff, volunteers, judges, fellow competitors, and Canary Islands supporters.
This national gold adds to Almagro’s growing list of trophies. In May, 2025, she made history by winning first place at the Hawaii Adaptive Surfing Championship in Waikiki’s Queens Break, making her debut in an individual international competition in the Pacific region.
Superheroic determination of Marbella’s Sarah Almagro
Almagro’s story is one of superheroic determination. In 2018, at age 18, she faced a life-threatening meningitis infection that left her in a 10-day induced coma. That coma resulted in multi-organ shock leading to the amputation of her forearms and legs, as well as 26 surgeries,17 grafts, and a kidney transplant.
Despite the near-impossible challenges, Almagro found solace and strength in adaptive surfing. She has been a surfer since the age of five and transitioned to the Prone 2 category, where athletes can surf lying on the board. Her rapid rise included a silver at the Pantin Classic, a Spanish Championship title, and a world silver medal in California just three years after being discharged from the hospital.
Beyond the waves, Almagro is a powerful advocate for social change. With over 176,000 Instagram followers (@sarah_almagro_vallejo), she has championed causes like updating Spain’s vaccination calendar to include meningitis vaccines and improving access to prosthetics. “It’s amazing to turn something negative into something positive by helping others,” she says.
A law student at the University of Málaga, Almagro balances her studies with training and delivers motivational talks to teens, promoting self-acceptance and body diversity. “This is who I am. Take it or leave it,” she declares confidently.
Sarah Almagro’s triumphs in and out of the water continue to inspire both able-bodied and disabled people the world over.
