Stephanie Gilmore still driven to succeed as she returns to Gold Coast ProTopic:Surfing8m ago8 minutes agoFri 2 May 2025 at 8:17pmEight-time WSL champion Stephanie Gilmore returns to competitive surfing at the Gold Coast Pro. (Getty Images: World Surf League/Andrew Shield)In short:Stephanie Gilmore will compete in the Gold Coast Pro after accepting a wildcard invitation.Gilmore has not competed since 2023, and the Gold Coast Pro will be a one-off event before returning full-time next year.What's next?Round one is scheduled to begin on Saturday, May 3, at Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast.abc.net.au/news/stephanie-gilmore-still-driven-gold-coast-pro-return/105245902Link copiedShareShare articleSurfing legend Stephanie Gilmore has said the competitive fires are still burning as she prepares to return to the World Surf League this weekend on the Gold Coast.Gilmore, a six-time winner of the Gold Coast Pro, returns to competitive surfing after nearly two years off.Despite having nothing left to prove, the 36-year-old told AAP the drive to compete had never gone away.Stephanie Gilmore accepts wildcard entry to the Gold Coast ProPhoto shows Stephanie Gilmore paddling into the surf at the Gold Coast, on her surf boardEight-time world champion Stephanie Gilmore will return to the World Surf League for a cameo at the Gold Coast Pro after almost two years away from competition.That is why she is making a one-off appearance in the World Surf League event at Burleigh Heads before returning full-time to the tour next year."Yes, it's still in there — if you think about it, it's one of things you actually love to do and then someone asks you 'why are you still doing it?' Like that's a ridiculous question," Gilmore said."When I'm watching from afar, deep down there's still that burning desire like 'Oh wow, I wish I was in it'."I just love competing, I love performing … to come back and feel those emotions again, the nerves and excitement is really cool."I have achieved a lot of what I wanted to achieve in my career, but the cool thing about surfing is that the ocean always changes, and there's a lot of conditions that I know I have a lot of work to do to get better at."It's just about being able to improve all the time, it's an endless evolution of myself and my surfing and to be able to challenge yourself in a world stage."ABC Sport Daily podcastABC Sport Daily is your daily sports conversation. We dive into the biggest story of the day and get you up to speed with everything else that's making headlines.Gilmore has been drawn in a tough opening heat against reigning world champion Caitlin Simmers, aged 19, and Brazilian 20-year-old Luana Silva, who reached the final at last week's competition at Bells Beach.That event was won by Isabella Nicols, who is one of six Australian women in the Gold Coast Pro field."It's a very tough heat to begin with but I'll do my best," Gilmore said."Hopefully, we can have a good battle and put on a show."I'm excited to see if I can still keep up with the young women on tour who are doing such an amazing job at the moment of just rising the level of women surfing."Jack Robinson will look for successive titles in the men's competition following his Bells Beach triumph, one of nine Australian men in the line-up.Round one is scheduled to begin on Saturday.AAPThe ABC of SPORTSports content to make you think... or allow you not to. 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