Windsurfer Coraline Foveau is excited to be competing at Hookipa this week after suffering a severe concussion in competition almost three years ago. Courtesy photo

For Coraline “Coco” Foveau, competing at the 2026 Quatro Maui Pro this week on Maui is a major step forward in a yearslong journey to come back from a severe concussion.

More than 100 competitors from 30 countries are on Maui this week at Hookipa Beach Park for a contest that dates the birthplace of wave sailing.

Among the field is Foveau, who grew up on the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. She has been coming to Maui for five years and lives on the island with her boyfriend part time as she chases the wind and waves throughout the winter months.

Foveau suffered a severe concussion while competing in the World Cup in the Canary Islands almost three years ago. On Monday, she recalled getting hurt performing a jump into a forward loop, a dynamic aerial maneuver, in the quarterfinals. The wind was strong, and Foveau fell hard headfirst on her gear.

“I do not remember the crash, and even three hours after the crash, but apparently I sailed myself back,” she said. “I was super confused. I forgot a lot of things.”

She remembers initially not wanting to seek medical care out of fear it could keep her out of competition. “I need to compete,” she said.

However, the symptoms persisted. She suffered from frequent headaches, severe fatigue and dizziness. She was sensitive to loud noises and lights, and it was devastating to her daily life.

After some convincing, Foveau finally sought medical treatment, but that didn’t go as planned. Even though she was experiencing many lingering effects from the head injury, Foveau said her doctors kept telling her everything was OK.

“Doctors after doctors, they all told me the same thing — it was a small injury, nothing on the medical images, so you have nothing,” Foveau said. “It’s OK. It will pass.”

But she wasn’t alright.

Weeks turned into months, and Foveau was still experiencing the same symptoms. She was zapped of energy and in chronic pain. Daily tasks like cooking, going to the store or even driving felt impossible. She needed meds just to be able to move.

“For someone who is an athlete, it was really hard and strange for me to not have any energy to do things, and even having pain to do those things,” she said.

For someone who’s spent her life chasing the wind and waves, being sidelined was excruciating. It wasn’t until Foveau said she found Dr. Jean-François Chermann, a prominent neurologist in Paris who specializes in concussion management and traumatic brain injuries, that she started experiencing relief.

“Now, I’m feeling much better,” she said. “It’s been 62 days since I have had no concussion symptoms. It’s a fight I was having for three years. I couldn’t stand a normal day. Like even a half day, I couldn’t do anything. It was really hard.”

This week will be Foveau’s first contest where she feels completely healthy.

“It’s my very first competition without any symptoms, with good health and a good body, good strength, and yeah, it’s my very first comeback as myself,” she said.

And if all goes well, Foveau hopes to find herself on the podium at the end of it.

Windsurfer Coraline Foveau competes in the 2026 Quatro Maui Pro at Hookipa. Courtesy photo

Foveau said her family and loved ones were her support network and key to her recovery. She also suggests for anyone that is going through a brain injury to listen to their body and to trust it.

“Yeah, the doctors, it’s really important, but what is even more important is having people around you that doesn’t judge you and your health,” she said. “There’s a lot of daily activities that you don’t realize how important and big of a deal it is until it’s taken from you, and then you can’t go do the most basic things.”

She also said she has a newfound respect for the complex organ that can’t be replaced.

“You cannot do much without it,” she said. “I had a lot of cognitive issues, and yeah, (it’s) so important. We have to be careful about it.”