The coast of Portugal is home to some of the world's biggest waves - and fearless Sebastian Steudtner caught one perfectly, giving a masterclass in big wave surfing.

Gripping footage shows the daredevil dwarfed by the towering roller as he skirts along underneath it.

A crowd looks on from the the shore, in awe at his performance.

The 32-year-old looks in total control throughout the clip, shot from the Nazaré shoreline in the Silver Coast area of Portugal.



The son of a German and Austrian, Sebastian Steudtner grew up in Nuremberg in northern Bavaria, Germany.

His first taste of surfing came at nine when he took up boogie boarding on a trip to France.

In 2001, the then 16-year-old went to the Hawaiian island of Maui when he began a career as a professional wind surfer.

Daredevil Sebastian Steudtner took on the towering wave off the coast of Nazaré, Portugal

The 32-year-old looks in total control throughout the clip which shows a crowd in awe

Without a steady source of income from windsurfing Steudtner looked around for work, spending time in construction as he developed a passion for big wave surfing.

In December 15, 2004, he met a personal goal and took on the world's largest wave - the Peahi off the north coast of the island. That day waves were nearly 70 feet tall.

The next year he conquered Teahupoo, a wave situated off Tahiti and the most dangerous in the world.

The daredevil surfer is also a Laueres Sport for Good Ambassador and implements surf therapy for young people from difficult circumstances in Germany.