SYDNEY – Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong was less than stoked today as she turned up for a cabinet meeting sporting a sling after injuring herself surfing.
The 53-year-old took her seat next to centre-left Prime Minister Anthony Albanese with her right arm cradled in a navy support, before turning to Twitter to explain what had happened.
“Thank you to those who have expressed concern,” she said. “In short - Penny v Surfboard and Surfboard won.”
A spokesman confirmed the Malaysia-born minister had “injured her shoulder surfing last week” but did not go into detail about the slip-up in the swell.
An estimated 2.5 million Australians – about 10% of the total population – surf regularly, so it is hardly surprising that there are some boardriders in the government’s ranks.
Thank you to those who have expressed concern.
— Senator Penny Wong (@SenatorWong) July 25, 2022
In short - Penny v Surfboard and Surfboard won. pic.twitter.com/aN5LdZC6CG
Wong is not the only prominent politician to have a paddle.
Former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott and former United States presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard have been known to longboard.
Current US senator for Hawaii Brian Schatz has been seen bodysurfing a dumping shorebreak in Oahu.
But they, and Wong, have a while to go before matching Uruguay’s president Luis Lacalle Pou.
He is regularly seen shredding overhead-plus waves and getting barrelled on the country’s Atlantic coast. – AFP, July 25, 2022
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