Kelly Slater

Slater, 47, holds the record for being both the youngest and oldest World Championin the men's ranks.

He won his first world title in 1992 at the age of 20 and his last was in 2011.

The Piha Pro will be the first time Slater has competed in New Zealand since 1993.

The Piha Pro is one stop on the newly-announced WSL Challenger Series which will see more than 100 surfers chasing qualifying for the elite Championship Tour in 2021.

Performing at the Billabong Pipe Masters in Hawaii, the 46-year-old was up against Brazilian Filipe Toledo in the third round, when he found himself in trouble - but miraculously pulled himself out.

Dubbed the 'the Houdini tube ride', the American got knocked off his feet by a wave, fell off his board, but somehow pulled it back underneath, bodyboarded briefly, before jumping back to his feet and exiting with arms raised in celebration.

The 11-time world champion tweeted later: "Well, that was interesting.

Father Chris White, a photographer from Perth, posted his thanks to the 11-time world surf champion on Instagram after his wife Sarah and 22-month old son Van were swamped by a huge wave as they walked along a footpath close to Rockpiles - situated in front of Ehukai Beach - renowned for its surf.