Alessandro Slebir only lives an hour from California's Mavericks, one of the world's most famous big wave sites. Last December, he surfed a more than 100-foot wave, potentially earning him a Guinness World Record.

Half Moon Bay

Santa Cruz surfer Alessandro Sliber braved extreme weather conditions to surf at Mavericks, a renowned big wave site in California. On a day when only a few surfers were present, Sliber and his partner Luca Padua caught several massive waves, with one wave estimated by a surf photographer to be over 100 feet tall. If confirmed, this could set a new Guinness world record for the largest wave surfed.

Despite the attention and the possibility of a world record, Sliber emphasized that his motivation comes from his passion for surfing and the unique experiences shared with friends. He continues to balance his dedication to surfing with a full-time construction job, focusing on the thrill and camaraderie rather than records.

Surfer chases a world record at California's renowned big wave site

while most Californians retreated as waves, wind and rain pummeled the West Coast late last year, Santa Cruz surfer Alessandro Sliber was suiting up. We kind of tend to thrive in that type of stuff. Wow. And at Mavericks, one of the world's biggest surf breaks and an hour from Sliber's home is where he thrives the most. Every time Mavericks breaks, it's always got this dark, fast moving water, just lure to it. And on December 23rd, that lure was stronger than ever. There was just this atmosphere that you knew something was coming. 19 year old videographer Jack Sandler was out there with his camera. I'm out there from 56 a.m. Till six p.m. You know, sunrise to sunset. I filmed well over 130 written waves that were just so huge, like the biggest waves I've seen in my life. Conditions were ideal and only a handful of surfers were in the lineup. Local surf stars Sliber and his surfing partner, Luca Padua, each caught dozens of monster waves. It was just walls of water. It looked like stacks of tsunamis and it was nonstop for hours. But not every way was conquered and the pressure was palpable. When a surfer falls, everyone in the channel points to where they fell. And that's exactly where the driver should be driving right behind the wave where they're surfing. There was no room for error, no uncertainty. And I think those waves require that in a day like that you had to have that. And then there it was the biggest wave of the day and Sliber was in a position to surf it. What was that first moment like? I've never gone that fast on the surfboard. I could feel the water being sucked back up behind me, and it essentially felt like I was moving backwards as I was moving forwards because the speed of the water coming back up the face. But it wasn't till the end of the day did it all sink in. So when we got the photos sent to us that night, we were kind of a little bit shocked, like, oh, wow, it was really big, like definitely the biggest we had ever surfed it. A surf photographer estimated his biggest way was over 100 ft, which, if confirmed, could set a new Guinness world record. I mean, I had 1300 missed text messages, 300 missed phone calls, and I thought about throwing my phone right in the ocean. But despite the buzz, it wasn't the world record that was on his mind. Rather, when was their next chance to surf? So we knew we had to go right back out the next morning. And in fact, we surfed it that next morning with no other jet skis around. Surfing giant waves is Sliber's calling, despite a long list of reasons to stay away. The water's cold, the waves are huge, and when you wipe out, it's violent. You're gonna get injured. So why do you want to do it? It's a million dollar question. I've been obsessed with it since I was six years old. Once I saw it for the first time to I was hooked. His dad taught him to love the ocean as a young child, and by 14 he started surfing Mavericks. I've been extremely focused on one thing. Now, at 24, he designed his life around surfing while still holding down a full time construction job. And I think that always surprises people. You know, it's not the beach bungalow surfer living on the beach and just going surfing. It's work hard and work for it and prepare yourself for him. That decade of discipline was well worth it, but not in the way you would expect. I don't think I have that sense of wanting to beat that record at all in me. I just knew it was the biggest day I'd ever surf Mavericks and Luca as well. Sounds like it's really the magic of that day that you got to spend with your friend experiencing something that you guys have never experienced before. That's really the prize. That's the prize. There's nothing that will beat that. And now we're just gonna be chasing that dragon for a long time for CBS Saturday morning. Elizabeth Cook, Santa Cruz, California.

President Trump explained why he fired Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer on Friday. Government data showed fewer jobs were added to the U.S. economy last month than expected.

Washington

Global Tariffs

Trump announces new tariff rates, fires employment commissioner

Former Special Counsel Jack Smith, who ran two federal prosecutions of President Trump, is under investigation for allegedly violating a law barring federal employees from using their position to influence elections.

Jack Smith investigated for using position to influence elections

Montana authorities released a new surveillance image showing who they have identified as the suspect in a bar shooting in Anaconda. Meanwhile, nearly 2,000 miles away, police in Tennessee are searching for a quadruple homicide suspect.

Anaconda

Suspect on the run after Montana bar shooting

Los Angeles officials are praising an appeals court ruling limiting immigration stops, but the decision may only escalate a battle over transparency and control. Elise Preston has the latest information.

Los Angeles

Appeals court keeps restrictions on California ICE raids

Disturbing new video shows a severely malnourished Israeli hostage being held in what appears to be an underground tunnel. This comes as witnesses and aid workers say Israeli troops opened fire on hungry civilians at two Gaza food distribution sites.

Sderot

Middle East Conflict

Hamas propaganda shows malnourished Israeli hostage

U.S. President Donald Trump fired the U.S. commissioner of labour statistics after weak jobs numbers signaled tariffs weren’t yet leading to his promised economic boom.

Trump slams weak jobs numbers as 'rigged,' fires statistics chief

Donald Trump has ordered the repositioning of two United States nuclear submarines to “appropriate regions” relative to Russia, blaming a heated exchange with Dmitry Medvedev, Moscow’s military leader and former president.

Moscow

Trump sends nuclear submarines towards Russia

A mass shooting in Anaconda triggers community shock and concern, as witnesses share their experiences and the investigation unfolds amid rising tensions.

Community in shock following deadly shooting in Anaconda

U.S. President Donald Trump said he's ordered his administration to fire the commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, on the same day new data was released showing weak job growth in July. The Labor Department also sharply revised job growth for May and June down.

Trump orders firing of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner

U.S. President Donald Trump says he ordered two nuclear submarines to be positioned in the "appropriate regions" as a response to comments made by Russia's former president. CBS News' Charlie D'Agata reports.

Trump says nuclear submarines moved in response to Russia

Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell has been transferred to a Bryan, Texas, prison, CBS News confirms. Maxwell was previously held in Tallahassee, Florida.

Bryan

Ghislaine Maxwell transferred to Texas prison

The announcement comes as international pressure mounts on Israel over the war in Gaza and the deepening humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.

Ljubljana

Slovenia becomes first EU country to ban arms trade with Israel

The United States imposed sanctions on Palestinian Authority officials just as other nations are stressing the importance of the PA in governing Gaza in the event of an end to the devastating war in the enclave.

New York

U.S. sanctions Palestinian Authority in growing diplomatic rift

Ukraine’s Parliament has reversed a controversial law signed last week by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which would have allowed the government greater control over anti-corruption agencies. The decision comes as the country faces one of its most significant political crises since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

Kyiv

Ukraine Invasion

Ukraine parliament reverses bill on anti-corruption agencies amid crisis

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order increasing tariffs on Canadian goods that don't meet the terms of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement to 35 per cent.

Ottawa

Trump raises Canada tariff to 35%, grants extension to Mexico

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on July 31 in a bid to salvage Gaza truce talks and tackle a humanitarian crisis in the enclave, where a global hunger monitor has warned that famine is unfolding.

Jerusalem

Trump's envoy meets Netanyahu for Gaza aid, ceasefire push

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff is visiting Israel as more countries join the call to recognize a Palestinian state in September. CBS News' Robert Berger has the latest.

Trump envoy in Israel as Canada joins call on Palestinian statehood

President Donald Trump says the U.S. will charge a 15% tariff on imports from South Korea as part of a deal that eases, for now, tension with a top-10 trading partner and key Asian ally.

Trump says U.S. will set 15% tariff on South Korean imports

U.S. President Donald Trump slapped a 50% tariff on most Brazilian goods to fight what he has called a "witch hunt" against former President Jair Bolsonaro, but softened the blow by excluding sectors such as aircraft, energy and orange juice from heavier levies.

Rio de Janeiro

Trump hits Brazil with tariffs, sanctions but key sectors excluded

Widespread damage from tsunami waves after one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded appears to have been largely avoided. Experts say this event should be used to gauge disaster preparedness for a more serious situation in the future.

Okinawa

Tsunami damage less severe than feared after Russian earthquake

Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that Canada will recognize a Palestinian state later this year if the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the West Bank, meets certain conditions.

Canada to recognize Palestinian state in September if conditions met

Australia said on Wednesday (July 30) it will add YouTube to sites covered by its world-first ban on social media for teenagers, reversing an earlier decision to exempt the Alphabet-owned video-sharing site and potentially setting up a legal challenge.

Canberra

Australia expands teen social media ban to YouTube

President Donald Trump said on Wednesday (July 30) the United States will impose a 25% tariff on goods imported from India, as well as an unspecified penalty for buying Russian weapons and oil, on Aug. 1.

Trump says U.S. to hit India with 25% tariff starting August 1

Mourners flooded the streets of Birmingham to celebrate the life of rock-and-roll legend Ozzy Osbourne during his funeral procession in the United Kingdom. Mark Savage, a music reporter at the BBC, a CBS News partner, joins with more details.

Birmingham

Ozzy Osbourne fans flood Birmingham streets to mourn late music icon

U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters before departing from Scotland that Jeffrey Epstein poached workers from his Mar-a-Lago spa. Trump mentioned Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's most vocal accusers, in his latest remarks.

Trump says Epstein 'stole' young women from Mar-a-Lago spa

Owdeh Hathaleen, a 31-year‑old Palestinian activist, teacher, and filmmaker behind the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, was shot dead by an Israeli settler near the village of Umm al‑Khair in the South Hebron Hills.

Palestinian activist killed by Israeli settler in West Bank

A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula triggered tsunami waves of up to 16 feet nearby, and sparked evacuation orders in Japan, Hawaii and across the Pacific on Wednesday (July 30).

Hawaii

Tsunami reaches Hawaii after huge quake shakes Russia's Far East

The U.N. General Assembly brought high-level officials together to promote a two-state solution to the decades-old Israel-Palestinian conflict. Israel and the United States are boycotting the two-day meeting, co-chaired by the foreign ministers of France and Saudi Arabia

Israel and U.S. boycott UN Summit for two-state solution

With numerous countries facing an Aug. 1 trade agreement deadline, officials in the Trump administration say China could get an extension while negotiations continue.

Breakdown