On Monday, August 5, 2024, Tahitian Kauli Vaast won the first French Olympic surfing title and the first gold medal in Tahitian sport in Teahupo’o, beating Australian Jack Robinson in style in the final.
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Living very close to the spot and carried by the fervor of the whole Polynesiathe 22-year-old surfer took the two best waves of a very tough final to win just a few dozen minutes after the bronze won by Reunion Islander Johanne Defay.
Tahitian surfing prodigy Kauli Vaast took the lead in the series from his first wave, scored 9.50, to finally obtain a total of 17.67, against the 7.83 of Jack Robinson, who resigned himself in the final moments.
At 22, the young Tahitian with the physique of a model (1.76 m and 78 kg) still had a broad, childish smile on his angelic face when he faced the monster, called “The Jaw of Hava’e” by the Polynesians, one of the most dangerous waves in the world.
A resident for several years of the 2nd division of world surfing, the Challenger Series, Kauli Vaast has often been able to beat the best surfers of the elite circuit on this spot, like in 2022 when he reached the final of the Tahiti Pro invitational.
Fervor in Tahiti
He grew up in Mahina, in the north of Tahiti, before settling with his two windsurfing parents facing the peninsula’s wave, made famous throughout the world in the early 2000s.
His victory quickly sparked demonstrations of joy throughout Tahiti. His mother, however, did not want to see her son surf: “ When he competes in Tahiti, I do the gardening ” said Natou Vaast, relying on the shouts of the neighbors to know the results.
Kauli Vaast eliminated his friend and teammate Joan Duru in the quarter-finals, then Peruvian Alonso Correa in the semi-finals. He succeeds Brazilian Italo Ferreira as Olympic surfing champion, who won the title in 2021 in Tokyo for the sport’s first appearance.
Read alsoAll the results of these 2024 Olympic Games