The President of French Polynesia, Moetai Brotherson, canceled his planned visit to Teahupoo on Saturday, December 2, where the 2024 Olympic surfing competition is to take place, and questioned the “ sustainability » of this ordeal. During technical tests on December 1, the barge planned for the installation of the new judges’ tower broke coral. Mr. Brotherson decided to cancel the tests scheduled in his presence the next day and to suspend the work which was to begin on December 4, excluding using the old wooden tower as desired by environmental defense associations. “ Today we broke some coral. Tomorrow, if we use these old devices, lives are potentially put in danger. I will not take this responsibility “, he declared on the local television channel TNTV. “ If in the end there is no solution, since we will no longer be able to reuse the old foundations or the old tower, we will have to ask ourselves the question of the sustainability of the surfing events at Teahupoo. » The director of the Tahiti site for Paris 2024, Barbara Martins-Nio, acknowledged the technical test incident: “ The associations are right, accessibility to the site is complex (…) I am confident that a technical solution exists, the challenge today is to find a communication channel that suits everyone and that takes takes into account the basic premise, namely that a new tower and new foundations are the only solution. If we don’t succeed, then we will have to collectively ask ourselves the question of what happens next. “, she said.
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