– I am ready to fight to keep Teahupo’o as it is. We don’t do it for ourselves, but for future generations.
Tahitian surfer Tahurai Henry described his feelings in the summer of 2023, when a British newspaper The Guardian made a report about his area of residence.
Henry’s home village, Teahupo’o, located on the island of Tahiti, with 1,500 inhabitants, will become the object of worldwide attention at the end of July. The four-day surfing competitions of the Paris Olympics are organized there.
For the Olympic organizers, the venue is ideal.
The scenery of a tropical island in the Pacific Ocean offers a unique sample window for a giant event worth billions of euros.
Teahupo’s wave has long been popular with professional surfers.
Some of them even consider the wave to be the best in the world.
When the Olympic bosses once said that they would organize Paris surfing in Teahupo’o, the local residents were excited.
Since then, the admiration of many has turned into deep concern.
More than 15,700 kilometers from Paris
Life in peaceful Teahupo’o is strongly linked to nature and the sea. A large part of the villagers spend their time fishing, diving and surfing.
In the 1960s, information about ideal surfing conditions began to spread to other parts of the world. Since then, many friends of the sport from different countries have arrived in the village.
Teahupo’o’s heavy and fast wave has offered surfers unforgettable moments, but has also taken lives. The last fatality occurred in 2000, when a local Briece Taerea was thrown into the corals by the power of the 4.5-meter wave.
The legendary reputation of the area was a decisive factor when the Paris competition organizers decided to organize the Olympic surfing more than 15,700 kilometers from the French capital.
However, a shadow has fallen over the Olympic project. Teahupo’o residents and top surfers are afraid that the big event will destroy the unique place.
One of the problems has become the judge’s tower, which is under construction.
Teahupo’o surf competitions take place approximately 400 meters from the beach, so the judges have to observe the performances from a tower in the water. Among other things, in the competitions organized by the World Surfing League WSL, a wooden tower that is dismantled after the events has been used, the foundations of which have been in the reef since the 1990s.
The Olympic organizers feel that the wooden tower is too small and unsafe for an Olympic-level competition. Instead of the old tower, a new 14-meter aluminum tower will now be built in the sea.
According to researchers, a structure costing just under five million euros is a big risk. According to the US expert group that visited the site, the construction work can destroy the fragile coral reef and the marine ecosystem.
It could also mean the death of a wave considered perfect.
– In the area the size of a tennis court, where the referee’s tower is being built, there is a lot of underwater life: coral, algae, sponges… Based on our calculations, the tower will affect the ecosystem, which is worth 1.2 million euros, a Hawaiian researcher and professional surfer Cliff Kapono says Urheilu during a video call.
– We think it is a risk that should not be taken.
Kapono was with his colleagues in Teahupo’o in November. Originally, their intention was to investigate the origin of the world-famous wave, but worried Tahitian surfers asked scientists to assess what kind of damage the aluminum tower could cause.
Kapono’s team photographed and studied the coral reef in the area, where the new tower will eventually rise. The researcher reminds that the estimate of 1.2 million only applies to a small limited area. Outside it is a coral reef worth tens of millions of euros. A reef, which the organization of the Olympics can equally damage.
– The area of the tower is its own chapter. The thousands of Olympic spectators who arrive there affect the reef in a much wider area. You can say that a risk of tens of millions of euros is being taken here.
The star surfers object
At the end of last year, the residents of Teahupo’o and the world’s top surfers rose up in resistance to stop the construction work.
The villagers organized demonstrations. The petition against the new building collected more than 250,000 signatures.
Among them were numerous star surfers, legends of the sport From Kelly Slater Olympic champion to Carissa Moore.
International Surfing Association ISA also criticizes construction intentions. It suggested that a wooden tower be used at the Olympics, or that judges watch the games from the beach with the help of drone cameras and other technology.
Construction work has continued despite everything.
The Olympic organizers have assured that they will take the concerns of the locals into account and make the arrangements as environmentally friendly as possible.
However, the damage has already been done. In December, a barge used in construction crashed several times into its coral reef and caused destruction. The work was put on hold, but in January the president of French Polynesia Moetai Brotherson announced that construction is again at a good pace.
According to Brotherson, the size and features of the new tower were changed so that it would not harm the marine ecosystem. The president said that the locals were satisfied with the modifications made.
Cliff Kapono is skeptical about the comments.
– I have heard that many locals are rather tired of fighting. The race organizers have made it clear that the new tower will be built, whether the villagers want it or not.
– Because of these games, coral has already been destroyed. Not a single researcher involved in the construction work has been able to convince us that this would not have an effect on the wave, a local environmental activist Cindy Otcenasek said recently news agency for AP.
There are other concerns related to the five ring races in Teahupo’o than the new referee’s tower.
The small village’s capacity will be strained when a giant sports event lands there in July.
Due to the limited accommodation facilities, the Olympic surfers will be staying on a large cruise ship in the open sea.
The emissions caused by the ship and the possible effects on the reef have spoken to the residents of the village.
The race organizers have reduced the amount of accommodation facilities and other infrastructure to be built in the area from the original plans, but there are still enough questions.
Local fishermen fear that drilling the coral reef could introduce algae into the water that poisons the fish.
– Every day for more than a year, excavation work in the water has continued. I don’t know why. Our water is really dirty. We can’t fish anymore, local fisherman Peva Levy told AP.
Researcher Cliff Kapono criticizes the way in which the Olympic organizers and politicians have met the residents of the village. According to the researcher, there has been a lack of transparency in the operation, and the locals have not received any guarantees that their environment will not suffer badly after the Games .
– It is the year 2024. The Olympics should bring people together better than ever before. Instead, the games are seen as a way to exploit the original inhabitants and make money at their expense, says Kapono.
According to him, it is fundamentally about a much bigger issue than the potential damages of millions of euros.
– It is sad that we have to talk about the monetary value of the ecosystem to show how important this is. For people who live in harmony with nature, the value of nature is immeasurable. They want it to remain untouched so that future generations can also enjoy it.
– That cannot be measured in money.