Ten months before the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (OG), the question remains unanswered in Tahiti: will the surfing competitions take place on the emblematic Teahupoo wave? The installation of a new judges’ tower in the lagoon has crystallized the anger of residents, surfers and environmentalists for several months, and could find its outcome on Wednesday, November 15, with the return of experts on an alternative solution. Nevertheless, the designation of the Olympic site in 2019 constitutes a milestone in the feminization of surfing in the archipelago.
A Polynesian legend tells that a surfer from the island of Raiatea came to participate in the festival of horue (the ancestor of surfing) in Tahiti. Despite the warnings, she grabbed her board and set off on the Teahupoo wave. She took an immense wave, exclaiming: “ I am Vehiatua ite matai, the child of the winds, the one who rides on the waves of Taaroa. » The crowd, won over by the grace and temerity of the young woman, carried her in triumph. But the king, consumed by jealousy, chased Vehiatua from the island and stole his name in order to appropriate his merit. In the wake of this story, Teahupoo was for a long time the prerogative of men. But today, a 23-year-old surfer, originally from Huahine, one of the islands of the archipelago, is following in Vehiatua’s footsteps: the first Polynesian to have faced Teahupoo, Vahine Fierro will also be the first to surf the Olympic Games.
The mythical wave, deep blue and strikingly transparent, is reputed to be the most dangerous in the world. Large and thick, it can reach 10 meters high. “You row and then the ocean surrounds you with all its power. You feel like time stops. You see the boats, the mountains, the river… It’s both magical and scary”relates the French surfer, 4e of the 2023 World Games.
Beneath the surface, a coral reef sharp like crushed glass emerges. “If you fall, the power of the wave crushes you. You become a puppet, and the risk is to hit the reef and seriously injure yourself”notes Tahitian surfer Kauli Vaast, 21, also qualified for the Olympic high mass.
“Facing the same challenges as men”
Legends aren’t the only ones to have slowed women down on the wave. The Billabong Pro Tahiti, which appeared on the professional women’s circuit in the early 2000s, was canceled in 2006 by the organizers, who considered Teahupoo too dangerous for women – without having consulted those interested.
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