The Olympics in Paris were supposed to be the most sustainable games of all time. But the hosting of one discipline in particular has caused discussions in recent months.
The venue for the surfing discipline this year is controversial. The surfing will take place in Teahupo’o on Tahiti, 15,700 kilometers away. Locals and environmental groups in particular have ecological concerns.
The construction of a new jury tower has sparked strong protests
When they started planning, the organizers intended to house the jury and television cameras on a new aluminum tower that would protrude from the ocean. This plan sparked strong protests in Tahiti. Locals and environmental groups feared negative effects on corals and other marine life. Tahitian surfer Matahi Drollet is one of the most vocal opponents. His protest videos on Instagram have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
There is already an observation tower in Teahupo’o that is regularly used for the WSL, but Paris 2024 organizers argued that the foundations of the original tower did not meet current Olympic safety requirements due to natural wear and corrosion of the structure. The option of accommodating the judges on the shore or on a boat would not provide them with sufficient visibility or allow for adequate television coverage, Olympic organizers add.
The protesters claimed that large parts of the reef would have to be cleared to make way for drilling. The new construction would destroy a large part of the reef, with catastrophic effects on coral and wildlife that will only become apparent in the coming years, according to environmental groups in Tahiti.
Paris 2024 organizers said in a press release: “Protecting the natural environment in Teahupo’o has always been a priority in the design of all planned solutions for the site. All development plans in Teahupo’o have been studied to minimize environmental impacts.”
The size of the new Jury Tower has since been scaled down in response to protests from locals to minimize the need for new construction, but concerns remain. Environmentalists and local fishermenfear that drilling into the coral reef will damage the algae Ciguatera which infects fish and makes people sick when eaten, as many locals rely on what they catch in the sea for their food.
Contradiction to the Olympic slogan
In December, local fears were confirmed when a barge en route to the reef construction site destroyed parts of the coral reef. A video of the damage went viral on social media, sparking outrage.
Titouan Bernicot, founder and CEO of Coral Gardeners – a project that plants corals in French Polynesia – said in an interview in 2023: “What are we going to say to the next generation, that for three days of competition we could have destroyed one of the most important ecosystems on our planet?” Bernicot said the plans contradicted the Paris 2024 pledge, which states on its website to “put sustainability at the heart of their project and inspire new standards”.
A venue in the spirit of sport?
The athletes seem to like the venue and are staying on a cruise ship during the games. Surfer Camilla Kemp, who is competing for Germany, shared a video of her arrival at the accommodation on the social media platform Tiktok and captioned the video with the words “I think the surfers have already won the Olympics.” The cruise ship that accommodates most of the participants is equipped with luxury for the athletes.
In addition, the “Teahupo’o” wave is considered one of the biggest, strongest and most dangerous waves in the world. A challenge that surfers are happy to take on.
Four locations on the French Atlantic coast competed with the overseas territory of Tahiti for the rights to host the Olympic Surfing Games. The Olympic Committee chose the French overseas territory as the host location. France justified this decision by saying, among other things, that the majority of participants come from Oceania or North America and therefore have a shorter journey.
Tahiti is intended to bring the French overseas territories closer together
The Olympic Committee says they want to spread the Games across France. “It offers an opportunity to involve the French overseas territories and their communities in the Olympic Games for the first time in history, while showcasing France’s rich and diverse heritage,” they say.
The committee also pointed to the broad support of the surfing community. While most people in Germany have probably never heard of Teahupo’o, the village is well known among surfers. World Surf League (WSL) competitions are held there regularly.
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Source: Stern
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