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Where is surfing in the Olympics? Explaining the location of 2024 events 9,765 miles away from Paris
By Sarah Effress,
2 hours ago
Surfing is back for the second Olympics in a row. Except, the host city is landlocked and there are no surfable waves to be found on the Seine.
This year's competition isn't even being held in France at all, but on an island nearly 10,000 miles away. Though the surfers are not in Paris, they are having their own unique Olympic experience in one of the most picturesque locations in the world.
Team USA's Caroline Marks, Caitlin Simmers and Carissa Moore on the women's side and Griffin Colapinto and John John Florence on the men's side are competing for medals this year in very competitive fields. The wave they're competing on is notorious for being both terrifying and magical at the same time, only enhancing its difficulty.
Here's what you need to know about the location of this year's Olympic surfing competition.
The 2024 Olympic surfing competition is taking place in Teahupo'o, Tahiti, part of French Polynesia. Today, the island is considered a semi-autonomous territory of France, with its own governing system. It is approximately 9,765 miles away from Paris but offers one of the best waves in the world for surfing.
Teahupo'o is a village in southeastern Tahiti and is known for its big wave surfing. Its largest waves can reach around 10 meters or 33 feet, and they are extremely explosive, often with open barrels.
The beach has hosted the Pro Tahiti world championship event for over 20 years and is a mainstay on the men's World Surf League tour. As of 2022, the small fishing town had a permanent population of just under 1,500 — it will host about 1,000 more for the Olympic competition, including athletes, team personnel, media members, volunteers and more.
Where is Tahiti on a map?
Tahiti is located in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between the United States and Australia.
That's right — it's not even in the same ocean as Europe. It's in the same time zone as Hawaii but is south of the equator. It's actually closer to Tokyo, host of the 2021 Olympic Games, than it is to Paris.
The location sets a record for the furthest competition from a host city in Olympic history.
Paris is 12 hours ahead of Tahiti. This means some of the surfing competitions might actually be live at night for most U.S. viewers, rather than toward the morning and early afternoon like most events in Paris.
Where are surfers staying in Tahiti?
Athletes in Teahupo'o get the luxury of sleeping in non-cardboard beds , staying either on a 230-passenger cruise ship, in rented bungalows or in local residents' homes. For WSL competitions, locals will often host or rent out their homes to athletes while enjoying the surfing from the water, on a surfboard or kayak.
The boat, called the Aranui 5, has several amenities, including a 24-hour dining hall, an activity center, eight guest decks, a spa and a gym. The ship is located about 45 minutes from the surfing venue, and athletes take small boats back and forth from the shore to board and de-board.
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