Anish Vij
People are concerned by what the surfers are potentially up against at this year's Olympics.
24 women surfers will hope to make history at the Paris Olympic Games 2024 - but there appears to be a catch.
Instead of hitting the waves in France's capital - where the games are being hosted this year - the group, alongside 24 male competitors, are set to travel to Tahiti instead.
This decision was made back in 2020 by the International Olympic Committee, who said that the Paris Games surfing events would not be held in the hosting country.
Advert
They opted to move the competition to Teahupo’o, a village on the southwestern coast of the island of Tahiti in French Polynesia, and there has been a mixed reaction.
Up until recently, women hadn't competed in Teahupo’o since 2006 and that's because the waves were considered to be so heavy and dangerous.
However, after a successful Women’s Championship Tour event in Teahupo’o in 2022, it seems like it's time to give the waves another go.
Many of the surfers managed to score a perfect 10, with the WSL website referring to Brazillian-American surfer Tatiana Weston-Webb’s perfect 10 as 'the first since the women’s event’s return at the Tahiti Pro'.
Advert
And prior to the Olympic announcement, Weston-Webb told Stab that female surfers are ready to tackle some heavier waves.
“I think it would be good for this generation of female surfers to start surfing heavier waves, to continuously feel more comfortable and know that we can surf waves like this,” she said.
However, some fans are concerned about the safety of the surfers at Teahupo’o because since 2000, five surfers have died there, according to Zion Waves.
The most notable incident saw local surfer Briece Taerea being thrown onto the reef by a large wave, resulting in fatal injuries.
Advert
Taking to social media, one concerned fan wrote: "What I don't get is that France has some insane surfing spots where they hold comps on the west coast."
"Did you see they gave the surfers padded vests for practice cause of how heavy these waves are?" someone else said.
As a third person warned: "I got bowled over by an 8ft wave in Australia, it’s crazy the power of the ocean. Literally threw me around like I was in a washing machine."
Meanwhile, others think that the surfers are more than up for the task, as another commented: "Okay sorry for the reef but I would hope that the olympic surfers are a) professionals and b) damn good surfers so I don't really get the argument."
Advert
"I mean if they become Olympic surfers they MUST know how to handle those kind of waves innit?" a fifth penned.
The women's surfing competition at the Paris 2024 Olympics will start on July 27, and is scheduled to run until 5 August.