Almost 1,600 miles from Paris, the OS surfing will be held. Holding the competitions on Tahiti, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, is a choice that has led to both anger and protests.
"Will everything be perfect? No," says Georgina Grenon, climate responsible for the Paris Games.
For the second time, surfing is included in the OS program, but this time it has not been without controversy. The reason is that the competition will be held in Teahupo'o, a community on the island of Tahiti, 15,700 kilometers from the OS city of Paris.
It takes more than 22 hours to fly there, and the location was chosen over alternatives along the French Atlantic coast, in the southwestern part of the country and in Brittany. It is not set up for a public success – but it is precisely according to plan, according to the organizer.
They are counting on most fans following the surfing competitions from home on their TV sofas – the surfing takes place so far out in the water that it is difficult to see anything from the beach.
"Doing as much as we can"
Only about 1,300 people with OS accreditation are expected to travel to Tahiti – probably fewer than if the surfing competition had been arranged along the French coast – so the climate impact should not be too great.
"We have actually made calculations, and it will have less impact on Tahiti compared to other metropolitan areas. Will everything be perfect in terms of sustainability? No, but we are working very hard to do as much as we can," says Georgina Grenon, climate responsible for the Paris Games.
Another major source of anger has been a judge's tower built in the water. The work on the new judge's tower was temporarily stopped in December, after a barge used in the work damaged coral on the site.
Collected 210,000 signatures
The damage to the coral led to local surfers and others collecting 210,000 signatures in protest. It led to the drawings being revised and the tower becoming neither as heavy nor as high as originally planned.
"I am satisfied with how the work is going after the controversy surrounding the judge's tower. All work is closely monitored by our authorities and everything is going well, we have not damaged (more) coral," said French Polynesia's President Moetai Brotherson in the spring.
It is not the first time an OS discipline is arranged on the other side of the earth from the host city. In 1956, quarantine regulations forced the equestrian sport to hold its competitions in Stockholm instead of in Melbourne, Australia.
The surfing competition in the Olympic Games takes place on July 27-30.
