From humble origins to the Paris 2024 Olympics: all you need to know about Tahiti’s Teahupo’o wave
Known as the most iconic surf break in the world, Teahupo'o almost never made it into the limelight and now in 2024, Teahupo'o will be the location for the Paris Olympic surfing trials! Read this article for a indepth look into Tahiti's legendary wave.
The glassy swell begins to grow, surging skyward until it is 10 ft tall, its turquoise body like a wall of water, surging with pure ocean power, and then its thick, jagged, upper lip, frothing with white water, curls over itself with a roar, creating the perfect wave, otherwise known as Teahupo’o.
Teahupo’o (pronounced tear-hoo-po-oh), meaning ‘mound of heads’ – a tribute to an ancient Polynesian chief – is one of the heaviest, most powerful waves in the world. It gets its name from the quaint Tahitian village of Teahupo’o, located in the southwest corner of Tahiti Iti, that looks out onto this mystical wave break. The large swells at Teahupo’o pick up power from the depths of the ocean and can build right up until ½ a mile from shore when the ocean floor climbs dramatically to a reef shelf where the wave can rise quickly from the depths and break over the shallow reef with incredible force. More than just a phenomenon of nature however, the Teahupo’o wave is a mythical beast that draws surfers and spectators from all over the world to its awe-inspiring and fearsome embrace!
For much of history, the residents of Teahupo’o would simply watch the massive swells roll into their beachfront until one day in 1985 when local man Thierry Vernaudon and his buddies made history by paddling out to sea and surfing Teahupo’o for the first time. It wouldn’t be until over a decade later, that Teahupo’o would make its worldwide debut. In 1997 the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) decided to travel to Tahiti on its world tour, but were met with disappointing surfing conditions and a boating disaster that led to them never wanting to return. However, at the behest of the Tahitian government itself and the Tahitian Surf Federation, the ASP World Tour was convinced to return the following year when it was almost met with disaster and dismal surf conditions once again! Halfway into the tour, as the local surfers knew it would, the flat expanse of ocean turned into a hotbed of powerful, 12 ft swells, and the rest, as they say, was history. After the event, images of the great Teahupo’o wave were shown across the world, and Teahupo’o would cement its title as one of the most impressive surfing breaks on Earth. It was really the faith and enthusiasm of local Tahitians who wanted to share their hidden surfing gem with the world that gave Teahupo’o international fame, and it is still only the beginning for Tahiti’s famous surfing break!
Teahupo’o is set to make history once again as the location of the surfing competition for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. After making its debut at the Tokyo 2020 games, surfing is back for its second Olympics, and in line with Paris 2024’s goal to spread the games across France and French overseas communities, the setting of French Polynesia, 15,700 kilometres from Paris, could not be a more perfect venue. Of course, having the 2024 Olympic surf setting in Tahiti is not without its challenges.
The biggest obstacle Teahupo’o poses is its technical difficulty. Not only is the wave itself very heavy, meaning that it contains a large volume of surging ocean water, it can be incredibly steep due the dramatic height change of the ocean floor where it breaks, and on top of that, in certain parts of the hypnotic barrel wave there are only 50 centimetres between water and reef. Together, these factors make Teahupo’o difficult to drop into as well as a huge risk when wiping out! Surfing Teahupo’o has even led to fatalities within the surfing community and is certainly not a wave that surfers consider lightly. The mental fortitude needed to surf Teahupo’o alone is more than half of the battle these Olympians will have to face – needless to say, Teahupo’o will be a more than worthy opponent during the 2024 Paris/Tahiti games. Olympians have already been quoted as acknowledging the scary nature of Teahupo’o, and although many have already tested their mettle against the legendary wave, such as the Tahiti native representing France, Kauli Vaast, it will be interesting to see how any newcomers to Teahupo’o will fare! Surfing is set to be one of the most watched sporting events of the 2024 Olympics, but getting there was also no easy task either.
The town of Teahupo’o where the surfing trials will take place has little to no existing infrastructure to welcome the flood of athletes and spectators expected for the games. After much back and forth between the local government and the Olympic organising committee, it was agreed that 98% of Olympic housing would be set in the pre-existing homes of locals, many of whom will be renting out their own houses. There will also be a cruise ship anchored nearby to accommodate the athletes. However, new construction was also decided to replace the old wooden judging tower with a metal one that would be drilled directly into the reef. Despite local fears of damage to the reef, the construction went ahead and in December 2023 a construction barge razed part of the reef, causing real damage. Alongside local Tahitians, the Olympic organising committee was also duly horrified by the damage and have made steps to work closer with local groups and be more transparent about any construction. While construction can be said to be a necessary evil to set Teahupo’o up for the Olympic Games which will surely also bring a surge of economic wealth to Tahiti and Teahupo’o, what has perhaps been given less consideration among the organisation is how construction on the reef could change the nature of the Teahupo’o wave. If a part of the reef ever were to break off due to manmade or natural damages, the unique shape of Teahupo'o could be altered permanently.
Despite what fame, fortune, and change the Olympics may bring Teahupo’o and Tahiti, the culture of surfing in French Polynesia will always stay the same. The sport of surfing can be traced back to ancient Polynesia and there are even Polynesian cave paintings dating back to the 12th century that depict the sport of surfing. Surfing once was considered a sufficient trial for young Polynesian warriors to show their worth as fighters, and today, surfing is just one of the many ways that Polynesians connect with the incredible natural beauty of their homeland. The Olympics aside, Tahiti is a wonderful place to visit, and when you do, Teahupo’o will be waiting for you!
For those of you who want to observe Teahupo’o from the water, and catch some world class surfers in action while you are at it, check out this Teahupo’o wave watching excursion – one of many amazing activities to do while you are visiting Tahiti! If you are feeling particularly inspired, you can even take a look at the best surfing activities in Tahiti so that you too can get a little taste of Teahupo'o!