Tahiti brings chill vibes for surfing's second Olympics
![Surfers are hoping that the famed Teahupo'o break will turn it on for the Olympics. (AP PHOTO)](https://images.thewest.com.au/publication/C-15465967/28a3aeda5d78c2d609cccc3862d0b1559b452147-16x9-x0y0w1280h720.jpg?imwidth=810&impolicy=wan_v3)
Tahiti has welcomed the Paris Olympics in low-key fashion, with the idyllic French Polynesian island letting its natural beauty and relaxed vibe set the tone for surfing's second Games appearance.
Tahiti, some 16,000km from Paris, is hosting the surfing events for the Paris Olympics because it is home to one of the world's greatest waves and because beaches in France are typically flat at this time of year.
Visitors arriving at the airport in the capital Papeete were greeted with Olympic posters, as well as songs and ukulele music, but elsewhere the Games' presence was mostly muted.
Along the road towards the surfing venue of Teahupo'o, sandwiched between steep, forested mountains and a sparkling blue lagoon, Olympic billboards were comfortably outnumbered by stalls selling fresh fish or mangoes and other fruit.
At "The End of the Road" directly in front of the surf break, the Olympics infrastructure is more obvious, with checkpoints, parking areas and large white tents set among the colourful houses.
Still, children play on the beach and cast fishing rods, while dogs and chickens have the run of the black sand pathways and gravel laneways.
Most surfers and their support teams have arrived, some staying in the same family-run accommodations they use for the annual Tahiti Pro.
Others are billeted on a hybrid cruise ship-cum-freighter called the Aranui 5, which usually runs between the islands of French Polynesia. It is set up in the lagoon a few kilometres from Teahupo'o as a floating village for Olympians.
Practice sessions are underway, with surfers getting allotted specific times to hone their skills when everyone else is kept out of the water, unlike the usual free-for-all at world tour events.
Much talk is about the surf forecast for the waiting period, which runs from July 27 until August 5, with uncertainty around the conditions meaning competition could be wide open for those chasing Olympic glory.
Molly Picklum, Tyler Wright, Ethan Ewing and Jack Robinson comprise the star-studded Australian team.
Wright's brother Owen won bronze three years ago when surfing made its Olympic debut at the Tokyo Games.
- with AAP
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