The Battle for the Preservation of Teahupoo Continues Paris 2024 Does Not Seem to Be Listening to the Locals

Although 20 million people saw Matahi Drollet’s previous post, and hundreds of thousands of people shared and interacted with it, the Paris 2024 Olympic Committee is still pushing to replace the existing judging scaffolding at Teahupoo with a new, larger, fancier facility that will require the drilling of dozens of new concrete footers in the coral reef. 

@matahidrollet

Matahi and the people of Teahupoo have been protesting this expansion for the past month, peaceably arguing that the existing WSL facility is adequate for the Olympics, and that any additional development will create irreparable damage to the Teahupoo ecosystem. Despite the widespread support for this cause within the surfing and Polynesian communities, government officials, French media, and the Paris 2024 Committee are seeking to paint the protestors as violent and dangerous, and are making unsubstantiated arguments that the existing facility is unstable and dangerous.

Photo: WSL

In response, Matahi has released a second post, detailing the situation and asking for further support from the global community as the people of Teahupoo continue to peacefully fight what is beginning to feel like a losing battle.

As Matahi and his community of environmental warriors and local stakeholders assert, the spirit of surfing should always be one of respect for and preservation of the ocean and coral reefs, and no three-day event is worth destroying such an important part of our global ecosystem.

If you’d like to learn more about the issue or lend your voice to the cause, check out Matahi’s latest post here.

From previous update on Teahupoo new tower construction