### Olympic Surfing at Teahupo’o: Day Four of Competition and Scheduling Update
Wednesday, July 31, marks day four of the 10-day Olympic surfing window at the Tahitian venue of Teahupo’o in French Polynesia. The competition has been on hold since unfavorable conditions swept in on the afternoon of Monday, July 29, delaying the women’s Round 3 competition.
The event has experienced a range of weather conditions, notably the massive waves during the men’s Round 3 on Monday morning, a session that will be remembered in surfing competition history.
Olympics.com caught up with International Surfing Association (ISA) president Fernando Aguerre at Teahupo’o, located 9,000 miles from the Paris 2024 host city. Discussing the current conditions and scheduling plans, Aguerre highlighted the nature of surfing competitions: “This is the ABC of any surfing competition — you're on standby.”
Despite the delays, Aguerre noted, “There’s an excitement you can feel when you walk around here. Even the surfers who are out of the competition are hanging out with the ones who are still in. Everyone can relax and recover, particularly after that intense Monday. There were many wipeouts; it’s not the same to wipe out anywhere in the world as it is here. When you see a surfer going over the lip and falling on the reef, we’re happy we haven’t had any major accidents. Protecting the athletes is our top priority, and then it’s the competition.”
The decision on whether to start women’s Round 3 will be made at 5:45 p.m. Tahiti time on Wednesday, July 31 (5:45 a.m. Paris time on Thursday, August 1).
Once the competition resumes, it will continue with women’s Round 3, followed by the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the bronze- and gold-medal matches.
