The athletes’ experience is shaping up to be very special for the surfing events of the Paris 2024 Games, contested on the Teahupo’o wave in Tahiti, French Polynesia. AFP reports that competitors won’t be staying in hotels or an athletes’ village, but on a cruise ship, the Aranui (pictured above), stationed in Vairo Bay. Nahema Temarii, Tahiti’s Minister of Youth and Sports, explained that this mixed cargo ship, which specializes in cruises and the transport of sea freight to the Marquesas, had become the only possible option within 45 minutes of the competition site. A hotel close to Teahupo’o, which has been closed for 26 years, had initially been envisaged to accommodate the delegations. But the renovation work could not be completed in time. Other accredited guests – media, federations, staff, judges and officials – will be accommodated in private homes, as the OCOG has secured 380 beds in the vicinity of the Olympic site.
