Teahupo'o
Teahupoʻo | |
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UTC-10 (French Polynesia Time) |
Teahupoʻo (Tahitian pronunciation: [te.a.hu.ˈpo.ʔo])[1] is a village on the southwestern coast of the island of Tahiti, French Polynesia, in the southern Pacific Ocean.[2]
Famous surf
It is known for the
Nathan Florence, younger brother of two-time
Wave characteristics
Teahupoʻo is a pillow break. The swells mainly break backwards, but the outer reef also creates left breaks that
Teahupoʻo's reputation for wave riding is partly due to its unique form. An extremely shallow coral reef, which ranges up to 20 inches (51 cm) beneath the water's surface, is responsible for a very hollow-breaking wave.[7] The wave's unique shape, with an effect of almost breaking below sea level, is due to the specific shape of the reef beneath the wave. Its semi circular nature, which drops down sharply creates a 'below water' effect and the extreme angles in descent create an instant instability to the wave. A steep wall of reef causes the entire mass to fold onto a scalloped semi circle breaking arc.[8] The wave bends and races along into a dry reef closeout and the lip of the wave is often as thick as it is tall.[2]
Surfing deaths at Teahupoʻo
Teahupoʻo was included on Transworld Surf's list of the 'Top 10 Deadliest Waves' and is commonly referred to as the "heaviest wave in the world".[2][9] The name 'Teahupoʻo' loosely translates to English as “to sever the head” or "place of skulls".[9][10]
There has been one recorded surfing death at Teahupoʻo since 2000:
Teahupoʻo WSL Championship Tour Event Champions
- 1999 - Mark Occhilupo
- 2000 - Kelly Slater
- 2001 - Cory Lopez
- 2002 - Andy Irons
- 2003 - Kelly Slater
- 2004 - C.J. Hobgood
- 2005 - Kelly Slater
- 2006 - Bobby Martinez
- 2007 - Damien Hobgood
- 2008 - Bruno Santos
- 2009 - Bobby Martinez
- 2010 - Andy Irons
- 2011 - Kelly Slater
- 2012 - Mick Fanning
- 2013 - Adrian Buchan
- 2014 - Gabriel Medina
- 2015 - Jeremy Flores
- 2016 - Kelly Slater
- 2017 - Julian Wilson
- 2018 - Gabriel Medina
- 2019 - Owen Wright
- 2022 - Miguel Pupo
- 2023 - Jack Robinson
Olympic venue
Teahupoʻo is scheduled to host the
See also
References
- ^ "TEAHUPOO - Legend, True Meaning, True Story | Surf News". Onestopsurf. Archived from the original on June 25, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Jason Borte (January 2001). "Teahupoo History". Surfing A-Z web site. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
- ^ "ASP World Tour". official web site. Association of Surfing Professionals. Archived from the original on November 30, 2010. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
- ^ "Malik Joyeux Surfing The Big One". The FactStory. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
- ^ Williamson, Morgan (2015). "Heavyweights discuss Nate Florence and the best Teahupoo wave ever paddled".
- ISSN 1032-3317.
- ^ "Tahitian Dreams". Red Bull TV. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
- ^ "Teahupoo - Anatomy Of A Monster". SurfingAtlas.com. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
- ^ a b Brower, Ryan (2008). "The Top 10 Deadliest Waves".
- ^ "Local Knowledge - Billabong Pro Tahiti". Billabong Pro. 2011. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
- ^ McDonald, Margie (August 16, 2010). "Teahupoo hopefuls faced with huge swell". The Australian. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
- ^ "Surfing Archived Stories". Retrieved November 11, 2011.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
- ^ "Teahupo'o". Paris 2024. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
- ^ "Tahiti approved as Olympic surfing venue for 2024 Paris Games". NBC Sports. March 3, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
- ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- ^ a b "Solution will be found for Teahupo'o surfing site - Paris 2024". Reuters.
External links
- Exact location on the satellite imagery of Bloosee
- Teahupo'o November 2, 2007 photos including photo used above.
- Teahupo'o surf spot including GPS location and map, pictures, surfs sessions...
- Ujusansa photo story of Laird Hamilton riding The Wave at Teahupo'o, 17 August 2000
- Set of 122 photographs of breaks and a variety of riders at Teahupo'o, by Tim McKenna Archived November 7, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- Teahupo'o view from Tahiti Photogallery
- Photo gallery showing kitesurfing on Teahupo'o
- Tahiti Time: Inside a unique view of small wave surfing at Teahupo'o
- 2009 Billabong Pro Teahupo'o Coverage
- Post 2009 Billabong Pro Teahupo'o Photo Gallery