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France’s Olympic surfing champ Vaast says ‘life force’ helped him win gold | Paris Olympics 2024 News

France’s Olympic surfing champ Vaast says ‘life force’ helped him win gold | Paris Olympics 2024 News


France’s Kauli Vaast, who rode his home wave in Polynesia to Olympic gold, says he got some extra spiritual help.

Kauli Vaast says a supernatural force in Polynesian culture helped him win Olympic surfing gold in his native Tahiti.

Vaast on Monday became the first Olympic champion from the French Pacific island.

“The mana was with me from the start, every day I felt it,” the 22-year-old told AFP, referring to a supernatural force that, according to Polynesian beliefs, permeates the universe.

“I couldn’t see it but I felt it, and ‘voila’, I did it – an Olympic champion,” he said.

Vaast beat Australia’s Jack Robinson in the gold medal final, taking the two best waves of a high-level match.

The entire island rooted for him.

“As soon as the first two waves were caught, we were all there blowing for there to be no more, and it worked,” joked French Polynesia’s President Moetai Brotherson.

Tahiti, with the majestic Teahupo’o waves that often reach 2-3 metres (6.5-10 feet) and sometimes a lot higher, hosted a spectacular surfing competition, which was extended until Monday due to unfavourable winds last week.

Vaast’s mother, Natou Thupalua, opted for some garden therapy to calm her nerves.

“When he competes in Tahiti, I garden,” she said. “I planted anthuriums.”

The newly crowned Olympic champion said he might need to do a bit of work in the garden now, too.

“When I get home, I’m going to have to use the rake because she cut everything,” he smiled.

Surfer celebrates gold medal.
Gold medallist Kauli Vaast of Team France poses on the podium during the men’s surfing medal ceremony [Sean M Haffey/Getty Images]

Tahiti is the winner

Thousands of Polynesians cheered their champion Johanne Defay from the French island of Reunion, who won bronze in the women’s final.

Three-time world champion Gabriel Medina of Brazil, who went into the Olympic Games as a widely tipped favourite, took the men’s bronze.

Surfing was introduced as an Olympic sport at the Tokyo 2020 Games and the success of the competition in Tahiti will help to further establish it on the programme.

Tahiti, nearly 16,000 kilometres (9,940 miles) from Paris, was selected to host the second Olympic surfing competition in history with the aim of including France’s overseas territories in the Games.

And the surfing competition could prove a long-term bonus for Tahiti.

The Olympic surfing event generated spectacular images and “an extraordinary promotional operation” for local tourism, said President Brotherson.

Winning on his home turf of Teahupo’o was “the cherry on the cake”, Vaast said. “For all of France, for all of Polynesia, it’s incredible.”

Surfer on wave
Kauli Vaast of France gets a barrel in the men’s surfing gold medal final at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on August 5, 2024 in Teahupo’o, on the French Polynesian Island of Tahiti [Ben Thouard-Pool/Getty Images]
Three surfers receiving Olympic medal.
Men’s surfing silver medallist Jack Robinson of Australia, gold medallist Kauli Vaast of France and bronze medallist Gabriel Medina of Brazil attend the podium ceremony at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on the French Polynesian Island of Tahiti [Ben Thouard-Pool/Getty Images]



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