Those fears were realised last week when tests of a barge to be used in the tower’s construction – running at high tide without significant load – became stuck on the reef multiple times and damaged coral in the process.
Testing and construction work have since been suspended. But the environmental impact has once again seen French Polynesian president Moetai Brotherson question whether the Olympic event should be moved from Teahupo’o.
The Tahitian beach break Taharuu has previously been suggested as an alternative site,while officials in two mainland France surfing towns – Lacanau,near Bordeaux on the Atlantic coast and La Torche,further north in Brittany – have also pitched to host Olympic surfing in July.
Oudea-Castera insists,however,that the three-day event will still go ahead at Teahupo’o.
“No,there’s no Plan B,” she told reporters. “We’re on this path which is really the right one. We’re on the right path to have a new,resized judges’ tower[that aligns with] requests made by locals.
“There was a test that was obviously not well-prepared and could not be conducted properly.