Welcome to Teahupo’o, Tahiti - The next chapter in Olympic surfing

Surf's up in Tahiti and the world's best female surfers are about to take their place in the lineup for the 2022 WSL Championship Tour event at Teahupo'o, Tahiti.

For the first time since 2006, women will be competing at the iconic wave known as 'chopes' in Tahiti.

The competition window, from August 11 - 21, 2022 will also give us a glimpse into the future, with this location, and the awe-inspiring barrel waves of Teahupo’o, also the venue for the Paris 2024 surfing competition.

The 2022 Outerknown Tahiti Pro is not just a return to an iconic wave for women, but it's the penultimate event on the calendar for the 2022 WSL Championship Tour (CT).

The infamous reef break, affectionately known in the surfing world as “The End of the Road,” will determine who the final five men and five women are that will earn a spot to compete in the WSL Finals competition next month to vie for the world title at Lower Trestles.

As far as the competition in Tahiti goes, this is another step towards equality for women in the sport.

The WSL have been leaders in the way of gender pay equality. In 2019 they became the first American-based global sports league to award equal prize money to male and female athletes. In 2022, for the first time ever, the women's CT competition schedule mirrored the mens, meaning men and women have been competing at an equal number of events, and at the same location this year.

History was made in January, as women competed at the Pipe Masters as part of the CT for the first time. And now a new history is being written, as women return to Teahupo’o after 16 years.

In 2006 the wave was deemed too dangerous for women, but ever since, several of the world's best female surfers have argued otherwise.

Teahupo’o is one of the most extreme waves in the world. Every aspect of riding the wave is tricky, including the take-off where surfers somewhat free-fall down the front of the wave before securing their position to enter the tube. It's the combination of monster barrels and shallow reef below that makes the wave so impressive and complicated. It's no exaggeration to say it’s the ultimate test of a surfers barrel-riding skill, commitment, and bravery.

Women return to Tahiti

This competition is a defining moment for women and surfing.

Originally the women’s CT return to Teahupo’o was to be in 2021, but the competition was cancelled due to Covid-19.

In 2022, the competition completes the first fully combined mens and womens CT season.

Jessi Miley-Dyer, WSL's Senior Vice President of Tours and Head of Competition says, “The women’s return to Teahupo’o is a strong step forward in shaping the future of surfing. Watching the women surf challenging heavy-water waves shows the younger generation what is possible and that women belong in these lineups.”

In 2020 USA's Caroline Marks surfed the idyllic infamous wave for the first time and when the footage came out, reputable surfing media were very impressed, one outlet even said "She surfs Teahupo'o like she was born in the barrel."

For the athletes, there's a healthy dose of nerves and excitement.

Olympic and five-time world champion Carissa Moore told WSL,"Teahupo'o is a very scary and intimidating wave. It is a heavy slab that requires a lot of technical barrel riding skills. I am really looking forward to the challenge and excited to see how the girls step up and perform out there."

Speaking to Stag magazine Brazil's talented barrel rider and Tokyo 2020 Olympian Tatiana Weston-Webb says , "I think it would be good for this generation of female surfers to start surfing heavier waves, to continuously feel more comfortable and know that we can surf waves like this."

Over the last decade many of the world's best women have surfed Teahupo’o for fun. It's a matter of having never competed there, until now.