Whale Makes Dramatic Appearance During Olympic Surfing Semifinals

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Spectators were in for a surprise on Monday afternoon when a giant whale emerged from the water in the background of the final day of competition at the Paris Olympic women's surfing semi-finals – and the breathtaking spectacle was all caught on video.

The whale appeared, albeit from a safe distance, as Tatiana Weston-Webb from Brazil and Brisa Hennessy from Costa Rica waited to catch a wave. “Wow. This is incredible,” one commentator gasped as he announced the competition, while a second added: “This is a perfect 10. This is a perfect 10.”

The Olympic surfing competition was held on the island of Tahiti in French Polynesia, about 10,000 miles from Paris. NPRIt is not uncommon to see whales in French Polynesia between July and November, as they migrate to warmer waters for mating and birthing season. Swimming with the animals is popular with tourists, and hunting them is strictly prohibited.

In fact, the whales were granted “legal personhood” by Pacific Indigenous leaders from neighboring island nations such as New Zealand, Tahiti, Tonga, and the Cook Islands, and these leaders signed a treaty to protect the whales.

“What we’re trying to achieve here is to give whales certain rights,” Māori conservationist Mere Takoko said in an interview in April. “Those rights include freedom of movement, natural behavior, development, a healthy environment, healthy oceans, and even cultural expression, such as the restoration of their populations.”

But the whale emerging from the water wasn’t the only stunning image to come out of Tahiti during the surfing competition. Last week, Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina was photographed in a gravity-defying display during his near-perfect 9.90 score. Medina also made Olympic history with his highest score ever recorded at the Summer Games in surfing history.

2 thoughts on “Whale Makes Dramatic Appearance During Olympic Surfing Semifinals”

  1. Модные заметки по созданию отличных видов на любой день.
    Заметки экспертов, новости, все новинки и шоу.

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