Olympic surfing ends with a whale breach, and gold for U.S. and France : NPR

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Viewers of Olympic women’s surfing didn’t only get to watch athletes compete on Monday. They were also treated to a surprise appearance by a curious whale.

Brazil’s Tatiana Weston-Webb and Costa Rica’s Brisa Hennessy were waiting for waves in the semifinals when they spotted something even more dramatic: a whale leaping headfirst out of the water, in what is known as a breach.

“Wow,” breathed one of the commentators as the scene unfolded. “That’s incredible.”

“That’s a 10 right there,” said the other.

Photographers were even able to snap a few shots of the whale in the near-ish distance. They are just the latest in a series of iconic photos to come out of the four-day surfing competition — which is being held this year some 9,800 miles from Paris in the French Polynesian island of Tahiti.

Whales are not an uncommon sight in French Polynesia between July and November, when schools of humpback whales migrate to the warm waters to reproduce and raise their young. Whale hunting is illegal there, and swimming with whales is a popular tourist activity.

Indigenous leaders in Tahiti were among those from several island nations who signed a treaty granting whales legal personhood earlier this year, an unusual step aimed at pressuring governments to do more to protect them from threats like climate change and noise pollution.

A whale breaches as Costa Rica’s Brisa Hennessy competes in the women’s surfing semi-finals in Teahupo’o, on the French Polynesian Island of Tahiti, on Monday. American Caroline Marks took home the gold later that day.

Jerome Brouillet/AFP via Getty Images

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Jerome Brouillet/AFP via Getty Images

The majestic breach wasn’t the only big news on Monday, the final day of Olympic surfing.

Weston-Webb moved on to the finals later that day, facing off against American Caroline Marks. Marks — who finished fourth in Tokyo — ultimately brought home the gold for Team USA.

“To win the final, you had to get in the barrel, which is what you dream of when you surf Teahupo’o,” she said afterward, referring to the infamous wave. “Overall, (I’m) really happy. It was an amazing day.”

Weston-Webb took home silver, and France’s Johanne Defay clinched bronze.

From left, silver medalist Tatiana Weston-Webb of Brazil, gold medalist Caroline Marks of the U.S. and bronze medalist Johanne Defay of France attend the women’s surfing podium ceremony in Tahiti on Monday.

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Ben Thouard/Getty Images

In the men’s competition, it was France’s Kauli Vaast — a Tahiti native — who won gold with just two waves in the final, beating Australia’s Jack Robinson. Brazil’s Gabriel Medina (who you may recognize as the completely airborne guy from that viral photo last week) placed third.

Vaast, 22, got a hero’s welcome as he headed back to shore, with triumphant screams and tears from the locals in the crowd. He later told reporters that it was extra meaningful to win Olympic gold “at home, on the best wave in the world.”

“I feel lucky to finally get the rhythm into a big contest like this,” he added. “I really had the ‘mana,’ it’s what we have here, the spirit and energy that all the people, all the Polynesians give to me, and I could feel it. It was something special.”

France’s Kauli Vaast celebrates after winning in the men’s surfing gold medal final on Monday.

Jerome Brouillet/AFP via Getty Images

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Jerome Brouillet/AFP via Getty Images