Whale breach seen during Paris Olympics surfing semi-final competition in Tahiti

With all eyes on the ocean during the final day of the Paris Olympics surfing competition in Tahiti on Monday afternoon, a surprise guest made an appearance – a whale.

A safe distance from athletes Tatiana Weston-Webb from Brazil and Brisa Hennessy of Costa Rica, who were competing in a semi-final match, the whale breached and gave spectators and photographers the Olympic moment of a lifetime.

It is not uncommon for wild animals such as birds, seals and even sharks to appear while surfing around the world.

A whale, breaches as Brisa Hennessy, of Costa Rica and Tatiana Weston-Webb, of Brazil, compete during the semi-final round of the surfing competition in Tahiti
A whale, breaches as Brisa Hennessy, of Costa Rica and Tatiana Weston-Webb, of Brazil, compete during the semi-final round of the surfing competition in Tahiti (AP)

Tahiti also has several maritime protected zones.

In April, Pacific Indigenous leaders, including some from Tahiti, signed a treaty recognising whales as “legal persons”, although such a declaration is not reflected in the laws of participating nations.

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