On a calm day at Tahiti’s Teahupo’o surf spot, USA’s Caroline Marks emerged victorious over Brazil’s Tatiana Weston-Webb to claim the gold medal in the women’s surfing final at the Paris Olympics.
Intense Competition Until the End
The final was a nail-biter, with Marks narrowly defeating Weston-Webb after the judges’ final assessment. Competitors had 35 minutes to achieve two high scores, judged by a panel of 10 international experts. The highest and lowest scores for each ride were excluded, and the remaining top two scores were combined to determine the winner.
From Slow Start to Exciting Finish
Both surfers waited until 24 minutes into the final to catch their first waves, starting slowly with no significant scores initially. Marks then took the lead with a 7.5 score on a successful barrel ride with 17 minutes left. Weston-Webb responded with a 5.83 score nine minutes before the end. Marks secured her second ride with a 3.0 score, bringing her total to 10.5. Weston-Webb needed a 4.68 score on her last ride but only managed a 4.5, finalizing the score at 10.5-10.33 in favor of Marks.
Marks’ Path to Gold
Marks’ victory followed a close win against France’s Johanne Defay in the semifinals, where both scored 12.17. Marks advanced due to a higher individual wave score. In the other semifinal, Weston-Webb beat Costa Rica’s Brisa Hennessy. Defay won the bronze medal by decisively defeating Hennessy.
Men’s Final Results
In the men’s final, local surfer Kauli Vaast won gold for France, defeating Australia’s Jack Robinson. Brazil’s Gabriel Medina took bronze.
Continuing USA’s Surfing Success
This victory marks the second consecutive Olympic gold for the USA in women’s surfing, following Carissa Moore’s win in Tokyo. Marks’ gold adds to Team USA’s strong record in the sport, highlighting their ongoing success.