Biarritz, France – 20 May 2017
Paris 2024 takes to the waves at the ISA
World Surfing Games, held in Biarritz
France continues to host major sporting events with ISA World Surfing
Games this week.
The Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Bid Committee today hailed the Opening Ceremony of the ISA
World Surfing Games, held on the Grande Plage of Biarritz from 21 to 28 May, as the international
championships return to France for the first time since 1992.
Biarritz, a hotspot of surfing in Europe, will be the first host of the World Surfing Games since it was
added to the Olympic programme for the Tokyo Games in 2020. The coastal city becomes the latest
French host of an Olympic sport's major championships in recent years, following EuroBasket 2015,
UEFA Euro 2016, the IHF 2017 World Handball Championship and the IIHF 2017 Ice Hockey World
Championship, all of which have taken place since the Paris 2024 candidature was launched.
The World Surfing Games are expected to welcome more than 240 athletes from over 40 countries to
the Grande Plage in Biarritz, and serves to reinforce France's strong ability to host the globe's elite
sports events, and its willingness to welcome the world to its shores.
For the championships, Team France are fielding a strong team. 2009 World Surfing Games gold
medallist Jeremy Flores will lead the six-strong team alongside France’s top ranked professional
female surfer Johanne Defay.
Bernard Lapasset, co-Chair of the Paris 2024 Bid Committee, said:
"With the organisation of the Word Surfing Games in Biarritz, France once again demonstrates its
passion for all sports. Our country is once more hosting an international surfing competition,
something we have not done since 1992, and one that comes at a great time for the sport of Surfing
following its inclusion on the Olympic Programme for Tokyo 2020.
"This is a great opportunity to show how our country welcomes the world and hosts all Olympic sports
in a festive and electric atmosphere, demonstrating once again our expertise in organising major
international sporting events."
Jean-Luc Arrassus, President of the French Surfing Federation, added:
“It is a special moment for me to see the ISA World Surfing Games in Biarritz for the first time in more
than 20 years. France is a proud surfing nation, and there is a lot of local and national excitement
ahead of this tournament.
“We head into this event with Surfing now on the Olympic programme for Tokyo 2020, something
that I am very proud to say. As Paris continues its bid for the 2024 Olympic Games, we hope that this
event can set a precedent for Surfing in France and show the world the unique appetite this nation
has for the sport.”
-ENDSImages
Please find attached one low-res image of French Surfing Federation President Jean-Luc Arrassus
holding a Paris 2024 branded surfboard.
For further information:
Raphaël Leclerc
Paris 2024 Bid Committee
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +336 73 16 88 06
Sujit Jasani
VERO Communications
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +44 (0)207 812 6589 / +44 (0)7940 375 282
Engage with the Paris 2024 bid here:
Website: www.paris2024.org
Twitter: @Paris2024
Facebook: https://fr-fr.facebook.com/Paris2024/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paris2024/