Chinese surfing coach cautious despite excitement on Olympic debut

As the Paris Olympic Games surfing competition is expected to start on Saturday, Chinese coach Luo Yang is cautious despite the excitement of China's debut on the Olympic waves with 15-year-old Yang Siqi.

"Yang has never surfed in Teahupo'o before," said Luo, referring to the Olympic surfing venue in Tahiti famous for its mighty waves, reported by Xinhua. "We don't have such conditions in China, nor have we encountered such waves during our overseas training. We had two weeks of training ahead of the Games, but compared with some top athletes who have long surfed here, we still have much to learn," Luo told Xinhua.

Yang secured a berth for the Paris Olympic Games at the World Surfing Games (WSG) 2024 earlier this year and is set to become the first Chinese surfer to appear in the Olympic Games. As Yang is the youngest among the total of 48 Olympic surfers in the men's and women's competitions, her coach is eyeing the long term.

"Our main goal is to accumulate experience of competing in major events like the Olympic Games, to learn from our opponents, and to have a safe competition while trying to enjoy the process. And for Yang herself, she wants to complete a barrel in the Olympic Games," said Luo.

Yang is set to face Nadia Erostarbe of Spain and Saffi Vette of New Zealand in the Round 1 heat. The winner would advance to the Round of 16 while the remaining two would have another chance in the second round.

Despite being cautious about Yang's perspective of the Games, Luo said they would try their best to advance as far as possible. "We don't feel much pressure. The pressure is all on our opponents," he said.

The Paris Olympic Games surfing competition window is open for 10 days, finishing on August 5, with approximately four days needed to complete, as the schedule varies over the weather and wave conditions. The latest forecast predicts overhead waves and clean winds to allow the start of the competition on Saturday.