Whereas all eyes for the 2024 Summer season Olympics appear to be on Paris, one of many largest controversies is occurring on the opposite aspect of the world in Teahupo’o, Tahiti.

Whereas each different Olympic occasion shall be held both in Paris or elsewhere in France (for instance, crusing shall be held within the Mediterranean metropolis of Marseille), browsing is ready to happen in French Polynesia. The Tahitian browsing venue is almost 16,000 kilometers (10,000 miles) and 10 time zones away from Paris. And that distant location is proving to be one of many largest 2024 Summer season Olympics controversies.

Based on officers, the development of a judging tower is inflicting harm to coral reefs, because it’d entail an aluminum tower bodily connected to the reef. Due to the individuality of the panorama at Teahupo’o the place the surf breaks offshore, the 2024 Summer season Olympics judges must sit out over the water, based on the Related Press.

In flip, that’s known as for the need of some kind of over-water judging platform. The constructing of such a platform has prompted protests in Tahiti and an on-line petition with greater than 230,000 signatures.

Organizers have been attempting numerous options, together with constructing another barge — which additionally broken the coral. The French cities of Lacanau and La Torche in continental France (each of that are on the nation’s west coast towards the Atlantic Ocean) have additionally supplied to host browsing.

However there’s yet another resolution that would probably maintain the browsing portion of the 2024 Summer season Olympics in Tahiti: drones.

As first noticed by Drone DJ, a proposal by the Worldwide Browsing Affiliation would rely closely on drones for judging the 2024 Summer season Olympics. The drones are spelled out in “Possibility B” in a doc dated Dec. 9, 2023. As a part of that proposal, judges would stay in a tower constructed on the land. They might have entry to a view completely different digital camera angles, together with a increase/crane or scissor carry cameras. These could be augmented by cameras filmed on boats or jetskis, in addition to drones.

That mannequin would enable for 4 Olympic Broadcasting Companies (OBS) plus two OBS boat digital camera, by the use of each Principal Tower and lagoon views, in addition to jetski cameras and drones offering extra views. It will all enable “judges to have steady or instantaneous entry to all doable OBS digital camera angles, as per the present plan together with water/boat cameras and drones,” based on the Worldwide Browsing Affiliation’s report.

Sadly for each the environmental and pro-drone crowds for now, although, it looks as if plans to construct the aluminum tower are nonetheless in movement. Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet instructed Reuters in an article printed on Dec. 20 that the choice to guage the 2024 Summer season Olympics from the shore and as a substitute depend on different cameras comparable to cranes and drones “had been discarded as a result of it might imply the occasions being judged from a 900-meter distance.”

“”We are able to’t broadcast like this in good situations and when it comes to sporting equity, it might be an issue,” he mentioned to Reuters. “Occasions have all the time been judged from a tower. Tahiti requested to host the browsing occasions and we’ll proceed to work with all stakeholders to make it occur.”

Maybe Estanguet simply doesn’t but perceive the ability of drones. Or, he definitely won’t concentrate on know-how just like the DJI Mavic 3’s 28x Hybrid Zoom, which will get the eyes far nearer to 900 meters than they even would in a tower.

Protests are anticipated to proceed because the tower undergoes development.

What do you suppose ought to occur? Maybe the 2024 Summer season Olympics can present a chance for DJI to ship a free DJI Mavic 3 to Estanguet in a publicity stunt to each show the ability of drones and save the reef? Go away a remark, and subscribe to The Drone Woman for extra every day e-mail updates!

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