A surfer soaring above the clouds, a BMX champion riding up the Concorde obelisk, the first-ever Olympic dive into the Seine… AFP photographers tell us how they captured some of the incredible images from the Paris Olympic Games.
Levitating surfer
It’s one of the most widely used images from the Games: Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina seemingly levitating above the waves, finger to the sky, surfboard vertically behind him.
The shot was taken at Teahupo’o in French Polynesia on July 29 by Jerome Brouillet from a boat in a nearby channel.
The deeper, calmer area of water is away from the bigger waves, blocking any clear view of the surfing action and Brouillet said he was “blind” up to the last second.
But the position was perfect for capturing the “kick out” — the moment when the surfer ends their run.
BMX meets obelisk
A unique setting, careful positioning and a huge dose of luck was the recipe for the image of BMX champion Jose Torres Gil seeming to cycle up the side of the obelisk on the Place de la Concorde.
Jeff Pachoud took it during training on July 29, two days before the Argentinian won gold.
“It wasn’t just one click, it was a burst and in that, there was an image which gave this amazing visual impression,” he said.
North, South Korea selfie
It’s an unprecedented image: North and South Korean table tennis medallists taking a selfie together on the podium on July 30.
Their two countries have technically been at war since 1953 and tensions are currently extremely high, so it was a rare and welcome sign of cross-border fraternity.
Such selfies are common on Olympic podiums, but the moment was still moving for AFP’s South Korean photographer Jung Yeon-je.
“My parents’ generation, who experienced the Korean War, may have viewed North Korea as hostile. But now, many people in South Korea view it as just a neighbouring country that must coexist and live together,” he said.
“I was happy. I hope that North and South Korean players will have more fun and laugh together in the future.”
Leon Marchand from below
With four golds and a bronze, French swimmer Leon Marchand has been one of the sensations of this Games.
The champion was immortalised by Oli Scarff, who snapped an underwater shot illustrating his power during the semi-final of the 200m butterfly on July 30.
It was taken with a robotic camera developed over several years by AFP photographer Francois-Xavier Marit.
The camera is installed by a team of divers from the International Olympic Committee and controlled remotely by the AFP photographers, Scarff explained.
“The challenge becomes, as with conventional photography, to find something that immediately is interesting and engaging”.
“As soon as I saw this pop up on my laptop screen I knew this was a shot to quickly edit and get on the AFP wire. This is just the sort of picture I’m looking for.”
First dive in Seine
With several training sessions cancelled due to poor water quality, it was uncertain until the last moment whether events would take place in the River Seine, despite months of preparations.
Finally, the women’s triathlon became the first to use the river on July 31.
The first Olympic dive was captured from the water by Martin Bureau, equipped with a waterproof case for his camera, at the foot of the Alexandre III bridge.
“There was a strong current. I was attached by the wrist to the Olympic security officer who had gone into the water for the first time to test the possibility of getting two photographers down at the same time, which was not possible.
“This first event in the Seine was highly anticipated and the fact that there were so many swimmers at the start made it very visual,” he added, though he said that fumes from the support boats made the experience “exhausting”.
French judo celebration
The French judokas were celebrating on August 3 after winning their second Olympic mixed team title against Japan, thanks especially to two victories by superstar Teddy Riner.
The moment was captured by Jack Guez, who slid underneath the group.
He had hoped to do the same at the Tokyo Games in 2021, where France also bested Japan, but the International Judo Federation did not allow access to the mat.
“This year, I said to myself: I have to succeed. I made it clear to the manager that I was interested, without holding out too much hope,” said Guez, only for his dream to come true.
Djokovic roar
It was the last major title missing from his career: on August 4, Novak Djokovic took Olympic gold by defeating Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz.
Photographer Patricia de Melo Moreira was there to snap the moment he completed the so-called “Golden Slam” of titles and the usually stoic champion marked it with a roar of emotion.
She had been placed until the last moment on Alcaraz’s side.
“I hesitated to move, since they were both in a position to win. Then Djokovic started to turn the game around, so I ran to the other end of the court,” she said.
The Serb won a few moments later and let out a roar in front of her camera.
“I felt that, whatever Djokovic’s future, I had immortalised what seemed to be the missing piece of a complete career, his dedication to the sport, his family and his country,” said the photographer.
100m high-wire
In one of closest races of all time, US sprinter Noah Lyles snatched the 100m gold by just five-thousandths of a second ahead of Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson.
“The 100m finals are always a high-tension event. I always feel privileged to be part of our team covering athletics,” said Jewel Samad, who caught the moment with one of 10 cameras installed high up on a wire and triggered from the finishing line.
“As this Olympics men’s 100m final was a very close finish, this perspective from the top provides a compelling angle,” Samad added.
‘Classy’ gymnasts
A moment of sporting respect was captured on August 5 as Brazilian gymnast Rebeca Andrade received a reverential bow from US runners-up Simone Biles — her great rival — and Jordan Chiles on the podium.
AFP photographer Gabriel Bouys described it as “a super classy gesture” and the symbol of sisterhood quickly went viral.
“I saw the Americans talking to each other before the medal ceremony, I suspected that something was going to happen and I decided to broaden the scope”, he said.
“I’m not the one making the photo, they are. It was a super nice moment,” he said, adding that it reflected the overall atmosphere of the Games.
Biles on the bar
Biles put together some flawless performances to win three gold medals, but the gymnastics superstar failed on the beam on August 5, finishing only fifth after a fall.
The session did provide an arresting image by Loic Venance, however.
“What I look for in gymnastics are really clean photos, with a black background and especially no light panels and logos,” he said.
For this last day of artistic gymnastics, the photographer arrived at least two hours early to have an ideal spot.
“I was looking for a three-quarter position but not too much so that I could still have a good view of the beam from the front, while keeping a nice black background behind,” he said.
“I bent down as much as possible, I was practically sitting on the ground to put the perspective of the low wall at the level of the beam.”
– Duplantis ever-higher
There was never much doubt about who would win the pole vault, but Sweden’s Armand Duplantis still made it special as he extended his world record to 6.25m on August 5.
“The atmosphere was incredible… the noise from the crowd was extraordinary,” said photographer Ben Stansall.
“I was standing away from the pole vault on the other side of the in-field with a 400mm lens,” he said.
“The lens was perhaps a little short but I was confident the editors would see my intentions when the pictures arrived. The distance allowed for the Paris Olympic rings to be prominent in the picture as he passed.
“Fortunately I stood away from any other photographers which is rare during the athletics, this made the image unique.”
Beneath the waves
Tahitian Kauli Vaast tamed the Teahupo’o wave to become France’s first-ever surfing gold medallist on the night of August 5-6.
The only agency photographer accredited to follow the surfing events underwater, Ben Thouard caught Vaast during the semi-finals a few hours before his victory.
Thouard, who has been taking surf photos for 20 years, freedives to take these shots and said they require “a very precise and very close position.”
He added that anticipation is key — accounting for the movement of the wave, the surfers and the equipment.
All the settings must be perfectly prepared beforehand since his mask and the camera’s protective case make it hard to do more than click once he is beneath the waves.
