No need to travel to the beaches of Brittany, the Landes or the Basque coast to go surfing! Wave in Paris has opened its doors in the 15th arrondissement of Paris, on rue de la Croix-Nivert. For all Parisian surfers and riders, it's the ideal opportunity to discover or rediscover surfing sensations previously inaccessible or even forgotten.
On the face of it, Paris and the surrounding region have nothing in common with traditional surf spots. Here, there's no fine sand or tidal seas. Parisian athletes are more used to the smell of synthetic turf, the clacking of pétanque balls and the heat of tennis courts. If you live in the Paris region and love board sports, you have no choice but to export yourself... or go and conquer these amazing spots that allow you to experience these sensations from the capital.
Wave in Paris is, quite simply, the capital's first indoor static surfing wave complex. Inside the 1,200m2 sports center, you'll first discover the aquatic area, the one that most interests surfing enthusiasts. Surfers will be able to ride a static artificial wave. "There are going to be two boards," says Loïc Revol, communications manager for Maraga, the company behind the Wave in Paris project."A flowboard, where you'll be standing on the board, and the bodyboard, where you'll be lying down. We don't sell it as surfing, because it's not surfing per se. On the other hand, it's an activity that combines the different sensations of gliding: surfing, snowboarding and skateboarding. In terms ofsensations, it's really a mix of all three," he explains.
To deliver this cocktail of sensations, Wave in Paris is using Flowrider technology for the first time in France, a benchmark in the creation of static water waves. And it's not just a question of projecting water onto an inclined surface in the shape of a wave."It also offers a certain degree of accessibility, for young people who want to bodyboard from the age of 4, for example" supports the manager. "Flowrider uses a stretched canvas, which prevents the risk of injury. There are other technologies that use other materials, so there's more risk of injury, but here there's no risk at all. Two changing rooms will be available for users. As with other indoor sports complexes, a fee will be charged for the use of the changing rooms.
In addition to accessibility and safety, Flowrider also enables water and electricity flows to be kept to a minimum. "To give you an idea, we're on a closed water-use circuit, and the pool has a capacity of 160m3 of water, equivalent to the consumption of 4 households. That'sless than a municipal swimming pool," points out Loïc Revol. The idea is not necessarily to reduce the bill, but rather to make an ecological gesture.
Of course, the Wave in Paris complex isn't just for water sports enthusiasts. Upstairs is a squash area with 4 courts and two changing rooms reserved for players. On the first floor, there's another "club house" area, from which you can even watch the static wave. The complex's restaurant will be run by Rice Trotters, a company the project's founders know well.We've already worked with them," explains Maraga's communications manager, "and they offer fast, tasty, eco-friendly food.
By the way, how did the Wave in Paris project come about? In 2016, the city of Paris launched the call for projects "Paris terrain de jeux" call for projects. Among the winners was the Maraga company, which then proposed the creation of a surf spot on an artificial wave on theLa Croix-Nivert site . "The two founders discovered this activity, and it turned out that it fell within the scope of the call for projects, which was above all to develop little-known sports, not necessarily accessible to everyone", confides Loïc Revol. The Croix-Nivert site was chosen by Paris City Hall as the site for the first indoor artificial wave. To build the new complex, the company invested around 4 million euros. This is not Maraga's first venture into the Île-de-France region's little-known sports complexes: in 2015, the company had already built the first indoor padel complex in the Paris region, now located in Sucy-en-Brie.
During the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, surfing events, one of the four invited sports, will be held in Tahiti. At that point, it's a safe bet that Wave in Paris will be used by the Organizing Committee and the Mairie de Paris - partner of the event - as an ideal bridge between the events contested on the other side of the world and the City of Light. A dream come true for spectators from all over the world.
Location
Wave In Paris
107 Rue de la Croix Nivert
75015 Paris 15
Prices
Réservations à l'heure - à partir de: €20
