Ethan Ewing will have his Olympic credentials tested by Kelly Slater and a pumping Teahupoʻo wave in a Tahiti Pro round-of-16 showdown.
Australia's Ewing will be the first man in the water on Friday, drawn to face the retiring, 11-time world champion who has won the event five times.
A near four-metre swell is forecast, with the stage set on Thursday when local wildcard Vahine Fierro overcame a perfect 10 from Brazil's Tatiana Weston-Webb in the semi-final before going on to win the women's title.
Ewing and fellow Aussie Ryan Callinan, who will face Hawaii's Barron Mamiya, both advanced directly with wins in their first-round heats at the World Surf League (WSL) event earlier in the week.
Ewing's Olympic counterpart and defending Tahiti champion Jack Robinson (15.90) was beaten by an 8.40-point Yago Dora (16.57) buzzer-beater in their elimination heat.
Gold Coast surfer Liam O'Brien (16.74) was edged by Ramzi Boukhiam (16.86) on a day on which consistently incredible waves ensured high scores were plentiful.
In the women's event, Tyler Wright and Molly Picklum were beaten in the quarter-finals by Weston-Webb and Fierro respectively.
The Australian pair will return with Ewing and Robinson to the French Polynesian break in August for the sport's second Olympic appearance.
Wright's older brother Owen netted bronze for Australia in the sport's debut at the Games in Tokyo three years ago.
Fierro was the feel-good story on an eventful day, beating Weston-Webb 17.70 to 16.07 in a blow-for-blow semi-final before trumping Costa Rica's No.1-ranked Brisa Hennessy in the final.
"I knew and believed that at some point I would win this event,” Fierro said.
“My body is sore everywhere - I gave it my all. I wiped out so many times and broke my board.
"It was like madness. I was calm. It's insane.
"(WSL commissioner Jessi Miley-Dyer) made the amazing call to throw us out there today, and that's what women need.
"Thank you to Jessi for trusting the women, because we were more than capable out there."
