Der diesjährige Surf Cup Sylt presented by Flens kann einen neuen Teilnehmerrekord vermelden. Insgesamt 73 Teilnehmer aus fünf verschiedenen Nationen haben sich auf den Weg zu den Internationalen Deutschen Meisterschaften nach Westerland gemacht. Pünktlich zum Skippersmeeting wehte der Wind mit unteren fünf Windstärken, so dass zunächst die Disziplin Slalom gestartet wurde. Bis zu den Viertelfinals hielt sich der Wind und bescherte den Windsurfern spannende Positionskämpfe. Leider ließ der Wind dann nach, so dass die Slalomelimination beendet werden musste.

Beim Surf Cup Sylt ist auch die Disziplin Formula Windsurfing (Racing) angesetzt. Die Teilnehmer fahren mit bis zu 12qm großen Segeln und können somit bereits ab sieben Knoten (untere 3 Windstärken) aufs Wasser gehen.

Hier konnte sich der Schönberger Nicolas Prien (GER-7) zunächst erfolgreich in Szene setzen. Bis kurz vor dem Ziel behauptete er seine Führung. Doch wenige Meter davor musste er doch noch den Flensburger Gunnar Asmussen (GER-88) passieren lassen. Asmussen sicherte sich somit den Sieg im Auftaktrennen. Der Deutsche Meister Vincent Langer (GER-1) fuhr auf Platz 3. Der Schweizer Richard Stauffacher (SUI-31) platzierte sich auf dem vierten Rang, vor Fabian Mattes (GER-202).

Neben der sportlichen Action auf dem Wasser sorgten das LVM Kids Camp mit dem lustigen Maskottchen „Pferdinant“ bei den kleinen Gästen für Begeisterung. Für das ältere Publikum hatten die Moderatoren auf dem Surf Cup ebenfalls noch ein Ass im Ärmel. Beim Bingo auf der Promenade gab es nicht nur sensationelle Preise sondern auch eine Menge Spaß und Aktionen. Die täglichen Öffnungszeiten sind von 10:00 bis 22:00 Uhr auf der Promenade von Westerland.

Der letzte Tag des Freestyle-Worldcups auf Fuerteventura lieferte keine Wettkampfbedingungen mehr. Sehr böiger Wind verhinderte leider faire Wettkämpfe. Die Sieger des 2016er Freestyle Worldcups sind somit Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) und Amado Vrieswijk. Für die Damen ist der Event in Fuerteventura in diesem Jahr der einzige Tourstopp, dadurch ist Sarah-Quita zum neunten Mal Freestyle Weltmeisterin. Die erst 18 jährige und sehr stark gefahrene Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne) wurde Vizeweltmeisterin. Wir sind gespannt was von Maaike in den nächsten Jahren noch kommt. Ebenfalls einen sehr starken Auftritt hatten die beiden Nachwuchsfahrer Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) aus Belgien und Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) aus Bonaire. Sie fuhren sowohl in der Single Elimination als auch in der Double auf die ersten beiden Plätze. Amado gewinnt den Fuerteventura Event – sein erster Eventsieg überhaupt – und wird dadurch auch Erster der diesjährigen Rangliste. Enttäuschend hingegen verlief der Fuerteventura Worldcup für Gollito Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC), er war durch seinen Eventsieg am Neusiedler See / Österreich auf einem guten Weg zu seinem siebten Freestyle-WM-Titel. Es bleibt trotzdem spannend, der letzte Freestyle-Event dieses Jahres findet beim Worldcup auf Sylt statt. The fifth day of the Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam — orangeades and sponsored by René Egli — saw light winds to conclude the final day of the freestyle. During the afternoon the breeze did increase and the women’s second double elimination was started, but unfortunately conditions deteriorated again soon afterwards meaning that there was no change to the results, which means Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) claims a deserved maiden win on the world tour, while Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) maintains her incredible unbeaten run to collect freestyle world title No.9. Women’s  Sarah-Quita Offringa proved again over the last 5 days why she is the undisputed Queen of Freestyle as she produced another imperious display to extend her unbeaten run to 9 years. The 25 year old won every heat she sailed this week with a combination of the latest power moves and also sliding combos. Offringa had this to day after capturing a 9th freestyle world crown — 11 overall: “I feel like I had a good event and it was fun to sail in a different range of conditions — varying in wind strength and waves or waves, which gave everyone a chance to show their level. The thing that I personally enjoyed the most is that everyone was trying to push the level with Maaike and Oda going for the power moves, while Arrianne and Maxime are also pushing. Overall its nice to see the level go up.” Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) grew in confidence throughout the event and she ends 2016 as the vice-world champion, which is her best result so far. Huvermann was able to show her true talent after a disappointing single elimination and by the end of the week she was even beginning to give Offringa a run for her money.  Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) sailed well once again and the Norwegian secured her place on the podium for the 3rd consecutive year. Johanne earned 2nd place in the opening single elimination, but slips back one place to 3rd with Huvermann gaining the upper-hand in their next two battles.  Meanwhile, Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) rises to 4th in the overall rankings this year, while Maxime van Gent (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) and Olya Raskina (JP / NeilPryde) complete the top 6. Alexa Escherich (JP / NeilPryde) made her debut this week and she walks away as the 2016 PWA Youth World Champion.  Men’s Freestyle Amado Vrieswijk clinches a maiden event victory after fighting back through the double elimination and defeating Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) twice to overturn the result. Vrieswijk now assumes control of the title race as he leap frogs Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) into 1st place in the current overall world rankings. Vrieswijk added: “I’m super stoked to win my first world cup event. We had some amazing conditions. Thanks to everyone for being here and congratulations to Yentel and Gollito as well. I look forward to coming back next year.”  Yentel Caers has been threatening to produce a big performance recently and this week everything clicked into place as the Belgian stomped his mark on the world tour by winning the single elimination — guaranteeing himself his best ever result — 2nd here. Caers has now broken through and established himself as a world title contender for 2016 and years to come.  6-time freestyle world champion — Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) — sits in 2nd place overall after the event. Gollito sailed well throughout the event, but uncharacteristically made a few errors in his heat against Vrieswijk in the double elimination. Gollito is usually clinical in the competition arena but crashed a couple of times, before running out of moves on port tack, which proved critical with his shifty in Heat 50 not counting. However, Gollito, still occupies 2nd place in the overall rankings and will enter the final event of the year in Sylt with an excellent shot at a 7th world title.  After an epic freestyle battle attention now turns towards the slalom, which starts tomorrow and runs for the next five days. From the looks of the forecast the fastest sailors in the world will be trying to hold onto their smallest equipment, while attempting to safely navigate themselves to the end of the course. The skippers’ meeting for tomorrow will be held at 12:30pm with a first possible start of 1pm (GMT+1). Make sure you tune into www.pwaworldtour.com to follow the racing live. To see all the latest from the event — including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page. Here’s a recap from the preview of some of the top contenders to look out for over the next five days. Men’s Slalom Pierre Mortefon (Fanatic / NorthSails) came agonisingly close to a maiden world title last year, finishing level on points with Antoine Albeau (RRD / NeilPryde), and the Frenchman has picked up exactly where he left off and currently leads the race for this year’s title after following up a 4th place finish in Korea with his first victory of the year in Costa Brava. The 26 year old seems equally adept in light or strong winds and he looks sure to be challenging for the top again as he looks to maintain his lead at the top of the rankings. However, Mortefon, will face stern competition, first and foremost from Matteo Iachino (Starboard / Point-7), who led the title race for much of last year and made a flying start to the year in Korea where he came out on top. A small blip in Costa Brava saw the Italian have to settle for 7th, but he looks to have made a seamless transition onto his new equipment and should be challenging for the top again. Iachino is still breathing down the neck of Mortefon, but will be doing everything in his power to overhaul the current world tour leader. Ross Williams (Tabou / GA Sails / Mystic / Shamal Sunglasses) has continued his fine form from 2015 and currently sits in 3rd place overall and will be looking to replicate his podium finish here last year as the Brit looks to keep himself in contention. Pascal Toselli (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails) has bounced back from a slightly disappointing end to last season with to two top 10 finishes — including 5th in Costa Brava. Toselli looks to have the bit between his teeth and looks lighting quick and should be involved again. Arnon Dagan (RRD / NeilPryde) entered the second event of the year in 15th place, but has risen to 5th in the current standings after an excellent 2nd place in Costa Brava and the Israeli will be looking to build upon that performance, while Steven Allen (Patrik / Severne) continues to perform unbelievably consistently. The Australian currently holds 6th overall after two top 10 results — 10th in Korea and 9th in Costa Brava, respectively.  Andrea Cucchi (Starboard / Point-7) has been racing on the PWA World Tour for the last 20 years, but the Italian experienced his best performance to date in Costa Brava as he won the final elimination of the week to deservedly earn a maiden podium. Cucchi is extremely quick and if he can avoid making any errors then he’ll be a real threat again — as will Julien Quentel (Patrik / Avanti Sails) who currently holds 8th place.  The season hasn’t gone to plan so far for reigning world champion — Antoine Albeau (RRD / NeilPryde) — and he currently finds himself in 9th place. However, the proud new father, holds an incredible 23 world titles to his name and you would expect him to bounce back with a vengeance. AA generally performs excellently under pressure and there’s now no room for error for the remainder of the season. Elsewhere you can expect to see the likes of Cyril Moussilmani (Starboard / Severne), Antoine Questel (Starboard / GA Sails), Malte Reuscher (JP / NeilPryde), Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic), Gonzalo Costa Hoevel (Starboard / Point-7), Tristan Algret (Starboard / Severne / Mystic) and Jordy Vonk (Fanatic / NorthSails) all challenging for the top 10 again — with the latter coming into the event off the back of his best ever result — 4th in Costa Brava.  You would also expect to see big performances from teammates Cedric Bordes (Tabou / GA Sails) and Ben van der Steen (Tabou / GA Sails / Mystic), who finished in 5th and 6th place last year, but currently find themselves outside of the top 16. Overall Ranking 2016 PWA Women’s Freestyle World Tour: 1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) 2nd Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) 3rd Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) 4th Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) 5th Maxime van Gent (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) Overall Ranking 2016 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam: Men’s Freestyle 1st Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) 2nd Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) 3rd Gollito Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) 4th Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) 5th Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks) 6th Nico Akgazciyan (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) 7th Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic) 7th Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails) 9th Jacopo Testa (RRD / RRD / AL360) 9th Tonky Frans (Patrik / Sailloft Hamburg / AL360) 9th Steven Van Broeckhoven (JP / NeilPryde / Shamal Sunglasses) 9th Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne) Current Ranking 2016 PWA Freestyle World Tour - Men’s 1st Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) 2nd Gollito Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) 3rd Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) 4th Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic) 5th Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) 6th Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails) 7th Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks) 8th Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne) 9th Steven Van Broeckhoven (JP / NeilPryde / Shamal Sunglasses) 10th Adrien Bosson (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins)  

Der vorletzte Wettkampftag für die Freestyler verlief etwas ruhiger als die Tage zuvor. Leider war der Wind zu böig um einen fairen Wettkampf durchführen zu können. Lediglich für eine kurze Zeit während des Nachmittags stabilisierte sich der Wind, so dass eine zweite Single Elimination bei den Damen abgeschlossen werden konnte. Keine große Überraschung - Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) machte einen weiteren Schritt in Richtung WM-Titel. The penultimate day of the freestyle in Fuerteventura saw a much quieter day of action with the wind proving to be too gusty to make for a fair competition. However, for a brief period during the afternoon the wind stabilised allowing the second women’s single elimination to be completed as Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) took another step towards the world title.  Women’s Single Elimination II Winners’ Final Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne) lined up against Sarah-Quita Offringa in a repeat of yesterday’s final and the two women, who occupy the top two places in the current event rankings, produced another entertaining battle. Huvermann has grown in confidence throughout the event and she led the opening half of the final with a combination of flakas on both tacks, a big forward and an excellent regular kono to put Offringa under some pressure. With 8 freestyle world titles to her name, Offringa, responded like the champion she is landing a powerful ponch and stylish shaka before clinching her third victory of the week with a perfectly executed culo, which puts her on the verge of a 9th world title. Losers’ Final The battle for third and fourth saw Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) take on Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) and it was the Norwegian who came out on top to reaffirm her  3rd place in the event rankings. The heat proved to be quite an even affair with both of them matching each other move for move, until Johanne found a moment of inspiration as she landed a superb shaka to secure the victory. During the afternoon many of the sailors decided to go for a freesail, but with the conditions failing to improve to a suitable level they were released shortly before 6pm. The forecast for tomorrow looks similar to today and the Calima is expected to worsen overnight, which could make completing any further freestyle tricky. The sailors will meet again tomorrow morning at 10am skippers’ meeting — with the action commencing from 10:30am (GMT+1) if conditions allow. Make sure you tune into www.pwaworldtour.com to follow the amazing action as it happens via the PWA live stream. To see all the latest from the event — including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page. Women’s Freestyle Current Ranking - Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam: 1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) 2nd Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) 3rd Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) 4th Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) 5th Maxime van Gent (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) Men’s Freestyle Current Ranking - Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam: 1st Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) 2nd Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) 3rd Gollito Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) 4th Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) 5th Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks) 6th Nico Akgazciyan (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) 7th Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic / Maui Ultra Fins) 7th Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails) 9th Jacopo Testa (RRD / RRD / AL360) 9th Tonky Frans (Patrik / Sailloft Hamburg / AL360) 9th Steven Van Broeckhoven (JP / NeilPryde / Shamal Sunglasses) 9th Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne)

Auch am drittenTag des Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam gab es spannende Wettkämpfe bei den Freestylern. Der Wind spielt nach wie vor hervorragend mit, so dass heute die Double Elimination, sowohl bei den Damen als auch bei den Herren, abgeschlossen werden konnte. Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) konnte erfolgreich ihre Single Elimination Krone verteidigen und ist jetzt einen wichtigen Schritt näher an ihrem beinahe unglaublichen 9. Freestyle-WM-Titel – es wäre der 11. Weltmeistertitel insgesamt. Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) kämpfte sich zurück in der Double Elimination und liegt nun vor Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde), der die Single Elimination gewann. Amado führt nunmehr das Ranking bei den Herren an.   Day 3 of the Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam — sponsored and organised by René Egli — saw the wind continue to produce the third consecutive day of explosive freestyle, which saw the men’s and women’s double eliminations completed. Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) was able to successfully defend her single elimination crown and she is now a major step closer to an incredible 9th freestyle world title — 11th overall — while Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) fought back in the double to overhaul Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) and take control of the current men’s ranking. Women’s Double Elimination Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) may have been disappointed with her result and performance yesterday, but today she can be extremely proud of the day she sailed. The 18 year old came out with all guns blazing as she won five heats on the bounce today, and six overall in the double elimination. Huvermann, who finished 3rd overall last year, landed anything from flakas and shakas to spocks and grubbys, and as her confidence grew she even busted out regular konos to firstly defeat Lene Kyte (Fanatic / NorthSails) before also clinically dispatching of Birgit Rieger, Olya Raskina (JP / NeilPryde), Maxime van Gent (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins), and Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails) before clinching victory against Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) in a fiercely fought battle. Winners’ Final After storming back through the double Huvermann had earned the opportunity to take on Sarah-Quita Offringa in the winners’ final and she put on a bold show. Huvermann made a flying start to the heat as she landed a fully planing regular kono and she soon backed it up with a big forward — having only learnt to forward yesterday — while also attempting a culo. For a while Huvermann led the heat, but SQ soon reassumed the lead with a combination of a stylish shaka, perfect culo and a powerful ponch, before also landing a burner, shaka360 and a double puneta to extend her unbeaten run — which currently stretches to 8 years. Single Elimination II In the afternoon the second single elimination began, but couldn't quite be completed as conditions deteriorated during the evening. However, Huvermann and Offringa will line up once more after successfully navigating their way into the winners’ final after defeating Johanne and Aukes in the semifinals. Men’s Amado Vrieswijk faced Jose ‘Gollito‘Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) in the battle for 2nd and 3rd place, while fighting for the opportunity to take on Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) to steal his single elimination crown. The heat between Vrieswijk and Gollito proved to be one of the heats of the day with sailors both going massive. However, it was Vrieswijk, who managed to gain the upper hand with a combination of shiftys, paskos, spock culos and a brilliant backloop. Gollito nailed a pushloop off flat water and an air kabikuchi, but crucially he used his final move on port tack to try and follow suit after Vrieswijk’s backloop, but couldn’t emulate his effort. Having reached 7 moves on port, the 6-time world champion then went onto land a radical shifty, but unfortunately it didn’t count due to his scoresheet being complete already. Winners’ Final / Super Final Having defeated Gollito, Vrieswijk, came out even more pumped it against Caers knowing that he had a shot at his first double elimination victory. The Bonairean came mighty close in Austria  — forcing a super final, but eventually lost out. However, he wasn’t going to let the opportunity slip through his fingers again and the 20 year old continued his blistering form to force a super final after a close heat against Caers. With adrenaline levels still running high Vrieswijk once again produced a masterclass of freestyle as he quickly racked up an amazing shifty, pasko, clean kabikuchi and a superb planing double culo to really put the pressure on Caers. The Belgian produced a few stunning moves, but he couldn’t quite replicate the form he showed in the prior heat or day. Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) was visually disappointed with his display yesterday, but he’ll feel much better after today’s performance, which saw the reigning event and world champion rise to 4th in Fuerteventura after winning seven heats on the bounce. The Belgian rediscovered the form which saw him earn top honours last year with a combination of spock culos, kabikuchis and massive skopus on the outside as he took down Francesco Cappuzzo (RRD / RRD / Flymount / AL360), Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne), Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails), Nico Akgazciyan (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) and Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks) before he pushed Gollito all the way, but he eventually just missed out. Single Elimination II The first round of the men’s second round was also completed and so far all the names you would expect to progress have escaped unscathed. The forecast predicts lighter winds for tomorrow, but there is still the possibility of more action with the gradient wind in the correct direction for the local thermal to kick in. The sailors will meet again tomorrow morning at 10am skippers’ meeting — with the action commencing from 10:30am (GMT+1) if conditions allow. Make sure you tune into www.pwaworldtour.com to follow the amazing action as it happens via the PWA live stream. To see all the latest from the event — including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page. Result Women's Double Elimination - Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam: 1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) 2nd Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) 3rd Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) 4th Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) 5th Maxime van Gent (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) Result Men's Double Elimination - Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam: 1st Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) 2nd Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) 3rd Gollito Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) 4th Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) 5th Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks) 6th Nico Akgazciyan (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) 7th Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic / Maui Ultra Fins) 7th Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails) 9th Jacopo Testa (RRD / RRD / AL360) 9th Tonky Frans (Patrik / Sailloft Hamburg / AL360) 9th Steven Van Broeckhoven (JP / NeilPryde / Shamal Sunglasses) 9th Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne)

Zweiter Tag des Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam - gesponsert von René Egli – mit viel Wind gab es  wieder spannende Action im Freestyle. Sarah-Quita Offringa aus Bonaire ist erneut auf dem besten Weg zu einen weiteren Weltmeistertitel. Sie gewann das Finale gegen Oda Johanne aus Norwegen, Dritte wurde die Niederländerin Arrianne Aukes. Bei den Herren tauchte ein völlig neuer Name auf dem Podium auf. Yentel Caers gewann am Samstag die Single Elimination vor Amado Vrieswijk und Gollito Estredo.

Day two of the Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam — sponsored by René Egli — saw the howling winds continue to produce another frantic day of freestyle. Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) stomped her authority in the women’s fleet to claim an emphatic victory, while a new name emerged at the top of the men’s freestyle with Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) claiming victory in the single elimination in his maiden winners’ final.  Women’s Single Elimination Winners’ Final  Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) booked her place in the final as she defeated Maxime van gent (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) in the semifinals with a proficient display of sailing. However, the Norwegian beauty then faced the ominous task of trying to overhaul Sarah-Quita Offringa in the winners’ final. Offringa, who hasn’t been beaten in 8 years, looked in imperious form in her earlier heats and the Aruban gem continued her magnificent display in the final to once again stomp her authority as the undisputed Queen of Freestyle. On her way to victory Offringa landed anything from shakas and bobs to radical skopus and burners and it’s almost impossible to see anyone knocking her off her pedestal at the top of the current event rankings — quite simply Offringa was in a league of her own. In the battle for 3rd and 4th Maxime van Gent, who earlier defeated Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) much to her delight, took on Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins), who was looking to return to the podium and that’s exactly what the 29 year old managed to do with a combination of flakas, punetas and funnels and she will now look to, at least defend her position in the double elimination, while setting Johanne in her sights.  Double Elimination The opening 3 heats of the women’s double elimination were also completed and so far the sailors you would expect to advance have with Olya Raskina (JP / NeilPryde), Yoli Freites de Brendt (Fanatic / NorthSails), Birgit Rieger and Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) all progressed.  Men’s Single Elimination Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) and Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) have frequently been drawn on the same side of the draw — usually resulting in one of them knocking each other out. However, the single elimination here saw them on different sides of the draw and both sailors took full advantage  as they progressed into the winners’ final. On Caers’ route to the final the Belgian firstly defeated Antony Ruenes (Tabou / GA Sails) today, followed by, Nicolas Akgazciyan (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) and Philip Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks). Meanwhile, Vrieswijk took down Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne) before defeating Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North Sails / MFC) in one of the heats of the day. Winner’ Final Caers may have never qualified for a final in his life, but he thrived under the opportunity who had deservedly earned and continued to impress with his powerful style in the final. The 21 year old made the slower start to the showdown, with Vrieswijk landing an absolutely amazing shifty bolt upright but he gathered momentum as the final progressed as he landed a radical pasko, double burner, kabikuchi and even a brilliant air chachoo. Vrieswijk also racked up the moves with a kabikuchi of his own, a spock culo, double culo and also a perfectly executed backloop, but crucially the Bonairean was missing a counting move on port tack with the best 4 moves from 7 to count on each tack. However, it would still have been an extremely tall order to overhaul Caers, who eventually won the final by 19.4 points as the new generation start to rise to the top of the rankings. Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo, narrowly missed out on a place in the winners’ final, but he put any disappointment behind him to ensure he claimed 3rd place by winning the losers’ final. The 6-time world champion faced Philip Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks), who will be delighted with his performance today after clinching 4th place in the single elimination and was leading much of the heat until Gollito landed a couple of big moves in the latter stages of the heat.  Double Elimination Steven Van Broeckhoven (JP / NeilPryde / Shamal Sunglasses) was the name everyone was watching in the double elimination as the 2011 PWA Freestyle World Champion began to attempt his comeback through the double after being knocked out by Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails) in the second round of the single. The Belgian has now won four consecutive heats after ending the hopes of Cheppi Gustowski (Fanatic / NorthSails), Antoine Albert (Goya Windsurfing), Antony Ruenes and Mattia Fabrizi (Fanatic / NorthSails) and he will now have the chance to exact revenge against Thode in Heat 45a.  The biggest shock of the day was perhaps Davy Scheffers (Tabou / GA Sails) being defeated by Max Matissek (Fanatic / NorthSails) meaning the very talented Dutchman finishes last in the opening double elimination. Matissek was then defeated by Max Rowe (Simmer / Simmer / Mystic) in the next round. Mattia Fabrizi enjoyed a fine day with the Italian knocking out fellow teammate Adrien Bosson (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) — who finished 3rd in Austria — in Heat 40b with a sick burner and spock culo inflicting the damage.  Sam Esteve (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) pushed Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) all the way in the final heat of round 3, with the young Frenchman producing a fantastic array of moves on starboard tack — including a sick air skopu — but he couldn't quite match his performance on port, after Van der Eyken sailed a solid heat.  The final heat of the day saw the legendary brothers — Tonky (Patrik / Sailloft Hamburg) and Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic / Maui Ultra Fins) — progress into round 5 of the double elimination after defeating Youp Schmit (99NoveNove / Avanti) and Jeremy Pluss (Tabou / GA Sails), respectively.  The forecast for tomorrow looks lighter than today, but there should still be more than enough wind to continue the freestyle. The sailors will meet again tomorrow morning at 10am skippers’ meeting — with the action commencing from 10:30am (GMT+1). Make sure you tune into www.pwaworldtour.com to follow the amazing action as it happens via the PWA live stream. To see all the latest from the event — including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page. Result Women's Single Elimination - Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam: 1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) 2nd Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) 3rd Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) 4th Maxime van Gent (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) 5th Jazzy Zwerus (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) 5th Birgit Rieger  5th Yoli de Brendt (Fanatic / NorthSails) 5th Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) Result Men's Single Elimination - Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam: 1st Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) 2nd Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) 3rd Gollito Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) 4th Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks) 5th Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne) 5th Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails) 5th Nico Akgazciyan (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) 5th Jacopo Testa (RRD / RRD / AL360)  

Fuerteventura lived up to its reputation on the opening day to deliver a showing of world class freestyle in winds in excess of 40 knots. With the elite of the world’s freestylers on display there was plenty of radical action consisting of the latest power and combination moves as well as an extensive array of jumping, while the howling winds and choppy waters made things extremely challenging leading to a few, inevitable, big crashes. By the end of the first day just over half the men’s single elimination and the opening round of the women’s single has been completed.  Women’s Single Elimination The opening women’s heat saw Olya Raskina (JP / NeilPryde) in action against Maxime van Gent and Lisa Kloster (Patrik / Sailloft Hamburg / Maui Ultra Fins) versus Birgit Rieger. Raskina, who was making her first appearance since 2014 didn’t produce her best heat and a result took an early exit and van Gent linked together the moves necessary to advance, while Rieger used her competition experience to defeat Kloster, who was making her debut on the world tour.  Heat 19 saw Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails) take on 14 year old Alexa Escherich and Aukes produced a professional display to safely advance into the next round where she will now face Yoli Freites de Brendt, who easily dispatched of Stefania Fumagalli (JP / NeilPryde) on the b-side of the draw. The final women’s heat of the day saw Jazzy Zwerus (JP / NeilPryde) negotiate her way past Lene Kyte (Fanatic / NorthSails) to set up a tie against the 8-time freestyle world champion — Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins). Men's Single Elimination The opening round of the men’s single elimination saw the 2011 world champion — Steven Van Broeckhoven (JP / NeilPryde) — in action after the Belgian missed last year’s contest due to injury. As you’d expect Van Broeckhoven had no problems advancing as he ended Loick Spicher’s hopes (RRD / RRD). The remainder of the opening round all went to plan for most sailors, except Max Matissek (Fanatic / NorthSails) with the Austrian suffering a slightly surprising defeat to Marco Vinante (Starboard / Point-7), who sailed an excellent heat. Meanwhile, Tony Mottus (JP / NeilPryde), sailed through the pain barrier, after dislocating his toe earlier this week, to knock out Yuma Kobayashi (Starboard / Severne). The second round saw the top seeds in action for the first time and most survived unscathed. However, there was one major upset as Davy Scheffers (Tabou / GA Sails) suffered a defeat at the hands of Francesco Cappuzzo (RRD / RRD / AL360). The 19 year old Italian was in fine form in the challenging conditions landing one-handed ponches and a spock into culo, which was the best of the bunch. The b-side of Heat 15b saw a very close battle between Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks) and Max Rowe (Simmer / Simmer) with the two sailors matching each other move for move throughout the heat. However, Soltysiak just managed to gain the upper hand towards the end of the heat to progress. The biggest battle of round two saw two former world champions going head-to-head as Steven Van Broeckhoven faced Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails) in Heat 12b. Both sailors pulled off some exceptional moves with Van Broeckhoven landing a double burner, but he met an on fire Thode who stomped a sick air skopu and a double air funnel diablo to advance into the last 16. The Bonairean then produced the highest scoring heat of the day against Julien Mas (JP / Avanti) to amass a huge 120.9 points with a stunning performance and he clearly means business after a slightly slower start to the year in Austria than usual.  Reigning world champion — Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) — looked sharp in his sole performance of the day against Tony Mottus. The Belgian excels in tricky conditions and today was no different as he landed spock culos, skopus and a radical air skopu on the way out, which is extremely difficult here. Van der Eyken will now face Jacopo Testa (RRD / RRD / AL360). Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne) continued his fine start to the season as he ended the hopes of Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic / Maui Ultra Fins) in the opening heat of the third round. Müller’s radical and fearless approach once again proved popular, with both the crowd and the judges, and the Swiss will now face Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) in Heat 21a after the Bonairean came out on top against fellow countryman Youp Schmit (99NoveNove / Avanti). 6-time freestyle world champion — Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) — looked on song in both of the heats he sailed today as he firstly ended the hopes of Mattia Fabrizi (Fanatic / NorthSails) before also conquering Tonky Frans (Patrik / Sailloft Hamburg) in what proved to be one of the most entertaining heats of the day with both sailors throwing themselves into big stalled forwards, air chachoos and backloops. However, Tonky, will now have to wait until the double elimination to try and exact revenge.  Elsewhere, Yentel Caers’ (JP / NeilPryde), produced a powerful display to knock out Adrian Beholz (Patrik / Sailloft Hamburg / Maui Ultra Fins) and he’ll be one to watch again tomorrow after being one of the standout sailors of the day. Next up he will face Antony Ruenes (Tabou / GA Sails), who dispatched of Jeremy Plüss (Tabou / GA Sails), and the Frenchman was still able to land a trademark no-handed burner — even in the nuclear winds, while fellow countrymen Adrien Bosson (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) and Nicolas Akgazciyan (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) are also in the last 16 after claiming victories over Giovanni Passani (Tabou / GA Sails) and Nic Hibdige (Tabou / GA Sails), respectively.  The forecast predicts excellent conditions again tomorrow with the trademark strong winds and swell still present, which should see the single eliminations completed in spectacular conditions. With this in mind the skippers’ meeting has been called for 9am — with the action commencing from 9:30am (GMT+1). Make sure you tune into www.pwaworldtour.com to follow the amazing action as it happens via the PWA live stream. To see all the latest from the event — including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page.  

Vom 22. bis 31. Juli sind die Freestyler und Slalomracer wieder beim Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam „ready for action“ - gesponsert von René Egli. Die ersten fünf Tage der Veranstaltung wird den Freestylern gehören, die Herren haben ihren zweiten Wettkampf der Saison, während es für die Frauen der einzige Auftritt des Jahres wird, bei dem gleichzeitig auch der WM-Titel vergeben wird. Die restlichenTage des Events gehört dann den Slalomracern. Beim dritten Slalomevent dieses Jahres hoffen natürlich alle auf die  typischen Fuerteventura Bedingungen – sehr starker Wind für die kleinen Boards und Segel zwischen 6.1 bis 7.0 . Quadratmetern. Die nächsten 10 Tage versprechen jedenfalls viel Action und Adrenalin auf Fuerteventura! Die Windprognose sieht sehr gut aus, so dass wir uns auf einen tollen Start des Events freuen können. Sie live dabei -  klicke auf www.pwaworldtour.com und verpasse via PWA Live-Stream nicht  von der Action. Alle aktuellen News,  Starterliste, Bilder und einen Liveticker findest Du hier. From the 22nd-31st July the freestyle and slalom fleets will be returning to action for the Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam — sponsored by René Egli. The opening five days of the event will belong to the contortionists of the windsurfing world as the men prepare for their second battle of the season, while the women prepare for their sole appearance of the year with a world title up for grabs. The remainder of the event will then see the world’s fastest sailors return for their third instalment of warp speed slalom as the men’s title race starts to gather pace. The next ten days ahead promise to be action packed and adrenaline fueled as Fuerteventura’s famous nuclear strength winds prepare to test the mettle of the world’s elite once more. Sotavento is located on the Southeast coast of Fuerteventura and has developed a world-class reputation due to its year round sunshine, stunning golden beaches and most importantly, as its name suggests, strong winds, which create some of the most exhilarating conditions on the PWA World Tour. Fuerteventura is one of the most challenging stops on the tour for the freestylers, but it can also be one of the most rewarding when there is a swell running as it produces the perfect stunt ramps for the freestylers to launch into the latest aerial power moves, while the slalom fleet will be reaching for their smallest gear and trying to reach the end of the course unscathed.  Freestyle Women’s Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) enters the event as the overwhelming favourite. The lady from Aruba has already claimed 8 freestyle world titles, as well as 2 slalom world crowns, and she looks to have taken her sailing to the next level again with spock culos and kabikuchis in her reporter of tricks. Offringa will be fired up to seal a 9th freestyle world title and its hard to bet against her doing just that. Offringa’s biggest threat may again prove to be Oda Johanne (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins), who may have only been competing since 2013, but she has made a quick rise through the ranks and has finished the past two seasons as vice-world champion. The Norwegian copes well with Fuerte’s choppy waters and you can expect to see her fighting it out for top honours again. However, the likes of Maaike Huvermann (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins), who is the most exciting young talent on the world tour will be an even bigger threat this year. The 18 year old has finished 3rd overall for the last two seasons and has reportedly added culos and konos to her bag of tricks, which would make her an even bigger threat if she can bring them to the competition arena.   Meanwhile, Arrianne Aukes (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) will be looking to return to the podium having finished 5th overall last year. Aukes changed sponsors over the winter to Fanatic and NorthSails and you can expect to see a bold show from the 29 year old. Also battling it out for place in the top 5 and beyond will be Maxime van Gent (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins), who also changed sponsors over the winter in a move that saw her return to JP and join NeilPryde, Yolanda Freites de Brendt (Fanatic / NorthSails) and Olya Raskina (JP / NeilPryde), who returns to the competition fray for the first time since 2014 after taking a year out after becoming a mother for the first time.  Men’s Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails / MFC) proved any possible doubters wrong in Austria by claiming the opening victory of the year as he goes in quest of a 7th freestyle world crown. Gollito experienced his worst result to date on the PWA World Tour in 2015 — finishing 8th overall after having to withdraw after the first double elimination in Fuerte last year — but he will once again be the man to beat, particularly with Fuerteventura being his favourite event of the year. Amado Vrieswijk (JP / Severne) made an unbelievable come back in Austria, winning 9 heats on the bounce, to eventually finish in 2nd place, which was his best result to date. The Bonairean was able to beat Gollito in the final, but another victory in the super final proved a step too far on that occasion. However, if Vrieswijk can advance further through the single elimination in Fuerte then he stands a real chance at the title and you can expect to see another explosive performance again. Adrien Bosson (Fanatic / NorthSails / Maui Ultra Fins) will enter the event full of confidence having achieved his maiden podium in Austria. The Frenchman has added a new level of consistency to his game and holds all the moves necessary to challenge for top honours once more. The remainder of the Bonaire crew consisting of — Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic / Maui Ultra Fins), Kiri Thode (Starboard / GA Sails), Tonky Frans (Patrik / Sailloft Hamburg / AL360) and Youp Schmit (99NoveNove / Avanti) will be ones to watch carefully, with their island style always standing out from the crowd.  Antony Ruenes (Tabou / GA Sails) made another solid start to the season and he currently stands 5th overall in the rankings. Expect to see more trademark no-handed burners as he pushes for another top 5 finish, while his fellow countrymen — Nicolas Akgazciyan (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) and Sam Esteve (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) will also be pushing for the top 10 and beyond.  The Belgian contingent consisting of the reigning world champion — Dieter van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) — the 2011 world champion — Steven van Broeckhoven (JP / NeilPryde / Shamal Sunglasses) and the exciting emerging talent of Yentel Caers (JP / NeilPryde) will all be major threats. Caers recorded the best result of the trio in Austria — 6th — and van der Eyken and van Broeckhoven will be looking to bounce back after slightly disappointing starts to the season, which saw both sailors finish in joint 9th.  Elsewhere, Balz Müller (Patrik / Severne), will be looking to build upon an excellent start to the year, which saw him claim 7th in Austria, while the likes of Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Sailworks), Davy Scheffers (Tabou / GA Sails), Hugo De Sousa (RRD / RRD / Maui Ultra Fins) will all be hoping to be battling it out in the latter stages of the contest. Also watch out for Jacopo Testa (RRD / RRD / AL360) after the Italian claimed 3rd place at the opening European Freestyle event the year.  Men’s Slalom Pierre Mortefon (Fanatic / NorthSails) came agonisingly close to a maiden world title last year, finishing level on points with Antoine Albeau (RRD / NeilPryde), and the Frenchman has picked up exactly where he left off and currently leads the race for this year’s title after following up a 4th place finish in Korea with his first victory of the year in Costa Brava. The 26 year old seems equally adept in light or strong winds and he looks sure to be challenging for the top again as he looks to maintain his lead at the top of the rankings. However, Mortefon, will face stern competition, first and foremost from Matteo Iachino (Starboard / Point-7), who led the title race for much of last year and made a flying start to the year in Korea where he came out on top. A small blip in Costa Brava saw the Italian have to settle for 7th, but he looks to have made a seamless transition onto his new equipment and should be challenging for the top again. Iachino is still breathing down the neck of Mortefon, but will be doing everything in his power to overhaul the current world tour leader. Ross Williams (Tabou / GA Sails / Mystic / Shamal Sunglasses) has continued his fine form from 2015 and currently sits in 3rd place overall and will be looking to replicate his podium finish here last year as the Brit looks to keep himself in contention. Pascal Toselli (99NoveNove / Challenger Sails) has bounced back from a slightly disappointing end to last season with to two top 10 finishes — including 5th in Costa Brava. Toselli looks to have the bit between his teeth and looks lighting quick and should be involved again. Arnon Dagan (RRD / NeilPryde) entered the second event of the year in 15th place, but has risen to 5th in the current standings after an excellent 2nd place in Costa Brava and the Israeli will be looking to build upon that performance, while Steven Allen (Patrik / Severne) continues to perform unbelievably consistently. The Australian currently holds 6th overall after two top 10 results — 10th in Korea and 9th in Costa Brava, respectively.  Andrea Cucchi (Starboard / Point-7) has been racing on the PWA World Tour for the last 20 years, but the Italian experienced his best performance to date in Costa Brava as he won the final elimination of the week to deservedly earn a maiden podium. Cucchi is extremely quick and if he can avoid making any errors then he’ll be a real threat again — as will Julien Quentel (Patrik / Avanti Sails) who currently holds 8th place.  The season hasn’t gone to plan so far for reigning world champion — Antoine Albeau (RRD / NeilPryde) — and he currently finds himself in 9th place. However, the proud new father, holds an incredible 23 world titles to his name and you would expect him to bounce back with a vengeance. AA generally performs excellently under pressure and there’s now no room for error for the remainder of the season. Elsewhere you can expect to see the likes of Cyril Moussilmani (Starboard / Severne), Antoine Questel (Starboard / GA Sails), Malte Reuscher (JP / NeilPryde), Taty Frans (Starboard / GA Sails / Mystic), Gonzalo Costa Hoevel (Starboard / Point-7), Tristan Algret (Starboard / Severne / Mystic) and Jordy Vonk (Fanatic / NorthSails) all challenging for the top 10 again — with the latter coming into the event off the back of his best ever result — 4th in Costa Brava.  You would also expect to see big performances from teammates Cedric Bordes (Tabou / GA Sails) and Ben van der Steen (Tabou / GA Sails / Mystic), who finished in 5th and 6th place last year, but currently find themselves outside of the top 16. The forecast looks as though it will be windy from the word go ensuring an explosive start to the event. Make sure you don’t miss any of the amazing action by tuning into www.pwaworldtour.com/— here you'll be able to follow the action as it happens via the PWA live stream. To see all the latest from the event — including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page.

Aufgrund der derzeit unklaren Situation und obwohl es derzeit keine besonderen Probleme gibt, die den Event zum derzeitigen Zeitpunkt beeinflussen könnten, geht die PWA davon aus, dass die künftige Situation nicht vorhersehbar ist. Wegen der Unsicherheit und dem bei einigen vorhandenen unguten Gefühl bei Reisen in die Türkei, wurde beschlossen, dass die Veranstaltung im August nicht stattfinden wird.
 
Die Organisatoren suchen derzeit mögliche Termine für die Veranstaltung im Oktober dieses Jahres, nach dem Sylt-Worldcup. In light of recent developments in Turkey, it has been decided to postpone the planned Slalom World Cup at Alacati.  Whilst the situation is not clear and there are no specific problems that could directly affect the event at this time, we appreciate that the situation is unpredictable and there is enough uncertainty to leave many of you feeling uncomfortable at the prospect of travelling to Turkey. Therefore it has been decided that the event will not take place in August as previously planned. The event is still important to the PWA, and to the community in Alacati, and efforts will continue to ensure the future success of the event. We are currently looking at possible dates for the event in October of this year, after the Sylt World Cup, but we will continue to evaluate the situation and bring you more news and information as the situation becomes clear. Our thoughts are with all of our friends in Turkey in what are undoubtedly difficult times. 

Philip Köster ist beim ersten PWA Waveriding World Cup der Saison in seiner Wahlheimat Gran Canaria nur knapp am Sieg vorbei gesprungen. Der dreimalige Windsurf-Weltmeister verlor am Freitag in der Hinrunde das hochklassige Finale gegen Victor Fernandez Lopez nur hauchdünn. Am Ende des mitreißenden Endlaufs hatte Köster nur einen Viertel-Punkt weniger auf seinem Score-Board als der Spanier. Da der Wind danach abflaute und sich keine Wellen mehr aufbauten, konnte die Rückrunde nicht beendet werden. Damit hatte der 22-Jährige keine Möglichkeit, sich doch noch den Gesamtsieg zu sichern.
Der zweite Platz ist dennoch ein großer Erfolg, denn Philip Köster verletzte sich beim Aufwärmen und musste eine Stunde lang am Rücken behandelt werden. „Ich hatte nach ein paar Sprüngen plötzlich starke Rückenschmerzen und hatte Probleme beim Atmen. Dank der tollen Behandlung durch das Physio-Team vor Ort konnte ich überhaupt weiter machen. Der zweite Platz ist für mich unter diesen Umständen ein guter Einstand, ich will jetzt den nächsten World Cup gewinnen“, erklärte der aktuelle Waveriding-Weltmeister, hinter dem der Australier Jaeger Stone den dritten Rang belegte. Vom 30. September bis zum 9. Oktober findet mit dem Mercedes-Benz Windsurf World Cup Sylt der einzige Stopp der PWA World Tour in Deutschland statt.
Mit fünf Wellenreitern unter den Top Ten feierte das deutsche Team bei den Herren einen starken Einstand in die World Cup Saison. Der auf Teneriffa lebende Daniel Bruch wurde Fünfter, Leon Jamaer aus Kiel, der Hamburger Florian Jung und Alessio Stillrich, der wie Köster auf Gran Canaria wohnt, teilten sich den neunten Platz. Auch die Damen präsentierten sich in sehr guter Form. Die Kielerin Steffi Wahl und Lina Erpenstein aus Aschaffenburg wurden gemeinsam Fünfte. „Ich bin total glücklich, der fünfte Platz ist mein bisher bestes World Cup Resultat“, freute sich die erst 19-Jährige Lina Erpenstein. Die spanische Seriensiegerin Daida Moreno gewann die Damenkonkurrenz vor Sarah-Quita Offringa aus Aruba und ihrer Zwillingsschwester Iballa.

Der Speed Kini Virus zieht immer größere Kreise und immer mehr Leute werden infiziert. Das freut uns natürlich sehr. Vor allem ist es wirklich super, dass auch viele neue Teilnehmer den Spaß am Speed und am Wettbewerb entdeckt haben, die wirklich einfach aus Freude mitmachen, sich selbst verbessern oder auch ganz einfach nur dabei sein wollen. Ein paar Leute möchten wir an dieser Stelle einfach mal besonders hervorheben, da diese Familie ein tolles Beispiel für den Windsurf-Spirt ist und diesen auch toll lebt. Ganz besonders die Art und Weise, wie sie am Speed Kini teilnehmen und Spaß haben, ist bemerkenswert und in unserer heutigen Welt nicht selbstverständlich. Es geht um Familie Rottenbach! Im Fokus stehen hier (noch) die beiden Männer der Familie, Sohn Neil und Vater Niklas. Die beiden sind wirklich andauernd zusammen als Gespann auf dem Wasser, wobei Neil unterstützt wird, wo es nur geht! Hut ab!!! Gerade erst hat Papa Niklas aufgerüstet und für sich und den Sohnemann neues Slalommaterial gekauft….Und sofort verbessert sich Neil und ist schneller als er jemals war. Er erreichte an der Lechstaustufe mit seinem neuen Loftsails Switchblade und dem Goya Bolt 22.705 kts und steht damit nun auf Platz 2 der Junioren. Und das gerade mal mit 14 Jahren. Da kommt sicher noch mehr. Super Neil!! Es ist einfach Klasse, dass die beiden zusammen so Gas geben. Aber nicht nur Neil ist fleißig dabei, auch seine kleine Schwester Milla (5 Jahre) hat schon letztes Jahr angekündigt, dass sie unbedingt auch mitmachen will. Natürlich sollte man an dieser Stelle auch noch erwähnen, dass Niklas mit Freya eine bessere Hälfte hat, die das alles unterstützt. Der Juni begann windsurftechnisch relativ spät und so kam die erste Zeit in diesem Monat erst am 10. von Christian Owsinski. Christian nutzte den morgendlichen Wind am Weissensee und verbesserte sich auf 26,510 kts und damit Platz 40. Einen Tag später reichte Georg Hindelang seine Datei mit 22,091 kts am Walchensee ein. Er stieg damit auf Platz 54 in den Wettbewerb ein. Der nächste Neueinsteiger kam dann vom Alpsee, wo Günter Trometer 25,806 auf seinem Falcon erreichte. Das reichte für Günter zu Platz 45. Auch aus dem Hause Weber gab es eine Verbesserung bei Otto und den Einstieg von Edith einen Tag später. Auch Ralph Kruse rüstete auf und legte sich Slalommaterial zu. Was das bewirkte seht ihr an der Tabelle! Ralph steht mit 29,383 kts nun auf Platz 15. Der Herausgeber von addicted-sports, Rainer Motloch war ordentlich in Frankreich trainieren und platzierte sich als er zurück war direkt auf Platz 3. Rainer erreichte am Walchensee 31,959 kts. Der nächste Neueinsteiger kam dann mal wieder vom Starnberger See. Bernd Schmid nutzte den guten Wind und setzte mit 31,216 kts und Platz 9 eine erste Duftmarke. Auch am Wörthsee gab es eine neue Zeit. Hanno Dingerkus reichte 29.383 kts ein, was ihm Platz 12 und die Führung am Spot einbrachte. Der 17. war anscheinend der Tag der Neueinsteiger, denn auch Rasso Feistle stieg in den Wettbewerb ein. Rasso war am Ammersee mit 26.535 kts unterwegs. Und direkt hinterher der nächste Neue Racer. Felix Geis stieg mit 25,859 kts am Walchensee in den Kini ein. Rüdiger Rumpel war der nächste, der eine Zeit einreichte – Rüdiger sicherte sich mit 29,003 kts die Führung am Weissensee. Selber Tag, anderer Spot: Georg Hindelang verbesserte sich am Walchensee auf Platz 52 mit 23,773 kts. Einen Tag später nutzte einer der beiden Choas Brüder die Chance sich zu verbessern und legte am Walchensee nach: Tobias Ehrenthaler war 27,203 kts schnell. Am 25. war es dann soweit und Neil Rottenbach testete sein neues Slalomzeug an seinem Homespot, der Lechstaustufe. Neil erreichte wie schon erwähnt 22,705 kts und steht damit bei den Junioren nun auf Platz 2. Auch Felix Geis nutzt die Gunst der Stunde am Walchensee um sich zu verbessern. Er rutschte hoch auf Platz 23. Die letzte Verbesserung in diesem Monat erzielte Markus Bartel, der mit 26,388 kts nun auf Platz 41 steht.

Der Deutsche Windsurf Cup erlebte im Ostseebad Kühlungsborn ein optimales Windsurf-Wochenende. Ein neuer Teilnehmerrekord zeigte, dass das Ostseebad sich mehr und mehr als  Top-Adresse auf der Tour der nationalen Spitzenserie etabliert hat. So wurde das Teilnehmerfeld auch durch ausländische Profis bereichert, so dass am Ende fast 60 Fahrer aus 6 verschiedenen Ländern in Kühlungsborn an den Start gingen. Sowohl im Slalom als auch in der Disziplin Racing konnten Ergebnisse eingefahren werden. Das Duell der nationalen und internationalen Stars wird auch auf dem Siegerpodest deutlich. Hier stehen punktgleich Gunnar Asmussen (GER-88) und Sebastian Kornum (DEN-24) auf Platz eins. Am Samstag kamen bei sechs Windstärken die Slalompiloten zum Zuge. Bei idealen Bedingungen konnten zwei komplette Eliminationen ausgefahren werden. Den ersten Slalom konnte der holländische Worldcup-Fahrer Jordy Vonk (NED-69) für sich entscheiden. Gunnar Asmussen folgte knapp dahinter auf Platz zwei. Der Däne Sebastian Kornum sicherte sich Platz drei vor Nicolas Prien (GER-7) aus Schönberg.  Die Top-5 komplettiert Vincent Langer (GER-1) aus Kiel. In der zweiten Elimination konnte Asmussen den Spieß umdrehen. Diesmal sicherte sich der Flensburger den Sieg und verdrängte Vonk auf Platz zwei. Auf Platz drei und vier folgten Sebastian Kornum und Vincent Langer. Platz fünf sicherte sich der Däne Danni Jakobsen (DEN-64). In der Slalomrangliste liegen Asmussen und Vonk nach zwei Wettfahrten somit punktgleich Kopf an Kopf an der Spitze. Da Asmussen aber die letzte Wettfahrt für sich entscheiden konnte, verdrängt er den Niederländer auf Platz zwei und sichert sich so den Sieg in der Disziplin Slalom. Die Top-3 komplettiert der Däne Sebastian Kornum. Platz vier und fünf gehen an Vincent Langer und Nicolas Prien. Am Sonntag schlug dann die Stunde der Racer. Bei ablandigem Wind konnten fünf Wettfahrten in der der Disziplin Formula Windsurfing durchgeführt werden. Auch hier gab es wieder ein spannendes Duell zwischen einem deutschen Topsurfer und einem internationalen Star. Diesmal spielte sich das Duell aber zwischen dem amtierenden deutschen Meister Vincent Langer und dem Dänen Sebastian Kornum ab. Nach vier Wettfahrten konnte jeder der beiden zwei Laufsiege und einen zweiten Platz für sich verbuchen. So lagen die beiden punktgleich an der Spitze. Die Entscheidung musste deshalb im finalen Rennen fallen. Zunächst sah es nach einem klaren Start-Ziel-Sieg für Kornum aus. Doch in der zweiten Runde stürzte er und drohte die letzte Tonne nicht mehr direkt zu bekommen. So rückten die unmittelbaren Verfolger Prien und Asmussen dicht auf. Nur denkbar knapp rundete er schließlich die Tonne und konnte sich so sowohl den Sieg in dieser Wettfahrt, als auch in der Racing-Wertung sichern. Langer beendete die Wettfahrt nur als Vierter. Das genügte aber, um Platz zwei in dieser Disziplin zu verteidigen. Der dritte Platz geht an Gunnar Asmussen, vor  Nico Prien und dem Kieler Leon Delle (GER-6) In der Overallwertung werden die Ergebnisse der beiden Disziplinen kombiniert. Auch hier setzt sich der Kampf zwischen den internationalen und deutschen Windsurfern fort. An der Spitze stehen punktgleich mit 4,0 Punkten der Flensburger Gunnar Asmussen und der Däne Sebastian Kornum. Asmussen punktet mit seinem Sieg in der Disziplin Slalom und einem dritten Platz im Racing. Kornum konnte im Racing gewinnen und wurde dritter im Slalom. Dieser Gleichstand kann nicht aufgelöst werden. So hat der Deutsche Windsurf Cup Kühlungsborn gleich zwei Sieger. Auf dem dritten Platz folgt der amtierende deutsche Meister Vincent Langer, der zweiter im Racing und vierter im Slalom wurde und so auf 6,0 Punkte kommt. Platz vier geht an Nico Prien. Platz 5 im Slalom und Platz 4 im Racing addieren sich für eines der größten deutschen Windsurftalente auf 9,0 Punkte. Der Niederländer Jordy Vonk komplettiert die Top 5. Neben den Gesamtsiegern werden auch noch die verschiedenen Alterskategorien geehrt. In der Wertung der Junioren, der Teilnehmer unter 17 Jahren, sichert sich der Kieler Kai Paustian (GER-707) den ersten Platz. Luis Ponseti (GER-293) ebenfalls aus Kiel siegt in der Youth-Wertung (U-20). Über den Pokal für die beste Dame darf sich Anissa Morath (DEN-65) aus Dänemark freuen. Uwe Sülter (GER-633) siegt in der Wertung der Grandmaster. Der beste Neueinstiger (Rookie) beim DWC in Kühlungsborn wurde Finn Kroll (GER-740) aus Dahmker. Alle aktuellen Informationen zum Deutschen Windsurf Cup finden Sie auf der offiziellen Website www.windsurfcup.de

Hier die direkten Links zu den Ergebnislisten
Ergebnisliste Overall
Ergebnisliste Slalom
Ergebnisliste Racing

The weeks and month before the this years IFCA Slalom Youth & Masters World Championships were drawn by ups and downs. Because of the opaque political situation in Egypt and therefore insufficient registered competitors unfortunately the Youth World Championships were cancelled by the IFCA a few days before start. Anyway, it was the 1^st of July when the IFCA Slalom Masters World Championships 2016 started at the windsurf school “SurfMotion” in Soma Bay, Egypt. The organizer of the event and head of SurfMotion invited the world to celebrate the first IFCA competition in Egypt since 23 years. 17 windsurfers from 11 different countries and two continents followed his call and came to register for the competition. During the previous weeks, the team of SurfMotion was busy to prepare the location and built a huge event set up with a big stage, a judge tower, a small spectators stand and a 900 square meter tent for the material of the races, to mention just a few results of the effort, which everyone put in this event. Furthermore on site the competitors got lunch for free as well as water all day long. On registration day, the officials welcomed all the competitors, handed out the event shirts and sailing stickers and invited everyone to make a warm-up session in the racing area, so that all racers could get used to the conditions in Soma Bay. In the evening the start of the event was celebrated with a big opening party on the beach. On the 2^nd of July, finally the competition could start. In flat water with around 18 knots 6 Master and Grandmaster started their first heat. The 11 Masters and Grandmasters were divided into 2 heats, which led into an A and B final. Because of just 6 competitors in the category Juniors & Youth, they could skip all pre eliminations and ride the eliminations directly. After 5 days of racing, wind between 12 and 25 knots, 77 heats in total, 13 eliminations of the Masters and Grandmasters, 25 eliminations of the Juniors & Youth, 3 false starts, 3 protests and 2 broken boards, the new IFCA Slalom Masters World Champion was announced. Marco Begalli from Italy was able to prevail and is the new Champion. It have been tight races, but in the end he sent Erkan Morgan and Tayfun Onur from Turkey to rank two and three. In the Grandmasters division Marco also won the title. Rank two and three went to Philip Adamidis from Greece and Markus Purwitzer from Austria. Another Italian won the category Junior & Youth, Francesco Scagliola. Rank two went to Peter Nors from Denmark and the third rank went to Tim Turpin from France. In the evening of the last racing day everyone attended the award ceremony and the following party on the beach. After many exciting races, happy winners, funny crashes, funky parties and strong winds, the competitors, the officials, the audience and the team of SurfMotion were celebrating together six successful days in Soma Bay at a small but mighty event, which wasn´t the last event at SurfMotion “Inshallah!” (Arabic: God willing). Stay tuned on Facebook (www.facebook.com/IFCA.JYM.Worlds.2016) well as on the official event homepage under ifca.surfmotion.com.