Slalom-X Windsurfing Highlights - PWA Fuerteventura World Cup 2025

When I started surfing I was a child and opened a store And I saw everything that went by the name of Fuerteventura Sao Tavento I don't know if it was a country a beach or something else But I've dreamed of all this I came here almost 20 years ago It's a crazy place Fuerteventura the name says it all It's hardcore not easy It looks flat from the outside But once you're inside it's different It's more like Motocross than Blackwater It's one of the best places in the world It's extremely challenging in Fuerteventura because first of all the wind is very strong and on top of that there are sudden drops They come from two different places There's a ceiling and wind gusts The water is very hard to navigate but that adds to the fun And you have to be very technical and tactical on the water So it's great fun surfing here This year marks the 37th edition of the World Cup in Fuerteventura Windsurfers kick off the event with Slalom X I'm back in Fuerteventura this year Having had great success last year I managed to win the event I won 9 out of 10 races which is an insane record I'd say So for this year I'm not sure I could do the same thing but I think my mindset this year is a bit more relaxed I just want to get out Having fun and raising the bar with the other girls Matteo Iacchino of Italy won the men 's event in Fuerteventura last year But winning the world title wasn't enough for him Last year I finally managed to win the event after numerous attempts since I've been counting here since 2009 And I love the event—it's my favorite part I finished with the same number of points as Pierre but Pierre had the better of me in Pozo and beat me more often That's why I won it last year which is why he earned the title and I came in second It was an incredible event last year and it's really cold again which is nice for this year Pierre Mordafon experienced an emotional climbing journey during last year's event when he destroyed his equipment shortly before the final Ultimately however He has claimed the 2024 World Title Now he returns to Fuerteventura to take the lead But he's still recovering from an injury Unfortunately I broke my legs in May just before the DefiWin The biggest event in the world in France But I've had plenty of time to recover and I've been traveling for ten days I'm full of energy so I'm ready There's no doubt this will be a great fight against Mathéo given the past ten years Yes there's also Jordi Bruno and Macek A lot of guys are eager and it 's always tricky to know Speed is just one factor You won 't know until you start running There's the gybe the X factor of Zalomax so there's a lot going on It's interesting Speeds exceeding 40 knots emerged on the first day of competition In the men's event Poland's champion Maciek Rutkowski got off to a strong start and won his first elimination Surprisingly Femke van der Veen of the Netherlands dominated the women's open competition while the second-time world champio Sara Kida Afringa had difficulty getting away and was even disqualified from one of the races for a false start The most important part of a Zalomax race is the start and then of course being the first to reach the gybe mark The hardest part is getting the right start especially here and there where the ocean moves a lot making it difficult to gauge How far along are you in the line Sometimes you speed up a bit despite the pain or slow down because you're behind so it's incredibly tricky and you never know whether you're doing it right until the arrow opens Over the coming days the shifting positions among the leading groups revealed just how much the athletes were pushing themselves in terms of performance Also the sausage an obstacle that had to be saved added a lot of excitement to the race Yes Slalom X means like Slalom with the addictive pull of a X-factor — could be the sausage to jump Could have a quick race a beach finish a longer first point It's truly exciting because this X-factor gives an advantage to those coming from behind allowing them to actually surpass those ahead instead of merely following in their footsteps and wait for them to make a mistake on the gybe Yes it creates more excitement more passion for us on the water And I suppose more love to watch But then Sarah Kita revved up her engine and began winning one race after another She won 9 of the 15 races No other competitor came close to her consistency The woman of Aruben won Justine Lemetier of France and Femke van der Veen of the Netherlands are tied for the slalom X title I've just finished the 13th race and won securing my 26th world title Here in Puerto it's an incredible feeling It's extremely intense out there and the speed can be a bit frightening so I needed time to get used to it But I'm feeling better and better and more comfortable every day and it's shown in my results and in the races too Three events have been scheduled for the final day of the men's competition Two of these events are fleet races which all drivers start at the same time However one driver has always managed to stay calm No matter how chaotic things had been Pierre Mortefan ultimately secured victory in the event I didn't expect to have a week like this I came here for victory but I got injured in June I can't jump I wanted victory but the guys are really strong— they train a lot At first I had lost my rhythm a bit but I built everything and ended up with four wheels in one—perfect and winning this event would be a dream The second place goes to Matteo Iaccino with Machiak Rutkowski claiming third place