Campello and Moreno Win in Fuerteventura

The windless heat wave KALIMA the windsurfer¹s nightmare hit us down here at Sotavento beach on the last competition day and no more races were possible.

We saw amazing action on the first days of the race though; it was like an explosion of astonishing moves like all kind of Grubby variations, one footed back loops, clew first switch stance spock 540’s, one handed Swayzes, clew first front loops, clew first Diablos and other moves which were simply unthinkable just a few months ago.

Masses of new moves and combinations were created since last year’s competition which is indicative of the highly dynamic nature of freestyle. Web Pedrick (AHD/North Sails) pulled out the Swayze earlier this year and it was Kevin Pritchard (BIC/Gaastra) who landed a one footed, one handed back loop at the PWA Grand Slam in Pozo Izquierdo two weeks ago which brought him the win.

Here in Fuerteventura, it was Ricardo Campello (JP/Neil Pryde) who surprised all of us by performing in a very spectacular way and he maintained a high standard of sailing in all of his heats right through the contest. He managed to win one round and then claimed second in the second, this time only beaten by his buddy Kauli Seadi (Naish/Naish), which brought him the win in this PWA Freestyle Grand Prix. In the opinion of the remainder of the fleet, he was pretty much in a league of his own.

Ricardo Campello (JP/Neil Pryde) after his win: “I am really happy that I won my first event. I trained all year for that and I had so much fun sailing out there. We had very good conditions and I felt comfortable and very motivated. It was good to sail in a final with my close friend Kauli. I will now get ready now for the next Freestyle event in Canada.”

The experienced sailor Vidar Jensen (Drops/North Sails) managed a brilliant second place in this event by his consistent sailing and his trade mark moves like a fully planning one handed forward loop combined with a wide variety of stylishly performed moves.

Robbie Swift (JP/Neil Pryde), the young British, power sailor was firing and showed with his second place (joint with Vidar Jensen) that winning a round last year was not a lucky punch. He just finished school and will from now on concentrate fully on his professional windsurfing career. Watch out for him!

It was reigning Freestyle World Champion Antoine Albeau (AHD/Neil Pryde) who improved considerably and climbed up the ladder in the second round with a fourth place and finished 4th.

A big surprise though was the 4th place (joint with Albeau) of the young British rider John Skye (F2/Arrows). “I am absolutely shocked and didn¹t expect it at all. My dream was to get a top ten result here but now I am 4th here and 2nd in the Freestyle ranking of the year so far. I can¹t believe it! I will celebrate this with all my friends tonight.

The following spots (joint 6th) were also occupied by young riders, Diony Guadagnino (JP/Neil Pryde), Mathieu Bonno (JP/Neil Pryde) and a slightly more experienced sailor, the two times World Champion Josh Stone (JP/Neil Pryde).

The final result underlines the words of Josh Stone yesterday “It is the beginning of a new era and it is very important for the sport” and shows perfectly the transition of the sport: the upcoming competitors share the top spots with the experienced riders.

1.Ricardo Campello (JP/Neil Pryde)
2.equal Vidar Jensen (Drops/North Sails), Robbie Swift (JP/Neil Pryde)
4equal Antoine Albeau (AHD/Neil Pryde), John Skye (F2/Arrows)
6equal Diony Guadagnino (JP/Neil Pryde), Josh Stone (JP/Neil Pryde), Mathieu Bonno (JP/Neil Pryde)
9 Tonki Frans (AHD/Gaastra)
10 Kauli Seadi (Naish/Naish)
The provisional overall Freestyle ranking of the year shows now two youngsters in the lead:

The provisional overall Freestyle ranking of the year:
1.Ricardo Campello (JP/Neil Pryde)
2.John Skye (F2/Arrows)
3.Antoine Albeau (AHD/Neil Pryde)
4.Nik Baker (Mistral/North Sails) 5. Matt Pritchard (AHD/Gaastra)

The ladies fleet saw the domination of reigning Wave World Champion Daida Ruano Moreno (Mistral/North Sails) by winning both rounds. The sailing level of the women in general was very high and it is promising, that new young faces came to Fuerteventura to make their mark on the ranking

Daida Ruano Moreno (Mistral/North Sails) after her win: “I am really happy to win here as I never won in Sotavento. It was amazing to sail with the other girls on such a good level and I enjoyed it very much. It is a pity that my sister Iballa was not able to come but she will be recovered very soon from her foot injury and will get back stronger than ever.”

1.Daida Ruano Moreno (Mistral/North Sails)
2.equal Colette Guadagnino (JP/Neil Pryde), Karin Jaggi (F2/Arrows)
4 Tanja Emig (RRD)
5 Ann Kathrin Stevens (Mistral/North Sails)

The provisional Overall Freestyle ranking of the year is now the following:

1.Daida Ruano Moreno (Mistral/North Sails)
2.Karin Jaggi (F2/Arrows)
3.Colette Guadagnino (JP/Neil Pryde)
4.Angela Peral Martinez (Naish/Neil Pryde)
5.Claudia Rankel (Starboard)

The closing ceremony tonight at the big party tent is a must and all the riders were longing for it during the whole event as it is said to be one of the best on tour. We will definitely all be down there to celebrate the closure of another amazing event at Sotavento beach.

There was no racing at the Optimist European Championship due to a lack of wind yesterday.

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Last Day of Qualifying

Campello and Moreno Win in Fuerteventura

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