2017 Texel Brunotti Kiteboard World Cup - Day three - Qualifier League

The final day of the Qualifier League event started with a bang, as the heats kicked off at 0800 hours directly after the skipper’s meeting. This was the final day for the Qualifier League, so every moment of wind had to be used to its full potential.

Men’s Qualifier Heat Three was first in sequence. Maxime   from Switzerland started his heat with strength and power, and managed to take the win, despite crashing his last two tricks. French rider Louka Pitot followed though behind him managing to land four of his six trick attempts with consistent scores. 

Heat four went to Italian rider Gianmaria Coccoluto who showed his experience landing each of his six trick attempts including a nice Slim Chance five. Young Colombian rider Juan Rodriguez will also join him in Round three after riding well and racking up some solid scores such as a 6.1 for his Heart Attack. Both riders passed directly to Round three. 

The inconsistent wind conditions caused some delays with Heat five, as it was postponed after the first three trick attempts. The on-shore wind conditions made it difficult to perform tricks, with the riders landing very close to the shore. After a prolonged break, the wind speed increased late in the afternoon. This meant that Heat five could be completed finally with young Colombian rider Valentin Rodriguez dominating the heat landing some impressive well scored tricks, and Luis Alberto Cruz coming in second just behind him. 

As the wind increased, so did the battle against time to complete the first round for the Men’s Qualifier League. Heat six was an impressive heat that saw Brazilian Romario de Sousa storm to the lead followed by Nino Liboni. The scores were very close, with Antoine Fermon and Jonas Ouahmid extremely close behind them.

Christian Tio from the Philippines had a rough start to Heat seven, but gradually picked himself up and landed several powerful tricks towards the end of the heat which included a double heart-attack, which gave him the win. Manoel Soares from Brasil had a strong heat, with tricks such as his front blind mobe that placed him in second. 

Heat Eight brought the Men’s round one to a end. Nicolas Delmas controlled the heat, landing five out of his six attempts with good scores, and fellow frenchman Paul Serin managed to get some consistent scores giving him the second position. 

Women’s Qualifier Round One was fully completed in the last hour of the day, with the girls in Heat One struggling to adapt to the wind and choppy water conditions. Rita Arnaus showed her experience over her competitors and finished first in her heat. 

It was Vera Klabbers from the Netherlands who took the win in Heat Two, making it a great start to the event for this young Dutch rider who qualified for the Elite League earlier this year. 

Fellow dutch rider Isabeau Galiart rode consistently well in the tough conditions for Heat Three, and showed confidence and strong adaptability in the water, giving her the win over her competitors. 

The final heat of the day went to French rider Maureen Castelle, who scored a 7.5 in the last minute for her impressive Hinterberger Mobe. 

Today was the last day for the Qualifier League Event, with the first round of both the Men and the Women now completed. Tomorrow will be the start of the Elite League, with all the riders now present in Texel and ready for competition. 

The event results can be found here: www.worldkiteboardingleague.com/tc-events/wkl-texel-2017/