Men’s Fleet

A smooth set of heats saw many of the tour regulars slip seamlessly past their opponents in the opening round of competition. All favorites (Jose Estredo, Kiri Thode, Steven Van Broeckhoven) are still in charge as expected. The 16-year-old Youp Schmit (Netherlands, NED-27) dominated in the first heat of the day and kicked out the double move master Davy Scheffers (Netherlands, H-311). Youp earned himself a position in the top 8 and may now threaten the favorites.

The second round of competition witnessed the higher ranked sailors come out to play, bringing with them an armory of mind-blowing maneuvers. The highest scoring heat of the day was awarded to slick Belgian superstar, Steven Van Broeckhoven (B-72). Van Broeckhoven earned himself twenty-seven out of a possible thirty points in his heat against Christofer Kalk (Fanatic / Gaastra), landing extremely difficult moves. In the quarter final he will encounter Youp Schmit and Kiri Thode will compete against newcomer Philip Soltysiak (Canada).

Unexpectedly the German Riders Tilo Eber (G-414) and Marco Wedele (G-125) gave it up to their rivals in the first round but they will have the possibility to get revenge in the double elimination, where the loosers of the single elimination get a second chance.

The men‘s competition was held till the eight finals.

Women’s Fleet

The opening two heats of the women’s single elimination were completed when the conditions were at their most testing. The women had to be particularly selective where they performed their moves in order to avoid the large patches of choppy water.

Kiri Thode

2011 Bonaire PWA World Cup – Day 5: Kiri Thode and Sarah-Quita Offringa stamp down their authority on Lac Bay and claim their crowns as King and Queen of Bonaire!

On the fifth and final day of competition, Bonaire erupted into a freestyle frenzy, as the sailors brought everything they had to the table in an attempt to progress through the double elimination.

With the Bonaire trades blowing around 25 knots Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Dakine) exploded out of the gates in two consecutive heats, catching Andy ‘Bubble’ Chambers (JP / NeilPryde) and Anthony Ruenes (Tabou / Simmer) off guard with his consistent switch flakas and perfectly polished burners. However Soltysiak’s winning streak came to an end when fell victim to Dutch freestyle whiz kid Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra) in heat 44. Scheffers sailed his routine of super smooth double maneuvers and controlled konos ensuring the judges awarded him the highest marks.

On the other side of the elimination local hotshot Youp Schmit (JP / NeilPryde /Dakine) ploughed through Julien Mas (Hot Sails / Patrik) and Amado Vrieswijk (Starboard / Hot Sails) performing enormous culos and shaka flakas in front of the judges’ tower to secure his place in 11th at this event. Schmit was finally stopped in his tracks in heat 45 against local hero Tonky Frans (Tabou / Gaastra).

Tonky took the day by storm and blew the judges away with his diverse array of tricks and his Caribbean smooth style. Frans appeared to be unstoppable claiming victory in his heats against Jose ‘ Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North) and Scheffers with a 5-0 decision from the judges each time. There was only one man that could put a halt on Tonky’s progress, and that was his brother Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic). Tonky fought hard with a Kabikuchi and a Future, but his efforts were not enough as Taty sailed the perfect heat, granting his pass into the next round.

It took an amazing routine from Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra) to put an abrupt end to Taty’s hopes, blowing him out the water with his trade mark air bob’s and the largest kono of the competition.

Men’s Final

The men’s final boiled down to two mind blowing two heats between local favorite Thode and Belgium contender Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra). Having won the single elimination Van Broeckhoven held the advantage over Thode and had to be beaten twice to lose the second double. Thode was hungry for a final victory and sailed the first final like a true champion pulling a series of mind-boggling combination moves. Van Broeckhoven replied with his trade mark style throwing huge culos and a flaka ponch, however a crash on the reef left him on the back foot, leaving Thode with the advantage to take the first blood.

Motivated by his home fans and with event title already secured, Thode went on to earn his crown as King of the Lac Bay pulling a gravity defying Kabicutchi and an unbelievable Grubby Ponch. Van Broeckhoven fought tooth and nail to hold his ground, but with his homes fans’ cheering his every move Thode was on an unstoppable roll and finished the event with an undisputed victory.

Winners Quote

Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra)

“I am ecstatic to have won on my home spot, it was an amazing event and the wind was perfect. A lot of the others competitors can do all the moves here, I was really pushing myself to show everyone what I can do and I am extremely happy with my sailing. I am really excited for the next event in Aruba.”

Women’s Fleet

Heat 46 in the women’s double elimination saw Xenia Kessler (JP / MauiSails) and Mio Anayama (NeilPryde) work their way past Maxime Van Gent and Daniela Simal with a series of spock variations and an inspired clean flaka from Kessler.

Next up was Anayama versus Kessler; Anayama opened the heat with a spock 540 but then failed to land a number of critical moves. Kessler took the advantage with her forward loop securing her place in the next heat to challenge Arrianne Aukes (RRD / Simmer / Dakine).

Kessler put up a great fight and attempted to match Aukes for every move; however Aukes played her consistent card and barely dropped a trick throughout the heat, earning her pass into the next round to face Yoli De Brendt (Fanatic / North).

De Brendt disposed of Aukes with her more varied repertoire of switch maneuvers and a double flaka to seal the deal, and then went onto face Swiss freestyle specialist Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North).

Treboux was on fire in the heat and left the water steaming. She garnished every maneuver with an extra element of style, nailing her moves one handed or fully planning. The judges recognized her efforts and rewarded her with a place in the final.

Women’s Final

Bonaire witnessed one of the finest women’s finals of all time. Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic) and Treboux took to the water for the fourth time this week. With one more opportunity to break Offringa’s stronghold on Lac Bay and the top spot, Treboux pulled out all the stops. On recognizing Treboux’s effort Offringa decided it was time to reveal her big moves. The end result was a spectacular show and a final to remember as both women pulled out all the stops for the cheering crowds. Despite Treboux’s fighting every inch of the way, Offringa squeezed past Treboux with her incredible moves and took her fourth final win at this event and the title of event winner.

Winner’s Quote

Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic)

“I was quite nervous for this event and on the first day I didn’t sail as well as I wanted but I still managed to win. Slowly it got better even though the wind was light. Today was the cherry on top of the cake because the wind was really strong. In the final I was powered up on my 5.2 sailing against Laure; usually we have a really good time when we are sailing. I think it was my best heat ever I landed a double spock, a kono, an air funnel and a funnel diablo. I was really happy, I saw that Laure was sailing really well and that motivated me even more so, I think this was one of the best women’s finals ever. I am really excited for Aruba, the forecast looks great.”

Super Session

Having completed the official competition and the wind still blowing a gale the judges took the opportunity to run a super session for the crowds on the beaches. The sailors were allowed thirty minutes to try performing their most outrageous and impressive moves. Alongside some big crashes huge culos, konos and burner’s went down. The victory was claimed by Anthony Ruenes with his super high and stylish no-handed flaka.

Results

Men’s Fleet

1st Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra) 2100 pts

2nd Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra) 2067 pts

3rd Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic) 2034 pts

4th Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North) 2001 pts

5th Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra)   2328 pts

6th Dieter Van Der Eyken (Starboard / Severne) 1935 pts

7th Tonky Frans (Tabou / Gaastra) 1902 pts

8th Choco Frans (F2)  1836 pts

8th Bjorn Saragoza (Starboard / Hot Sails)  1836 pts

8th Philip Soltysiak (Starboard / Dakine) 1836 pts

Women’s Fleet

1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra/ Mystic) 2100 pts

2nd Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North) 2067 pts

3rd Yolanda Freites De Brendt (Fanatic / North) 2034 pts

4th Arianna Aukes (RRD / Simmer / Dakine) 2001 pts

5th Xenia Kessler (JP / MauiSails) 1968 pts

6th Mio Anayama (NeilPryde) 1935 pts

7th Daniela Simal 1886 pts

8th Maxime Van Gent 1886 pts

Back on the Road

The PWA crew will now make the short trip over to the dazzling island of Aruba for round four of the freestyle and slalom world cup taking place on 19th-26th June.

Scope the action

For information on all the entrants, and to keep up to date with every piece of the action, navigate to www.pwaworldtour.com

Here you can use our:

• Live ticker service for heat-by-heat bulletins
• Check live elimination ladders
• View results
• Read daily news summaries
• Browse awesome action photo galleries

Or for more information, please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com

PWA Bonaire day 4

2011 Bonaire PWA World Cup – Day 4: Tension mounts on the penultimate day as light winds and soaring temperatures halt proceedings at the PWA Freestyle World Cup in beautiful Lac Bay.

With the forecast set to drop competition stormed into action at 8.15. However despite all efforts only two heats of the second double elimination were completed before the conditions dropped below the necessary level, leaving the sailors nervously on standby for the remainder of the day.

Heat 37 saw a major battle between Max Rowe (Fanatic / North) and Remko De Zeeuw (F2 / Gaastra), both sailors put in a consistent performance with Rowe concentrating on switch moves and De Zeeuw focusing on upwind maneuvers. The judge’s decision boiled down to the diversity of the tricks to separate the pair, with Rowe narrowly squeezing through into the next round. On the other side of the heat ‘Capoeira king’ Danilo Da Silva (RRD / RRD) fell to the hands of local hot shot Endro Finies (RRD). Finies pumped his way around an impressive display of maneuvers and claimed another impressive victory on his home spot.

With the wind fading fast, all four sailors worked really hard to stay on the plane throughout heat 38. Bjorn Saragoza (Starboard / Hot Sails) put an end to Yarden Meir’s (Fanatic / Simmer) progress through the double elimination with an amazing culo and clean burner despite the marginal conditions. Meir replied with an e-slider and a clinical lollipop but it wasn’t enough to see him advance.  Meanwhile, French freestyle wizard, Anthony Ruenes (Tabou / Simmer) managed to edge ahead of Andraz Zan (F2 / Hot Sails), pumping his way into a spectacular no handed flaka in the final moments of the heat.

Heat 39 was cancelled due to insufficient winds, leaving the sailors on standby for the remainder of the day.

The PWA took advantage of the down time to catch up with the world’s finest freestylers to find out which moves they find the hardest to complete under the pressure of competition in Bonaire.

Phil Soltysiak (Starboard / Dakine)

“In Bonaire and in the light winds I find the ponch really difficult, because you need a lot of speed and a little bit of chop to give you the extra pop.”

Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra)

“This is a difficult question everyone is different. The last move I learnt, the barracuda is really tough because it is very risky. The new moves like the flaka shaka and the kabicutchi are also really hard to complete in your heat as you need perfect conditions to complete them”

Andy ‘Bubble’ Chamber (JP / NeilPryde)

“The burner, once I duck the sail I struggle to keep my speed for the sail throw, it is really annoying me.”

Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North)

“I don’t know there are so many moves; so far I have found the switch kono impossible because I don’t have enough power. Usually I can do them pretty good; if it picks up a bit more I will do one in my heat.”

Dieter Van Der Eyken (Starboard / Severne)

“It is a tricky question, I think the Kabicutchi is one of the top moves and it is really hard to go high on it. If you see Kiri going high it is purely technique and not because the wind is really strong. You have to have perfect technique to duck the sail.”

Yegor Popretinskiy (JP / NeilPryde / MFC)

“I don’t know, for me all the moves are hard here, I haven’t been trying the crazy moves in my heats. I like the regular chachoo, for me it is one of the easiest moves but for the other guys they find it difficult. I don’t like to do culos here because the water is so shallow and I care about my board.”

Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra)

“The hardest move here is the push loop, or the flaka ponch, the wind needs to be really strong for these moves. But because it is so flat I find every move easy here compared to other spots on the tour.”

Max Rowe (Fanatic / North)

“I found the shaka the hardest move here, I always struggle in the light winds and the small chop. I have had to train them really hard to be able to do them in the light flat conditions.”

Andraz Zan  (F2 / Hot Sails)

“I think the kono is really challenging when the wind is really light because the rig duck has to be perfect and you have to jump really hard to achieve any height”

Bjorn Saragoza (Starboard / Hot Sails)

“All the moves are quite tricky and take a while to learn, all the sailors are performing really well at the moment, so the heats are really difficult”.

Choco Frans (F2)

“I am not so sure, my favorite move is the culo but I think the hardest is the air chachoo. I have seen Taty do it on the flat water and Gollito in Fuerteventura, It looks awesome and I would love to be able to do it!”

Steven Max (Starboard / Hot Sails)

“I am not doing the really big moves yet but my favorite move is the shaka, I really like the way you float when you do the move”.

Paul Zeper (Patrik / Hot Sails / Dakine)

“I think the hardest move really depends on the person; I can now do burners easier than punetas. I find the puneta really testing and it is not a move I like doing. I think most people struggle with the normal stance duck because it has to be perfect especially for the kono”.

With just two heats completed results remain untouched for today. The forecast is looking promising so it looks like the battle for victory here in Bonaire will go right down to the wire! Skippers meeting will take place at 8:00 am tomorrow morning with a first possible start at 8:30 am. Be sure to tune in tomorrow for the final day of action from the 2011 Bonaire world cup.

Results

Current Overall Men’s

1st Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra)

2nd Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic)

3rd Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra)

4th Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North)

5th Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra)

Current Overall Women’s

1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic)

2nd Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North)

3rd Yolanda de Brendt (Fanatic / North)

4th Arrianne Aukes (RRD / Simmer)

5th Xenia Kessler (JP / NeilPryde)

Scope the Action

The PWA is proud to announce that the entire 2011 PWA Bonaire World Cup will be streamed live via PWA TV on www.pwaworldtour.com. Weather depending, coverage of day one of competition is scheduled to begin at 12:30pm Sunday 12th June (UTC -4), when the freestylers will take to the water.

For more information on all the entrants, and to keep up to date with every piece of the action, click on www.pwaworldtour.com Here you can use our:
- Live ticker service for heat-by-heat bulletins
- Check live elimination ladders
- View results
- Read daily news summaries
- Browse awesome action photo galleries
- Follow the event live, with top class commentary from pros and industry insiders.

There’s also a dedicated event website which can be found at www.pwabonaire.com

Or for more information, please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com

Max Rowe

2011 Bonaire PWA World Cup – Day 3: Steven Van Broeckhoven finally breaks Kiri Thode’s stronghold on his home waters, while Offringa continues to dominate.

The third day of competition saw Bonaire’s winds take a turn for the worse from consistent cross shore to frustrating fluctuations, putting the sailors on and off standby throughout the second single elimination.

Lighter winds meant that pleas to cancel heats were high, and the sailors had to work extra hard in order to make the moves that would put them ahead of their contenders.

Alongside lighter breezes, a lower than usual tide meant the competition area was really shallow playing havoc with the day’s opening heats. Yegor Popretinskiy (JP / NeilPryde / MFC) was first to fall victim to Bonaire’s change in conditions losing out to Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra). Close behind Andy Chambers (JP / NeilPryde) suffered as his fin caught the sea floor numerous times during his heat, opening the gates for Deivis Paternina Teran (Fanatic / North) to move into the next round.

Paternina Teran went on to challenge fellow Venezuelan and team-mate Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North). However Estredo didn’t go easy on his travel partner, quickly taking the upper hand using this heat to show he meant business after a 4th place finish in yesterday’s double elimination.

Heat 21 saw brothers Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic) and Tonky Frans (Tabou / Gaastra) fight it out for a place in the semi-finals. The Bonaire boys put on a show like no other trying to outdo each other on the style front as well as the complexity of their maneuvers. Taty managed to sail his way through the heat without dropping a single move whereas Tonky failed to match his brother’s consistency and dropped several vital moves.

The action really picked up in the semi-finals as the sailors decided it was time to raise their level. Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra) pumped his way to victory ahead of Taty Frans with an outstanding display of aerial maneuvers. On the other side of the draw, Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra) disposed of the reigning world champion Gollito Estredo using his home knowledge to drive home his advantage.

Men’s winners final

The second single elimination saw a changing of the guard as Van Broeckhoven stepped up to the table to challenge Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra). The lighter winds had minimal effect on both parties as they both pumped their way into massive maneuvers. The sailors both chose to open the heat with perfect Culos shortly followed by a succession of double moves. Van Broeckhoven pushed the level higher with a Spock Culo but was quickly matched by Thode’s enormous air bob. The heat was incredibly close; Van Broeckhoven managed to snatch the victory by just half a point.

The PWA caught up with Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra) to find out about his momentous day.

“Today was super light winds; my first few heats were on the edge of the wind line. I was against Taty Frans (Starboard /MauiSails / Mystic) in the semi-finals, he was planing the whole time and I wasn’t, but I sailed my best. We then had to re-sail the heat due to the changing winds, I had nothing to lose so I went 100%. In the final I made my three moves on each side then I tried to perform to the highest level, a few of my maneuvers were not really clean but the judges chose me and I am really happy.”

Women’s second elimination

A difficult day for the ladies saw their heats being re-run several times as the wind refused to play ball. Mio Anayama (NeilPryde) delivered a seriously impressive display of powerful moves, from fully planning Grubbys to smooth spock 540’s but it wasn’t enough to defeat the all mighty Venezuelan Yoli De Brendt (Fanatic / North). De Brendt sealed the deal ensuring every move was completed with as much style as possible, often one handed.

In the semi-finals Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North) and De Brendt blitzed through their heat making the best use of every gust. Treboux displayed perfect one-handed e-sliders and floaty flakas providing her with the advantage and enough points to make it into the winners final.

Women’s winners final

For the third consecutive day it came down to arch rivals Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic) and Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North) to out-style each other first place. With lighter winds a new set of tactics were needed, Treboux chose to work her way down the whole competition area quickly in order to maintain speed and rack up her moves, whereas Offringa played it more cautiously. She maintained her ground upwind and performed her moves directly in front of the judge’s tower. Despite Treboux’s spectacular performance Offringa’s diverse range of maneuvers proved, once again to be too much to contend with.

Results

Men’s Single Elimination 2

1st Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra)

2nd Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra)

3rd Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic)

4th Jose ‘ Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North)

Women’s Single Elimination 2

1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic)

2nd Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North)

3rd Yoli De Brendt (Fanatic / North)

4th Arrianne Aukes (RRD / Simmer / Dakine)

Tune in tomorrow for more action starting with the skippers meeting at 8:00am with a first possible start to competition at 8:30, See you then!

Scope the Action

The PWA is proud to announce that the entire 2011 PWA Bonaire World Cup will be streamed live via PWA TV on www.pwaworldtour.com. Weather depending, coverage of day one of competition is scheduled to begin at 12:30pm Sunday 12th June (UTC -4), when the freestylers will take to the water.

For more information on all the entrants, and to keep up to date with every piece of the action, click on www.pwaworldtour.com Here you can use our:
- Live ticker service for heat-by-heat bulletins
- Check live elimination ladders
- View results
- Read daily news summaries
- Browse awesome action photo galleries
- Follow the event live, with top class commentary from pros and industry insiders.

There’s also a dedicated event website which can be found at www.pwabonaire.com

Or for more information, please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com

Kiri Thode

2011 Bonaire PWA World Cup – Day 2: Sarah-Quita Offringa and Kiri Thode seal the deal in the second day of competition from Sorobon Beach, Bonaire.

Bonaire continues to deliver perfect conditions in paradise for the second day in a row. Winds blowing 15-20 knots allowed the double elimination to be complete for both the men and women’s fleets. An action-packed day saw emotions running high, as the sailors fought their way through each round or buckled under the pressures of the world tour.

The double elimination can allow the sailors to work their way to a higher position on the scoreboard or if the heat goes against them fall down the ranks. Not one of them is safe in the position they worked so hard for in the previous day’s single elimination. With this in the back of their minds the sailors took to the water ready for war in the second day of competition.

The tension on the beach could be cut with a knife as the heats got underway. Julien Mas (Patrik / Hot Sails) started the day on form destroying Rich Cicilia and Quincy Offringa (Starboard). As did Ian Mouro Lemos (JP / NeilPryde), he managed to work his way past Victor Wenderfoort and Oliver Stauffacher (Naish / MFC).

Choco Frans (F2) flew though his heats quickly climbing from 17th to 7th, wowing the crowds with his perfect Ponchs in front of the Judges tower, proving that there is no end to the Frans family talent as all three brother sit within the top 10.

The world renowned ‘sailor of the day award’ was well deserved by Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra), who managed to raise his position from 9th to 5th sailing expertly though 8 heats. Scheffers worked his way through the double elimination ladder taking down each sailor one by one, including the previous days nemesis Dieter Van Der Eyken (Starboard / Severne). It came down to 4 times world champion Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North) to draw an end to Scheffers path of destruction.

More blazing heats continued as Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra) maintained his third place position, keeping Estredo at bay in fourth. Broeckhoven brought the ‘Barracuda’ in his heat and back to the world tour, a move made famous by Cheo Diaz in the 1990’s.

Men’s Winners Final

The previous days duo took to the water to do battle once again, Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra) and Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic) unleashed everything they had in an attempt to outdo each other. This heat was certainly the most exciting of the day, as each sailor pushed the boundaries of freestyle further and further. As the sailors matched each other move for move it was up to Thode to separate the two, bringing out Grubbys into Ponchs and a prefect Spock Culo; it was just enough to seal the deal and stamp his authority down on Lac Bay once again.

The PWA caught up with the current event winner Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra) to find out his thoughts on the competition.

“It’s really though to sail against these guys, but Bonaire is my home spot and I am really working hard to do my best on the water. I know the spot really well and that gives me an advantage so I can hit the chop and go higher. It has been a great competition so far.”

Women’s Fleet

Xenia Kessler (JP / MauiSails) started the day on a high sailing her way through two heats defeating Daniela Simal and Mio Anayama (NeilPryde) with her superfast Spock 540’s and flawless Flakas. It came down the Arrianne Aukes (RRD / Simmer) to put an end to her reign of glory, Aukes worked her way through the heat displaying a whole variety of maneuvers from funnel’s to clew first Spocks, this provided her with slightly higher diversity points ensuring this heat was hers for the taking.

Women’s Winners Final

The same story came from the women’s final as the previous day’s one and two fought their way for first place. Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North) looked to want the number one spot more than ever making sure her moves had that extra element of style. Treboux pulled out perfect planning Grubby Diablos and one handed e-sliders, but Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic) managed to steal the show once again sailing just behind Treboux and raising the game just slightly with each move.

Results

Men’s Elimination 1

1st  Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra)

2nd  Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic)

3rd  Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra)

4th Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North)

5th Davy Scheffers (Gaastra / Tabou)

Women’s Elimination 1

1st  Sarah-Quite Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic)

2nd  Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North)

3rd  Yoli De Brendt (Fanatic / North)

4th  Arrianne Aukes (RRD / Simmer / Dakine)

5th  Xenia Kessler (JP / MauiSails)

The third day of competition will continue tomorrow, the skippers’ meeting is planned for 8:30am with a first possible start at 9am. See you then!

Scope the Action

The PWA is proud to announce that the entire 2011 PWA Bonaire World Cup will be streamed live via PWA TV on www.pwaworldtour.com. Weather depending, coverage of day one of competition is scheduled to begin at 12:30pm Sunday 12th June (UTC -4), when the freestylers will take to the water.

For more information on all the entrants, and to keep up to date with every piece of the action, click on www.pwaworldtour.com Here you can use our:
- Live ticker service for heat-by-heat bulletins
- Check live elimination ladders
- View results
- Read daily news summaries
- Browse awesome action photo galleries
- Follow the event live, with top class commentary from pros and industry insiders.

There’s also a dedicated event website which can be found at www.pwabonaire.com

Or for more information, please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com

PWA Bonaire 2011 – day 1

2011 Bonaire PWA World Cup – Day 1: Bonaire is blessed with outstanding conditions for the opening day of competition seeing Kiri Thode and Sarah-Quita Offringa fly their way into first place.

Consistent cross-shore winds and blazing sun allowed the competitors to explode into action from the word go. Competition continued throughout the afternoon and the world best freestylers wowed the Caribbean crowds all the way through the first single elimination.

Once the formalities of registration were out the way and the skippers meeting completed, head judge Duncan Coombes wasted no time in getting the 39 men and 8 women onto the water and the heats underway.

Kicking off the day it was down to many of the un-seeded local sailors to make their debut performance on the PWA world tour. Choco Frans (F2), Amado Vrieswijk (Starboard / Hot Sails) and Hendryck Balentien (JP)  took down their opponents and made it through to the second round, displaying a whole array of new school moves and proving that living in paradise does wonders for your windsurfing.

The big drama of the day came from heat 9 between Philip Soltysiak (Starboard / Dakine) and Caesar Finies (Starboard / NeilPryde). The sailors put up a fair fight each pulling big Culos and Konos ensuring the points were going to be tight. When the results were revealed it was announced that Soltysiak had not made it through to the top 16. Unhappy with his performance Soltysiak confronted the judges for answers, and discovered that it was not his sailing that had been at fault but a miss calculation on the score sheets. Soltysiak continued his rampage all the way to the top 8

The action really picked up as the heats went on seeing Andy ‘Bubble’ Chambers (JP / NeilPryde) put in a consistent performance against Andraz Zan (F2 / HotS ails). Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra) stole the show against Julien Mas (Patrik / Hot Sails), and Max Rowe (Fanatic / North) fought hard for first place against Ian Mouro Lemos (JP / NeilPryde), sealing the deal with a perfect Bob.

Special mention has to go to Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard / Severne). In round three he sailed like it was his last time, and managed to clock up a huge variety of moves in his heat against Scheffers, granting his passage into the top eight.

As the semi-finals approached the regular big names featured in the top four. Having breezed through their earlier heats it was time to take things seriously. Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra) took on the mighty Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra), both sailors worked hard as the wind dropped off slightly. Van Broeckhoven pumped his way into a Culo, only motivating Thode further, forcing him to bring out a perfect Burner 900. Estredo racked up his points but it wasn’t enough against Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails, Mystic) on his home turf.

Men’s Winners Final

It came down to two local sailors Thode (Starboard / Gaastra) and Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic) to fight it out in front of their fans, both comfortable on their playground and not wanting to disappoint the home crowds it was time to turn their sailing up a notch and bring out the big guns. In an attempt to outdo each other the moves got more and more daring, Thode opened with a Culo, followed by a double e-slider from Taty. The game of one up man ship went on until Thode claimed the move of the day with a huge Kabikuchi securing his place as best in Bonaire.

Women’s

The female fleet made up of 8 sailors got off to a flying start. Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North) looked dialed into the conditions from the very beginning steaming her way through her first and second heats taking down Mio Anayama (NeilPryde) and Yoli de Brendt (Fanatic / North) with her fully planning spock 540’s and Grubbys.

New girl to the world tour Maxime van Gent put up a great performance but it wasn’t quite enough to work her way past 3 times world champion Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic).

Arrianne Aukes (RRD / Simmer / Dakine) displayed a stunning array of slidey maneuvers securing herself a 4th place finish, behind experienced competitor De Brendt.

Women’s Final

Treboux and Offringa made their way to the winner’s final, having posted consistent performances throughout the competition. Treboux reeled out her moves like clockwork whilst Offringa went for the high-risk power moves. Crashing hard Offringa allowed Treboux to open the gap early on, and take the lead with her consistent spocks and switch stance maneuvers. However the high risk strategy came together when she bagged herself a perfect Kono and Bob in the closing seconds, squeezing her way through to seal the victory.

Competition continues into the double elimination tomorrow with another perfect forecast promised. Be sure to tune back in tomorrow for more radical freestyle action from 9:00am onwards (skippers meeting / first live ticker update @ 8:30am).

Results

Men’s Elimination 1

1st Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra)

2nd Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic)

3rd Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra)

4th Jose ‘Gollito’ Estredo (Fanatic / North)

Women’s Elimination 1

1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic)

2nd Laure Treboux (Fanatic / North)

3rd Yoli De Brendt (Fanatic / North)

4th Arrianne Aukes (RRD / Simmer / Dakine)

Scope the Action

The PWA is proud to announce that the entire 2011 PWA Bonaire World Cup will be streamed live via PWA TV on www.pwaworldtour.com. Weather depending, coverage of day one of competition is scheduled to begin at 12:30pm Sunday 12th June (UTC -4), when the freestylers will take to the water.

For more information on all the entrants, and to keep up to date with every piece of the action, click on www.pwaworldtour.com Here you can use our:
- Live ticker service for heat-by-heat bulletins
- Check live elimination ladders
- View results
- Read daily news summaries
- Browse awesome action photo galleries
- Follow the event live, with top class commentary from pros and industry insiders.

There’s also a dedicated event website which can be found at www.pwabonaire.com

Or for more information, please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com

Men and Women's slalom top 3

Adding a second Asian stop to the PWA’s globe trotting World Tour, the world’s windsurfing community shifted its focus to the south eastern Vietnamese province of Binh Thuan, where the picture perfect location of Mui Ne bay would play host to the first ever PWA Grand Slam in Vietnam.

The location had already been tried and tested with numerous local and regional events, but this was the first time Mui Ne would be projected onto the world stage to host an international competition.

When the time came to lift the curtain on the nine day freestyle and slalom extravaganza, it instantly became apparent that Mui Ne was going to deliver the goods in a big way. Cue seven days of howling thermal wind, and a collection of the world’s finest windsurfers battling it out for a piece of the event’s €85,000 prize purse.

February 25th – 28th: Men’s Freestyle

Inaugurating the South China Sea was the men’s freestyle fleet, who competed over the first four days of the event’s duration. Kicking off with a full single elimination, we were given glimpses of what was going to be possible over the coming days, as the fleet got dialed into the conditions.

As the single elimination progressed, the form-players slowly began to emerge. Mui Ne was proving to be a location that favoured powerful, aerial freestyle over sliding moves, and as a consequence, was going to favour the guys that trained in chop, over mirror-flat out-and-out freestyle locations.

As a result, it came as no surprise that the quarter finals consisted of the Frans brothers, Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra) and Jose Estredo (Fanatic / North); the four most consistent guys in the game right now.

With ramps aplenty and no shortage of wind to work with, the four went to town, nailing air chachoos, pushloops, one handed backloops and a selection of super-tech aerial rotations, ultimately rewarding Thode and Estredo with places in the final, leaving the Frans’ to go head to head for third.

This was to be first of many Thode versus Estredo finals, and saw the start of a combination move rally that continued for the next four days. This time round, Thode was the victor, handing him the early event lead ahead of Estredo. In the Frans show down, victory went to Taty (Starboard / MauiSails), placing him in third over sibling Tonky (Tabou / Gaastra) in fourth.

The ensuing double elimination saw much of the same, as the top four held off sustained attack from the likes of European Champion Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra) to once again battle it out for the podium spots.

Another Frans stand off saw Taty once again over-throw his brother with some savvy sailing, giving him a shot at Estredo, and the event’s number two spot. Unfortunately, cashed moves from Frans and a methodical Estredo meant Taty would have to settle for third in the elimination, teeing up another Thode against Estredo final.

In much the same conditions to the previous day, the pair threw down in 25 knots of cross-onshore wind, and building ramps. Despite a super close heat, a unanimous 5-0 judging decision awarded Thode another victory, and a conclusive event lead at the discipline’s midway point.

The event’s second single elimination started with the bad news that Belgium’s podium hopeful, Van Broeckhoven had injured his knee doing a pushloop, and would be out the running for the remainder of the event. Seizing the situation, Canada’s Philip Soltysiak (Starboard / Dakine), Dieter Van Der Eyken (Severne / Starboard), Yarden Meir (Fanatic / Simmer) and Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra) stepped up their games to challenge the top four in the quarter finals. But with four heats down, the Bonaire-Venezuela axis could not be broken, leaving Estredo to challenge Taty Frans, and Thode to take on Tonky Frans.

The highlight would be Taty Frans, who defied both gravity and convention to pull the first double forward of the event, and arguably ever in Vietnam. Unfortunately, his mind blowing antics didn’t match Estredo’s technical ability, and Estredo advanced to take on Thode, who’d defeated Tonky Frans with a near impeccable score sheet.

The Frans versus Frans battle for third witnessed a changing of the guard, when Tonky put together a styled out routine to topple his uncharacteristically out of form brother. And, further cementing his supremacy on the Mui Ne Grand Slam, Thode again outshone Estredo to stamp his authority on first position.

That left the freestylers the fourth and final day’s double elimination to climb the ranks, and state their claim on the event. Mounting their attacks, Scheffers and Van Der Ekyen came through the double in defiant style to go head to head. In the grudge match, it was Scheffers who dominated, but his advance was quickly halted by the super-slick skills of Frans, who categorically outclassed the Dutchman????.

That meant that the final heats of the second double elimination would mirror those of the previous double elimination on day two. The Frans versus Frans bout gave Tonky a shot at settling the score against his brother, but in what was dubbed ‘the closest heat of the event’, Taty edged victory by a minute margin, leaving Tonky in fourth overall, and Taty to advance one final time to challenge Estredo.

The ensuing heat saw a missed move from Frans on port tack open the door for Estredo to level the scores with Thode in the final heat of the event. As the heat ran it course, it was an unexpected, and rare spectacle to witness Estredo being categorically outclassed by Thode. When the judges announced their verdict, a humbled Estredo graciously accepted second place overall for the event, handing Thode the unanimous event victory, and early lead in the 2011 PWA Freestyle Rankings.

Kiri Thode

The 2011 Vietnam PWA Grand Slam Freestyle Results

1st Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra)

2nd Jose Estredo (Fanatic / North)

3rd Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic)

4th Tonky Frans (Tabou / Gaastra)

5th Dieter Van Eyken (Starboard / Severne)

March 1st – 5th: Men’s and Women’s Slalom

Handing the baton over to the slalom crew, there was barely a breath between the fleet registration, and the first heats hitting the water to christen the opening race elimination. However, progress was to be short lived after Mui Ne’s usually super consistent thermal breeze began to falter, halting progress just short of a result in the men’s elimination, but crowning Alice Arutkin (Starboard / North) the early event leader in the women’s fleet.

The ensuing two days acted as a slow torture, as the Mui Ne micro climate felt the effect of a rogue low pressure system that plagued the local thermal wind cell, and brought hot, humid conditions that killed any hope of resuming racing.

All hopes of securing a conclusive slalom result ultimately boiled down to the competition’s final day, but a mediocre forecast and two windless days sitting fresh in the memory were anything but a positive start to proceedings.

Casting forecasts and sceptics aside, the Mui Ne wind machine chose to defy even the seasoned locals’ predictions, and graced the competition’s final day with a solid 25 knot breeze to wrap the contest up in style.

Opening the action was the men’s winners final from race one, which was won in convincing fashion by Bjorn Dunkerbeck (Starboard / Severne / Mystic) after he took the lead at the first gybe mark, and cruised to an early event lead.

The second slalom elimination saw upset for both Cyril Moussilmani (Starboard / North) who false started, and Finian Maynard (RRD), who both failed to qualify for the final, leaving them to battle it out in the losers final for eleventh position. In the winners final, it was business as usual for Antoine Albeau (JP / NeilPryde) at the front of the fleet, with Dunkerbeck in hot pursuit in second, and a strong performance from Spaniard Ludovic Jossin (Starboard / Loft) in third. The heavyweight losers final was won by Josh Angulo (Angulo / Gun), with Maynard recovering to take second, and Pieter Bijl (JP / NeilPryde) in third.

In the women’s second race, Karin Jaggi (Severne / Patrik) rose to the challenge to take a convincing elimination victory ahead of Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic), who was beginning to seriously threaten taking the top spot, and a consistent Alice Arutkin (Starboard / North) in third.

Moving into the men’s third elimination, the drama really began to unfold when Dunkerbeck was taken down on the start line by a catapulting Cedric Bordes (Tabou / Gaastra), crushing his chances of making the winners final. Also stumbling, Maynard uncharacteristically stuttered for a second time when he missed out on qualifying for the winners final by one position.

The men’s winners final saw yet more of Albeau’s methodical work as he one again dominated the fleet to notch up his second elimination win of the event. In his wake, the Netherlands Peter Volwater (Fanatic / MauiSails) sailed a near text book heat to award him second position, and Julien Quentel (RRD / NeilPryde) make amends for his previous eighteenth and tenth position finishes with a solid third in the race.

The losers final saw yet more back luck for Dunkerbeck who crashed en route to the start line and snapped his mast, ruling him out of the heat. Following suit, Australia’s Steve Allen (Starboard / Severne) also came unstuck in the super choppy Mui Ne conditions, taking him out the running, leaving Benoit Moussilmani (Starboard / Simmer) to capitalise on his opponents mistakes and secure victory.

The women’s third elimination saw Offringa continue her run of form right through to the winners final, where she pieced together a stunning heat to award her victory ahead of Turkey’s Lena Erdil (Patrik / Loft), who was looking like she’d found her form after posting a disappointing ninth and eighth in the previous eliminations, leaving World Champion Jaggi in third.

The final race elimination of the final day stood poised to deliver some seriously intense race action, as the men’s event title lay wide open for numerous challengers to make their bid. Things got even more heated when the number one challenger for the event title, Albeau, fell during his semi final, placing him in the losers final and his title hopes at the mercy of Dunkerbeck’s performance in the winners final.

Following a scramble to get a calculator and compute exactly what implications Albeau’s fall would have on his event title hopes, it was deducted that if Dunkerbeck finished eighth or above, he’d steal the title from Albeau, ninth or lower, and Albeau secured it for himself.

Cue arguably the most exciting race final witnessed in recent years, as the normally collected Dunkerbeck had a catastrophic error and went down mid race, placing him at the back of the fleet, and leaving Albeau rubbing his hands together. But, Dunkerbeck remained defiant, and proceeded to systematically reign in eighth place, leaving a final charge to the finish line between him and Gonzalo Costa Hoevel (Fanatic / North). With barely inches in the call, Dunkerbeck had secured the vital eighth position, in turn handing him the event title, and early season lead ahead of Albeau.

The winners final was won by Maynard, his best result of the event, with Cyril Moussilmani in second, and Jimmy Diaz (Starboard / North), who rounded off a consistent performance in third, securing him third overall for the event. The subsequent losers final was taken by Albeau, who was no doubt reeling from his previous semi final crash.

The women’s final elimination saw Offringa cement her reputation as a serious slalom World Title contender when she scooped another race victory, ahead of Jaggi in second, and Morane Demont (Starboard / Severne) in third, handing her the event victory by a comprehensive points margin. The women’s losers final marked the final heat of the event, which was won by France’s Delphine Cousin (JP / NeilPryde).

The 2011 Vietnam PWA Grand Slam Men’s Slalom Results

1st Bjorn Dunkerbeck (Starboard / Severne / Mystic)

2nd Antoine Albeau (JP / NeilPryde)

3rd Jimmy Diaz (Starboard / North)

4th Ludovic Jossin (Starboard / Loft)

5th Steve Allen (Starboard / Severne)

Bjorn Dunkerbeck

The 2011 Vietnam PWA Grand Slam Women’s Slalom Results

1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / Gaastra / Mystic)

2nd Karin Jaggi (Patrik / Severne)

3rd Alice Arutkin (Starboard / North)

4th Morane Demont (Starboard / Severne)

5th Lena Erdil (Patrik / Loft / Mystic)

The PWA circus now moves onto Austria, where the men’s freestyle fleet will take to the waters of Lake Neusiedler from the 29th April – 4th May. For more information, please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com

Kiri Thode

The fourth day in Vietnam would mark the final day of competition for the freestyle fleet. Having already completed a full double elimination, and a single elimination over the course of the previous three days, the ensuing double elimination would determine the final event standings, and crown the event winner.

With conditions slightly lighter than the hammering winds witnessed on day three, most sailors opted to take 5.0m – 5.3m sails to power them through their routines. Head judge, Duncan Coombs also opted to lower the required amount of moves from four, to three on each tack.

The stand out sailor from the outset was Israel’s Yarden Meir (Fanatic / Simmer), who put in a stunning performance to take down France’s Nicolas Akgazciyan (Starboard / Gun). With expectations running high, it was unfortunate to see the pressure get to the Israeli when he came up against Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra), and failed to deliver anything like his previous heat’s performance.

Scheffer’s advanced to take on Dieter Van Der Eyken (Severne / Starboard) in a grudge match which has been sailed many time before in the past, and historically favored Van Der Eyken. This time round, however, would see Scheffers turn the tables, giving him a chance to try his luck against Bonaire’s Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails) in the following round.

Despite Scheffers showing great potential, when the time came to face off with Frans, it looked more like a battle of the master and his understudy than a battle of equals. On the score sheets both sailors had thrown down similar moves, the difference being Frans’ were almost without exception, perfectly executed, in contrast to Scheffers’ heavily marked down imitations.

Frans’ victory meant he had to endure another bout of sibling rivalry with brother Tonky (Tabou / Gaastra). This one was to be an absolute treat for those lucky enough to watch it, yet posed an almost impossible task for the judges to separate the pair. Following much deliberation, Taty was ultimately awarded the victory, in what was dubbed the closest heat of the event.

Advancing to face Jose Estredo (Fanatic / North), Frans would have one last shot at avenging his previous days‘ losses against the Venezuelan before the competition had run its course. On the water it was difficult to separate either rider on the quality of moves, but on the score sheets, a missed move from Frans on port tack had opened the door for Estredo to clinch victory.

So the stage was then set of the fourth and final Estredo versus Thode (Starboard / Gaastra) stand-off. Estredo was statistically going to be the stronger man, but the reality of the situation placed a dialed in Thode as very much the odds on favourite.

As the heat ran it course, it was a rare spectacle to witness Estredo being categorically outclassed by Thode. That’s not to say Estredo performed badly, in fact far from it, but Thode was picture perfect. Everything from his air bobs through to his improvised one handed culo-pirouette, the execution was sublime. When the judges announced their verdict, a humbled Estredo graciously accepted second place overall for the event, handing Thode the unanimous event victory, and early lead in the 2011 PWA Freestyle Rankings.

Kiri Thode takes first place

The 2011 Vietnam PWA Grand Slam Freestyle Results

1st Kiri Thode (Starboard / Gaastra)

2nd Jose Estredo (Fanatic / North)

3rd Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic)

4th Tonky Frans (Tabou / Gaastra)

5th Dieter Van Eyken (Starboard / Severne)

Tomorrow we hand over to the the men’s and women’s slalom fleets, for their first day of competition. Racing is scheduled to commence from 2.00pm, following the 1.00pm skippers meeting (all times are GMT +7).

Keep up to date with every piece of the action @ www.pwaworldtour.com

Here you can use our:

Live ticker service for heat-by-heat bulletins

Check live elimination ladders

View results

Read daily news summaries

Browse awesome action photo galleries

Follow the event live, with top class commentary from pros and industry insiders.

There’s also a dedicated event website which can be found at www.pwavietnam.com

Or for more information, please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com

Courtesy of Kuma Movie.