KTE - St Gilles Croix de Vie - Frankrijk

Live!: http://www.livestream.com/kitetoureurope?t=165554



Van donderdag 27 oktober tot dinsdag 1 november wordt in het Franse St Gilles Croix de Vie de finale gehouden van de Europese kitesurf tour. De trouwe volger van de evenementen die eerder in Duitsland en Italie werden gehouden volgt een spannende ontknoping van de Europese kite elite. Lukt het Katja om haar eerste plaats te behouden op de race? Lukt het Tijn om zijn huidige positie op het podium te behouden (3de), misschien op te klimmen naar een tweede plek? Is het Jerrie (5de) die nog kan gaan voor een podium plek? Hoe vergaat het de overige Nederlandse deelnemers? We gaan het zien. De weersvoorspellingen zijn in ieder geval goed. Met de combinatie race en freestyle zal er altijd actie op het water zijn! 👍



The beach, called “La Grande Plage”, is the main beach surrounding the city. The Kitesurf Spot in St. Gilles works at every wind direction - even offshore - and is characterised by sometimes large waves. Best wind directions are ususally South and West. Depending on the tide, wind and swell, the waves can get big - a paradise for surfers. The sandy ground makes St. Gilles a safe spot and except for the mole, there are basically no obstacles.


Grotere kaart weergeven

webcam: http://www.surfing-stgilles.com/webcam.php

French local Sebastian Garat and Polish rider Asia Joanna Litwin are the winners of the final stop of the Kitesurf Tour Europe in St. Gilles Croix de Vie, Vendée, France and were crowned European Champions 2011. Seven days of spectacular competitions,varying wind conditions and beautiful waves at the beach of St. Gilles Croix de Vie came to a fabulous end today when the European Champions in Kiteboarding Freestyle as well as the winners of the Kitesurf Tour Europe in Course Racing were crowned.

In men freestyle, the fight for the title was incredibly close. German rider Mario Rodwald won the KTE Germany in the challenging conditions of Sylt leaving competitor Seb Garat from France in 2nd place. The light conditions at the KTE Italy in Lamezia asked for completely different skills and it was again Mario and Seb meeting in the final sharing a first place to a lack of wind. Therefore it all came down to the KTE France in St. Gilles Croix de Vie in the Vendée region - the one who wins in France will be European Champion! In the single eliminations, Mario and Seb made their way to the final and with a view on the wind forecast, it was pretty clear that this heat would decide who is going to take the title. Seb showed an impressive front mobe, 313 and blind judge 3 while Mario perfomed a beautiful s-bend blind, 313 and backmobe but crashed his kite in the waves still leaving the judges with a tough decision. In the end, the French took the win in the singles and although the doubles were started on day 6, the wind dropped at the fight for 5th place. Congrats to Seb Garat, European Champion in Kiteboarding Freestyle 2011!

In the women division, Polish freestyler Asia Joanna Litwin travelled to France as the leader of the KTE ranking and was unstoppable and clearly dominated their fellow riders. In the final of the single eliminations she won against UK rider Holly Kennedy on her first start in the Kitesurf Tour Europe by showing a nice blind judge, slim chance and 313. After her win in Italy and second place in Germany, she is a well-deserved European Champion 2011.

French local racer Julien Kerneur made his way to the Vendée region with the clear mission to win the Kitesurf Tour Europe in the Course Racing division. Julien won 2 out of 4 races but was defeated by Dutch racer Rolf van der Vlucht who scored a better overall ranking. In third place, Maxime Nocher demonstrated again his top European level and challenged his fellow racers. Nevertheless, Julien Kerneur remains the leader in the overall tour ranking 2011 and celebrated his victory on the podium in the sun of St. Gilles Croix de Vie.

For Dutch racer Katja Roose, the 2011 season was a very successful one. At the World Championships in Sylt, she became second overall and then dominated the KTE Italy by winning every single race in the light wind conditions of Lamezia in Southern Italy. Here in France, she again left no doubt about who is the fastest European female racer by winning all races and clearly dominating the women fleet. As a result, Katja is the well-deserved winner of the KTE France and of the overall Kitesurf Tour Europe 2011 in course racing women. In second place overall finished Christine Boenniger (GER) and Ines Correia (POR) on third place

This was the Kitesurf Tour Europe 2011 with three very different stops that asked for a great variety of riding skills from large waves to choppy water and light to very strong wind conditions. The feedback of the riders has been very positive enjoying the atmosphere in the tour and the high quality, professional level during the events. For 2012, the Kitesurf Tour Europe has the clear aim to expand to other metropolitan areas and core European markets to push kitesurfing to the next level - with more riders, more stops and more spectators on the beach.