The ISAF kiteboarding format trials wrapped up last Sunday in Santander, Spain, which will be host to the 2014 ISAF Sailing World Championship. The original task - finding a racing and event format that shows kiteboard racing at its best - was completed quickly with a great outcome that will give the sport of sailing another boost and brings sailing to the level of X-Games. The new format is made for fleets of any size, but adds spectacular elements and a medal race series in elimination, which will add all the drama that other sports have - this is the way how heroes are made.
The even more important task - to showcase that kiteboarding is mature and ready for the 2016 games - was also handled with great success. The ISAF evaluation panel as well as ISAF president Goran Petersson and vice president Teresa Lara were impressed by performance and professionalism - and well noticed the excitement that kiteboarding is able to create to bring a completely new audience into the sailing family. This is especially true for all the kids in the emerging nations - kiteboarding equipment is the most affordable one of all Olympic classes equipment, it can be bought in every shop on every beach in the world, and it does not require expensive infrastructure, neither harbors nor in terms of travelling as it can be taken as normal luggage on any plane.