Day 6:

On the sixth and final day of the Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup, the title races for the slalom discipline came to an exciting crescendo for both the men’s and women’s divisions. Challenging conditions and intense action lit up the water as the world title races came down to this final day of the last slalom event of the year. Bryan Lake (US) and Katja Roose (NL) secured their title spots becoming the 2014 PKRA Slalom World Champions. 

As the riders arrived to the beach, the strong winds from the day prior were still blowing 20-25 knots on the course, putting the fleet on edge due to the bumpy conditions and breaking waves at the finish line. Three rounds of racing were completed and with the slalom world titles on the line, aggressive racing and thrilling action highlighted the day. 

The women’s battle-came down to the last race of the event between Roose and Annelous Lammerts (NL) who were neck and neck coming into the day.  After two races, it came down to the very last race of the event. “It was so close!” said Roose. “I was really determined to win one of the races today, but it didn’t go my way in that respect, but I came to win the world title and I secured that, so I’m very happy. Its a big relief.”
 

Roose was keenly aware that she needed to take this event to secure the world title. “My win here came down to the discards, one of which was a redress from the first race where I was tangled with another racer. Annelous and I were equal for the event, and so it all came down to the very end.” 

Bryan Lake was the one to chase here in the men’s division earning bullets the entire event. “I feel great” he exclaimed. “Man, I can’t believe I did it!  I’m going to sleep well tonight finally. I didn’t sleep at all last night because I knew it was going to be gnarly today.” Lake seemed untouchable here in Pingtan, occasionally relinquishing the lead at an early mark, only to accelerate back to the front on the straightway. 

“I came out going fast and the big breeze does kind of favor me” he added. “I just didn’t look back.  It was like a mogul field out there, I was on my smallest kite and it feels good to come out on top when I’m really challenged.”

The winner for the women’s freestyle event here in Pingtan is still in a stalemate as a difficult decision was made to re-run the super-final between Gisela Pulido (ES) and Karolina Winkowska (PL). The judgement was made after the release of the results that declared Pulido the winner of the heat, thus rendering her win invalid.

What happened was an extraordinary situation where, following the announcement of the podium finishers in the women’s division, Winkowska reviewed her scores and brought a missed trick to the attention of head judge Sami Gali. Upon further investigation, eyewitness accounts from riders and video evidence of the trick confirmed that there was a maneuver from Winkowska that was not seen by any of the judges. The PKRA judging panel confirmed that this missing trick from the final seconds of the heat could change the results, and the decision was made to re-run the super final.  

Immediately following this decision, Pulido suffered an unfortunate injury to her foot requiring medical attention and the re-run of the super-final was postponed until today, awaiting the outcome of the injury from Pulido.  At the scheduled start time, Gisela’s injury was such that she was unable to compete. 

The PKRA committee took the decision that the best possible arrangement was to postpone the re-run until the next event in Hainan, set to take place in two days.  “We felt that this is the best decision as we want to give the fairest arrangement for both riders and for them to have the same chances that they had here in Pingtan” commented PKRA Head Judge Sami Gali. “The mistake was from the PKRA judging committee, and we couldn’t reproduce the same scenario today, giving each rider the same chance to compete, because of one of the competitors injury that happened after the heat” he added.

This unique situation now puts the Pulido and Winkowska technically both in first place at the end of this event, with the tie-breaking heat to be held at the last tour stop in Hainan Island, China. The suspense of the women’s freestyle world title race now shifts to our next stop at the Hainan International Kitesurf Festival November 1st – 5th as these two former world champions continue to battle for the 2014 World Title. 

2014 Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup Results 

FREESTYLE MEN:
1st Youri Zoon (NL) 
2nd Christophe Tack (BE)
3rd Liam Whaley (ES)

FREESTYLE WOMEN:
1st Pulido (ES) 
1st Winkowska (PO) 
3rd Lammerts (NL)

SLALOM MEN:
1st Lake (US) 
2nd Kerneur (FR)
3rd Crathern (UK)

SLALOM WOMEN:
1st  Roose (NL)
2nd Lammerts (NL)
3rd Magaji (SK)

TT RACE MEN:
1st Kerneur (FR)
2nd Lake (US) 
3rd Serin (FR)

TT RACE WOMEN:
1st  Roose (NL)
2nd Tingle (CN)
3rd Magaji (SK)

Congratulations to the 2014 PKRA World Champions

Christophe Tack (BE)- Men’s Freestyle World Champion
Bryan Lake (US) Men’s Slalom World Champion
Katja Roose (NL) Women’s World Champion

Overall Slalom World Rankings

MEN:
1st Lake (US)
2nd Kerneur (FR)
3rd Smith (SA)

WOMEN:
1st  Roose (NL)
2nd Lammerts (NL)
3rd Magaji (SK)

Day 5:

Day five of the Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup dealt heavy conditions suitable for the epic battles that would ensue. Youri Zoon (NL) put together an explosive final heat to win the event, while Christophe Tack (BE) stopped Liam Whaley’s (ES) run at the title securing his place as the 2014 PKRA Freestyle World Champion.

Zoon’s win here does not weigh heavily on the rankings but proves that he is back from his injury and is ready to be a title contender in the 2015 season.  “For me it was just something to prove. Standing in eighth place before competition, I had no pressure at all. I’ve been training a lot, competing all of these years, I’ve been two-times world champion and wanted to prove that I could still do it.”   

Landing a massive Blind Judge 7 and a 317 within the first minute of his heat in the final, Zoon scored big and set the tone for the remainder of the heat despite some impressive kicker tricks from Tack.  “I won, but I’m most happy that I rode a really nice heat and showed what I the sport is all about” he added.

All eyes were on the heat between Tack and Whaley, as it would decide whether the battle for the world title would come down to the last stop in Hainan, or be determined here in Pingtan. In one of the highest scoring heats in PKRA freestyle history, Tack crushed Whaley’s chance at the title earning 40.4 points with an impressive Front-side 720, Toe-side Backside 5 and Blind Judge 5, amongst others.  “It’s like a dream come true, just unreal- after all these years” he exclaimed. 

“I’ve been really focused on breathing and being present in the moment. Not having thoughts about the past or future, just thinking about what I want to achieve and visualizing success. For the eight minutes before the heat I was just breathing in and breathing out. I didn’t go into the heat with a fixed routine, but I just did the tricks that I felt to do. I saw Liam and said okay, I need to do this, let’s finish it off. Once I landed the Seven and Toe Back Five, I was like, okay this is going my way.”

Annelous Lammerts (NL) ousted Bruna Kajiya (BR) taking over the third place spot but fell to Karolina Winkowska (PL) in the next round. Highlighting the women’s action was the world title battle between Winkowska and Gisela Pulido (ES). With challenging conditions for the girls riding their smallest kites, Pulido succumbed to Winkowska in the final by a narrow margin, forcing a super-final, whose results were deemed to be inconclusive. A re-run of the women’s super final will be held tomorrow, the last day of competition. Winkowska’s win was able to stop Pulido’s advance at the title, if only momentarily. If Pulido wins tomorrow, the title race will come down to the last tour stop next week in Hainan, China.  

Highlight heats recorded live can be viewed on the PKRA Youtube Channel.

Tomorrow’s forecast is for winds to be 15-20 knots. Riders meeting will be at at 12 pm with a first possible start at 1 pm. 

Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup Men's Double Elimination Results:

1st – Youri Zoon (NL)

2nd – Christophe Tack (BE)

3rd – Liam Whaley (ES)

Day 4:

Youri Zoon (NL) and Gisela Pulido (ES) earn the top podium spots in the freestyle single elimination on day four of the Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup. The win by Pulido is a step toward keeping her in contention for the world title race against Karolina Winkowska (PL), currently ranked first.  Zoon’s win today, his first since returning from injury, took him past men’s world title contenders Liam Whaley (ES) and Christophe Tack (BE). The results moving forward into the double elimination, will weight heavily in the outcomes of the race for the world titles. 

The forecast delivered ideal freestyle conditions today with winds averaging over 20 knots and riders using 6m-10m kites. The falling tide offered flat-water sections between kicker sets that made for dynamic and challenging conditions as the wind increased throughout the afternoon.

Finishing the full women’s ladder before starting the men’s, the top women made the best of the difficult conditions on their small kites. “It was hard out there today,” claimed Winkowska.  Her performance against Pulido wasn’t enough as she fell to the current world champion in her final heat. Pulido seemed to find her groove on the water today, “I just tried to enjoy myself and to have no pressure at all. I can’t be third, so I have nothing to lose, I’m second anyway” she explained.  “Of course I didn’t ride as well as I would have liked to, but considering the conditions and how strong the wind was, I still rode quite well, so I’m really happy.” 

The men’s ladder saw no easy heats as heavy matches took place straight out of the gate. With ample opportunities for big kicker hits on the reach out and flat-water sections between the sets on the way in, multiple flat spins and double pass tricks were the flavors of the day. Zoon was on fire and seemed to have his doubles dialed, “I had a new tactic, I just tried to throw as many doubles as possible and go as big as I could” he admitted.

“I’m sitting in the back so I don’t really have a lot of pressure, but of course I want to win to prove it to myself. The race now is between Christophe and Liam. We’ll see who can handle the pressure most and can come up again in the final.”

With the Hainan, China stop following the event here in Pingtan being the last event of the tour season, the battles for the world titles come down to these last two events, and quite possibly, down to tomorrow’s double elimination. The most interesting heats of the day won’t necessarily be the final, but the heats between Tack and Whaley and Winkowska and Pulido.

The 2014 Title race scenarios are now as follows: 

Men’s scenarios

-If Whaley wins at Pingtan and Hainan then he is World Champion regardless of Tack’s results.

-If Tack wins at Pingtan or Hainan, then he is World Champion regardless of Whaley’s results.

-If Liam finishes 2nd in Pingtan and Tack finishes in 3rd or worse, then both Tack and Whaley are still in contention for the title depending on the Hainan results.

Women’s scenarios:

-If Pulido wins in Pingtan and Hainan then she is World Champion regardless of Winkowska’s results

-If Winkowska wins Pingtan or Hainan, then she is World Champion regardless of Pulido’s results.

These critical heats will be looming over the tomorrow’s double elimination. The forecast is for strong winds to continue with two days remaining in the contest holding period.

Tomorrow, riders will meet at 10 am with a first possible start at 10:30 am. The event will not be live streamed due to restrictions on live broadcasts by the Chinese government, however heats will be uploaded to the PKRA Youtube account at the end of each day.

Day 3:

Day three of the Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup came up short on wind as the forecast had predicted resulting in a lay day for the competition. Riders arrived to the beach for the 10:30 am meeting greeted by overcast skies and glassy conditions that showed little promise for the wind to increase to contestable levels.  Still hopeful for a surprise thermal wind, competitors were kept on hold until 2 pm when they were officially released for the day.

In spite of the lack of wind, riders and staff used the time wisely to relax, do some shopping, and enjoy some of the local touristic sites. Some of the freestyle competitors used the time for cross-training workouts in preparation for the strong winds that are forecast to begin blowing tonight and throughout the remainder of the contest period. The freestyle discipline will now take priority as conditions are expected to be strongest on Monday and Tuesday.

With three days remaining in the event and a favorable forecast for the coming days, the stage is set for the battles for the freestyle world titles to continue. Liam Whaley’s (ES) performance here will be make or break for the young Spaniard. He needs to win this event if he is to hold on to any hope of dethroning Christophe Tack (BE) from the top spot.  The women’s competition is equally important with Karolina Winkowska (PL) holding on to the first rank position by only a narrow margin, and Gisela Pulido (ES) hungry to reestablish her title as world champion for yet another year. 

Tomorrow, riders will meet at 10:30 m with a first possible start at 11 am. The event will not be live streamed due to restrictions on live broadcasts by the Chinese government, however heats will be uploaded to the PKRA Youtube account at the end of each day. 

Day 2:

Exciting slalom action highlighted Day 2 of the Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup. The fleet of focused riders took to the water in 10-16 knots of wind and three full rounds of slalom racing were completed.  Katja Roose (NL) and Brian Lake (US) sailed flawless heats to earn the first place spots in today’s overall results.

Yesterday’s twin-tip races seemed an appropriate warm-up for the competitors participating in the slalom discipline today, as riders were already amped from the first pulses of competition from the day prior. Using kites ranging from 13-16 meters, the wind became quite inconsistent as the day progressed. Although some racers chose to use twin-tip boards, those that rode directional boards clearly had an advantage.  

The beach at the event site was packed full with the weekend crowds. Many locals turned out to support the competitors and to witness the action on the water. At times, fans and onlookers would surround the competitors, shaking their hands and asking to take their photographs, clearly excited in their presence and happy to welcome them to their city.

Today’s racing action saw excellent performances by Lake and Julien Kerneur (FR) who were in a league of their own with some closely contested battles to the first mark. Despite quick transitions around the buoys by Kerneur, Lake’s fin-melting top end speed allowed him to take the lead on the longer reaches of the course. Commenting on his last race of the day, “I was behind from the start and was underpowered because the wind really dropped, I knew that I was in trouble as Julien was beating me to the mark, so I tried to snake inside of him.  I almost had him, but then I decided to just get a good jibe and try to overtake him on the next leg. I definitely had a couple knots on him.” 

In the women’s fleet it was Roose that dominated the day for the ladies scoring bullets in all of the days races. Some close battles went down for the second and third positions and provided some of the most action-packed heats of the day. Photo finishes made it difficult to be certain who finished ahead for the many spectators lining the beach.

Tomorrow’s hope is for the great action of the Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup to continue despite a forecast for decreasing wind. Riders will meet at 10:30 am with a first possible start at 11 am. 

Day 1:

The first day of the Pingtan Kiteboarding World Cup got underway today in side-onshore wind that was ideal for the start of the twin-tip course racing discipline.  In total, three full races were run and Julien Kerneur (FR) and Katya Roose (NL) swept their respective fleets in each of the day’s races.

Starting the day off early, the opening ceremony was held in full Chinese style with dignitaries and local officials present to welcome the riders and officially open the competition. After a quick break for lunch, the wind was already blowing up to eighteen knots and twenty-one men and ten women took to the water to do battle around the three-buoy course that was punctuated by a long upwind mark immediately following the start.

Riders from both the freestyle and slalom disciplines competed amongst a large field of Chinese competitors. In the end, the more seasoned racers had the advantage and proved to be fastest around the course.

In the evening, registration for the freestyle event was finalized and in total, 49 riders representing 18 nationalities registered for this very important event. With so much at stake for both the freestyle and slalom disciplines, the anticipation from competitors is palpable. This event will decide the men and women’s slalom world titles. Also, the results here can decide the fate for both the men and women’s freestyle world titles, even with one more event remaining. 

As the week continues on, the stage is set for epic battles to ensue. The event site in Pingtan offers consistent wind, wide sandy beaches and all the elements required for the worlds best to put it all on the line in hopes to advance in the rankings, and for some, to secure the title of 2015 PKRA World Champion.

The forecast for the next two days is for wind ranging from 12-16 knots. Race director Erik Troostheide anticipates beginning the slalom discipline tomorrow. Riders will meet at 11 am with a first possible start at 1 pm. The wind is expected to increase on Monday when it is likely we will begin the start of the freestyle single elimination.

Registration Day

The PKRA is back in Pingtan, China for what is sure to be another banner event. This year the event features three disciplines including Freestyle, Slalom, and a Twin- tip Course Race. Following the phenomenal conditions that were had here last year, this second-time event has been widely anticipated by many of the competitors, not only for the great and reliable conditions, but also because of the intense competition set to unfold as the race for the freestyle world titles is coming down to the last two events.  This event marks the final stop of the slalom season where the slalom world champions will be decided. With a hotly competitive field of both men and women present and hungry for the win, this is going to be a week to remember. 

Registration officially opened today for all disciplines and will remain open for slalom and freestyle for another day. Tomorrow, an opening ceremony will celebrate and officially kick off the event at 9:30 am. The competition will get underway with the first possible start of the twin-tip race at 11 am. The conditions forecast for the week look to be lighter slalom wind early on in the holding period, then building to strong freestyle conditions starting on Monday. As always, stay posted to the PKRA Facebook and Twitter feeds for all the latest results and news from the event. 

Jaja ,  Christophe Tack is wereldkampioen 

Youri is een dikke baas.

De finale jureerde ik niet, omdat tack een belg is, dus ik dacht, ff op strand gaan kijken.

Youri startte de heat met een dikke backside 317. Jezus wat een baas haha.

De view is zoveel beter van op strand dan van op zo'n veeel te hoge toren!