35th Gran Canaria Windsurf World Cup Pozo Izquierdo - Day 5
by Gran Canaria Windsurf World Cup 5 Jul 2023 23:28 BST
1-9 July 2023
Blanca Alabau (ESP) leading Women Slalom - 35th Gran Canaria Windsurf World Cup Pozo Izquierdo, Day 5 © John Carter
The Spanish and the Croatian have been crowned world champions in the Slalom discipline of the Gran Canaria World Cup 2023, the second event of the PWA World Tour.
With 30 knots and many falls from the riders competing in foil, Pozo Izquierdo has experienced adrenaline-filled finals of the women's and men's Slalom races, in which the Spanish athlete Blanca Alabau (19.2 points) and the Croatian athlete Enrico Marotti (18.1 points) were proclaimed world champions in Gran Canaria. They both led the rankings during the three days of the World Cup. "Both Blanca and Enrico proved to be the fastest, as well as having great control of the foil in these windy conditions that caused many falls today," explained the head judge of the competition, Luis Escribano.
For the Sevillian rider, competing in Pozo Izquierdo has been quite a challenge, although she managed to stay in the top 5 throughout all the races. "I'm very happy with the result achieved here in Gran Canaria. My goal was to be in the top 5, and I've accomplished it," exclaimed the windsurfer, who not only won in Gran Canaria but also secured the top spot in the world rankings, surpassing the French athlete Justine Lemeteyer. "I hope to continue in the first position," Alabau added.
During the five races held on Wednesday in the women's category, the French athlete Marion Mortefon and the British athlete Jenna Gibson each claimed two victories, while Alabau managed to win the final of the second round. However, after applying the discards for their three worst scores, the Aruban athlete Sarah-Quita Offringa (25.4) secured second place in Slalom in Gran Canaria, as well as second place overall in Wave, followed by Marion Mortefon (33.8) and Jenna Gibson (38.1).
In the men's fleet, the Croatian athlete Enrico Marotti (18.1) managed to maintain the Slalom crown in Gran Canaria thanks to the two discards from the ten races held, in addition to winning one of the three finals on Wednesday. "I managed to sail well, maintain the level, and be consistent," commented Marotti. For the winner of the Gran Canaria World Cup 2023 Slalom, the conditions were "incredible," although "it's always a great challenge to sail in this wind." He then thanked the organization, especially for bringing back Slalom after 14 years. "Coming back here and feeling the warmth of the people, seeing how they enjoy surfing, is beautiful," concluded the Croatian windsurfer.
The other two victories of the day went to the German athlete Nicolas Prien (who remains in the top 5 but loses the third position in the standings) and the Italian athlete Bruno Martino, who finished ninth on the island. Finally, Maciek Rutkowski (Poland) retains the second-place position on the podium in Gran Canaria, currently leading the world rankings and winning the first Slalom event of the PWA tour held in Italy. Both in Gran Canaria and internationally, the French athlete Pierre Mortefon continues to closely follow the Polish athlete, after finishing third on the island and second in the PWA World Tour Ranking.
During the awards ceremony for the Slalom event, held after the qualifying rounds on Thursday, the Sports Councilor of the Santa Lucía City Council, Julio Ojeda, was present to congratulate the winners and expresshis satisfaction with the return of this discipline to the Pozo Izquierdo World Cup. He was accompanied by the organizer of the Gran Canaria Windsurf World Cup, Björn Dunkerbeck.
Youth categories will compete on Thursday
The predicted wind and wave conditions will allow the competition to resume in the Wave discipline of the Windsurf World Cup. It is expected that Pozo Izquierdo will host the youth categories, with a focus on the under 17 and under 20 divisions. Among the local favorites are Liam Dunkerbeck, Julia Pasquale, and Alexia Kiefer (competing for Germany), as well as María Morales from Tenerife.
The PWA Windsurf World Championship is sponsored by the Gran Canaria Island Council, through the Sports and Tourism departments; the Tourism Department of the Government of the Canary Islands; the Santa Lucía de Tirajana City Council; as well as private companies such as Red Bull, Windsurf Journal, DailyDose.de, Jaklar, Poema del Mar, Loro Parque Foundation, Seven Island Film, Surf Magazine, Volkswagen, WS, WIND, SURF, Waterspeed, AS Acción, among others.