Title Race Wide Open at the Mid-Season Point of the GKA Kite-Surf World Championship
by Ian MacKinnon 29 Sep 03:10 PDT
29 September – 6 October 2024
GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Dakhla © Lukas K Stiller
GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Dakhla © Lukas K Stiller
GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Dakhla © Lukas K Stiller
The third stop of the Kite-Surf tour returns to Dakhla as the gap between the leaders tightens following changes in rankings.
The competition for the Qatar Airways GKA Kite-Surf World Championship title is set to intensify when the tour revisits Morocco for a mid-season clash at Dakhla’s long right-hand point-break.
The distance between the top athletes in the standings narrowed after the tour’s second event in Sylt, Germany, where the rankings shifted. This adds pressure on competitors at the GKA Kite-Surf World Cup in Dakhla who aim to keep their title aspirations alive.
Current men’s world champion, Airton Cozzolino from Cape Verde (ITA), retains his top spot by a narrow margin over Benetton. However, Cozzolino’s unexpected quarter-final exit in Germany, where he finished fifth, has diminished his lead.
Young Brazilian Gabriel Benetton’s second-place finish in Sylt has elevated him to second in the rankings. He was ultimately defeated in the final by a revitalized James Carew (AUS), who returned from an 18-month injury hiatus, eager for his third world title. Carew, who missed the first event in Cape Verde, is currently ranked fifth.
Surprising Loss
Brazil’s Pedro Matos, last year’s champion in Dakhla, had a disappointing outcome in Sylt, finishing ninth after an unexpected loss to Lorenzo Casati (ESP) during the mixed-format competition combining wave surfing and strapless freestyle. Matos is third overall in the rankings.
Another Cape Verdean, Matchu Lopes (ESP), who won two tour stops last year, has faced a challenging start to the season. With back-to-back fifth-place finishes, he currently holds the fourth position in the overall standings.
Sebastian Ribeiro (BRA) opted out of the Sylt event, treating it as a discard. Ribeiro prefers traditional wave surfing competitions and hopes that the remaining events in Dakhla and Brazil will maintain this format.
Twenty-four men and 14 women from 14 countries worldwide are set to compete at Oum Lamboiur, a long right-hander that peaks at the point by the Westpoint Dakhla hotel and wraps around into a sandy bay.
Leading the Rankings
France’s Capucine Delannoy aims to build upon her title momentum in hopes of reclaiming the crown she lost last year to the US’s Moona Whyte, who has returned to the tour after a four-year break.
Whyte triumphed in the opening event in Cape Verde in February but was absent from Sylt, announcing plans to take a step back for the rest of the year. Delannoy, only 17, recently won in Germany and is currently at the top of the rankings.
Each of the top three women has improved their rankings, with Switzerland’s Camille Losserand in second place and Brazil’s Kesiane Rodrigues in third.
Join us for all the action to see who can enhance their title prospects here.
