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EDP Kite Surf pro Cascais finishes.
Sun June 10th
Today saw the culmination of the EDP Kite Surf Pro Cascais World Championship tour event in which thirty-six of the world's top kite surfers from seventeen nations came together at Guincho Beach in Cascais, Portugal, the first-ever European tour stop for the KSP.
During the ten-day holding period, competitors battled it out on waves up to 2.5 meters high in side-onshore winds, ideal for new-school, progressive aerial maneuvers. Explosive performances were delivered by several riders, including Keahi De Aboitiz (AUS/Cabrinha), 19, whose fin free hacks and air reverses secured him a first place win in his heat, and Mitu Monteiro (CPV/F-One), 28, who turned heads with his flowing turns and radical style. Top heat scores of the event included Guilly Brandao (BRA), 31, up-and-comer Sebastian Ribeiro (BRA), 19, and Kari Schibevaag (NOR/Ozone), 33.
Although conditions did not allow for the entire elimination ladder to be completed and points to be accrued towards the world ranking, Best Wave Awards were rewarded to the riders with the highest single wave scores as follows:
Best Wave Awards Male:
1. Guilly Brandao (BRA)
2. Mitu Monteiro (CPV/F-One)
3. Paulino Perreira (POR)
Best Wave Awards Female:
1. Kristin Boese (GER/Best)
2. Kirsty Jones (GBR/North)
3. Kari Schibevaag (NOR/Ozone)
The EDP Kite Surf Pro Cascais was supported by EDP, the City of Cascais, Best Kiteboarding, Nissan, TMN, MEO, Telepizza and Buondi as well as national media partners RFM and RTP.
The next stop of the 2012 KSP World Championship Tour will be held on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius and will run from September 7th through 16th. We'll be there once again with Kristin, Pedro and Stru looking to make the waves their own.
Sat June 9th
Cascais, Portugal - June 9, 2012: Following an exciting day of competition yesterday, officials called a lay day for day 9 of the EDP Kite Surf Pro Cascais World Championship Tour event due to light and variable winds. The forecast looks good for tomorrow, the last day of the holding period for the event.
Yesterday's non-stop action saw the world's best kite surfers battle their way through 17 heats. (Watch the day 8 wrap-up clip here.) However, there are 32 remaining heats - 23 in the men's division and 9 in the women's division - with tomorrow being the final day of the event. Contest officials and competitors were disappointed that additional rounds couldn't be run today. "We still have quite a few heats to get through tomorrow and if the conditions are contestable, we'll run men's and women's heats simultaneously again, which worked out really well yesterday and saves us a lot of time." said Kristin Boese, KSP's President and Tour Manager.
If conditions allow for the competition to resume tomorrow, several matchups promise to be thrilling. In the women's fourth round, two champions will square off: Kari Schibevaag (NOR/Ozone) against nine-time world champion, Kristin Boese (GER/Best). In round four of the men's division, good friends Airton Cozzolino (ITA/North) and Matchu Almeida (CPV/North), will face-off against each other. The battle between Almeida, an explosive up-and-comer, and Cozzolino, the 2011 KSP World Champion, is expected to be a tight showdown since the two plan to maximize their scoring potential with difficult aerial maneuvers.
Contest officials and riders will meet tomorrow at 10 A.M. (Portugal time) to evaluate conditions and potential start times for the last day of the competition.
Fri June 8th
June 8, 2012: With the return of the wind to Guincho Beach, the EDP Kite Surf Pro Cascais World Championship Tour event resumed today. After four consecutive lay days, the event picked up where it left off in the first round of competition: men's heat six. With fluid top-to-bottom surfing and by strategically picking his waves, Sky Solbach (USA/North) prevailed over Nuno Figueiredo (POR/Best) and Jakop Appel (DEN). "I just tried to pick my waves wisely in the shifty conditions. The light wind made it difficult, but I'm stoked to make it through to the next round." said Solbach.
Other round one men's heat winners include the 2011 KSP World Champion Airton Cozzolino (ITA/North), and Matchu Almeida (CPV/North). Almeida defeated seasoned competitor Etienne Lhote (FRA/F-One) in a surprise upset. The heat winners of women's round one were: Kristin Boese (GER/Best), Kari Schibevaag (NOR/Ozone), Melissa Gil (USA/Cabrinha) and 2011 KSP World Champion Ines Correira (POR). Following the completion of round one, KSP Officials made the call to simultaneously run the men's and women's heats in the interest of saving time and taking advantage of the remaining contestable days.
Men's round two kicked off with an exciting performance by Guilly Brandao (BRA) who took command of his heat with powerful carves and vertical hacks. He earned 15.06 points, the highest heat total of the event so far. Filippe Ferreira (BRA), Jon Modica (USA/Cabrinha), Paulino Pereira (POR) and Bastien Bollard (FRA/Underground) also won their heats and will advance to round three. The wind backed off during men's heat fourteen and heat nine of the women's draw, forcing contest officials to postpone the heats due to less than ideal conditions. Contest officials were able to run the entirety of women's round two as conditions improved throughout the afternoon. Winners included: Mlla Ferreira (BRA), Ainhoa Garcia (ESP), Kirsty Jones (GBR/North), and Jalou Langeree (NED/Naish). Langeree showed her true competitive spirit competing with an injury sustained earlier this week .
Conditions allowed the first heat of women's round three to begin, matching the on-fire Ferreira against sentimental favorite Langeree. Ferreira edged out Langeree to take the win and advance to round four of the ladder. Contest officials and riders will meet tomorrow at 10 A.M. (Portugal time) to evaluate conditions and potential start times for day nine of the competition.
Catch the best pictures from today at photo's from June 8th
Thurs June 7th
While there's been little wind we've still been hard at work. So here's some shots from the week so far.
Wed June 6th Low cloud cover suppressed the wind today at the EDP Kite Surf Pro Cascais World Championship Tour event, compelling officials to call the third consecutive lay day for the competition in Portugal.
Both the wind and swell have been forecasted to improve significantly tomorrow. The first of four stops on the 2012 KSP World Championship Tour, the competition enjoyed exhilarating action during the third day of the waiting period, and will recommence when conditions become contestable.
A new swell has already begun filling in and is expected to increase into the weekend. Competitors have been taking advantage of the improved wave conditions to surf and practice for their upcoming heats.
While the competition was on hold, children from the International Preparatory School Carcavelos visited the VIP room today to meet the star professional athletes on the KSP World Championship Tour and learn about kite surfing. Marciel "Matchu" Lopes Almeida (CPV/North Kiteboarding), Cameron Biehl (USA), and Mitu Monteiro (CPV/F-One) gave presentations to the group of enthralled kids. Many of the pros signed autographs on the childrens' arms, hats and shoes, which the students proudly displayed as badges of honor. The drizzle didn't dampen their enthusiasm - the kids also got a kite surfing demonstration on the beach.
Tues June 5th
Light winds compelled contest officials to call a lay day on day five of the EDP Kite Surf Pro Cascais World Championship Tour event. Forecast models call for increasing swell and wind as the week progresses.
Riders today took advantage of brief, variable mid-day winds to practice for upcoming heats. Among them was 2011 World Champion, Airton Cozzolino (Cape Verde/North), who warmed up for his showdown against Spanish wave champion, Abel Lago, and American Cameron Biehl.
"I was trying big bottom turns, air reverses, handle passes and air 360s, which I hope to try in my heat," said Cozzolino. "Abel has competed so many times before and is really good in competition, so the heat will be challenging. I've never competed against Cameron, so I don't know what he has in store but I'm sure it will be good. I really want to advance to go up against Keahi de Aboitiz (Australia/Cabrinha), Mitu Monteiro (Cape Verde/F-One) and Sebastian Ribeiro (Brazil) - competing against them will be difficult and interesting."
Mon June 4th
Heats on demand from yesterday are now available on Metacafe. Be sure to check out the standout performances by top international pro kite surfers, including heat winners Sebastian Ribeiro (Brazil), Keahi De Aboitiz (Australia), Mitu Monteiro (Cape Verde), Lee Harvey (GBR) and Gonzalo Gomes (POR).
With the swell and wind forecast looking promising for the remainder of the week, the competition is expected to resume in the next days. The next call for the competition will be tomorrow, June 5, at 10 A.M. Portugal time (UTC). Before then here's an introduction to the judging criteria for the competition heats.
SUN June 3rd
Consistent surf and stacked heats made for an exciting first day of competition at the EDP Kite Surf Pro Cascais World Championship Tour event in Portugal.
Riders showcased their world-class skills in side on-shore winds and shoulder- to head-high waves today. Australian Keahi De Aboitiz, 19, 2011 PKRA Wave Tour winner, dominated the second men's heat with powerful aerial maneuvers.
"I got pretty lucky during the first 20 seconds of the heat and had a nice wall on takeoff, a couple of nice sections, and then it reformed on the inside and gave me some good sections to hit to maximize my scoring potential," said De Aboitiz. "I had an air reverse and a fin-bust that felt pretty good."
Another banner performance was delivered in the forth men's heat when Mitu Monteiro (Cape Verde), 28, got barreled on the inside sand bank. The 2008 Kite Surfing World Champion later nailed a frontside air, which helped him secure a 1st place win in his heat. He also earned the highest single-wave score of the day with 8.17 out of 10.
Other heat winners of today included top-scorer Sebastian Ribeiro of Brazil, 19, who was voted "top up-and-comer" at the 2011 Pacasmayo Kite Surf Pro event and scored a total of 14.2 points; Lee Harvey (UK), 34, who placed 10th on the 2011 KSP World Championship Tour; and Gonçalo Gomes of Portugal, 20, 2011 Ocean Spirit Champion. A local favorite, Gomes learned to windsurf at Guincho and earned the loudest cheers from the crowd on the beach at today's competition. After his win, Gomes' fans waved the Portuguese flag in his honor.
SAT June 2nd
It looks like we are being treated to yet another windless day today so here's a quick intro to new wave team rider Pedro Henrique.
FRI June 1st:
The 2012 KSP Tour kicks off with the first day of competition today. There's not enough wind to compete this morning and the forecast looks light for the rest of the day. There's wind due over the weekend and we hope to be bale to bring you all the action when it happens. In the meantime here's a sneak peak of what we've been working on with the BEST wave team.
We'll have the live stream for you to watch every day. We'll be backing the live feed up with rider chat, interviews and photos from every day of the event so be sure to check back in regularly.
>MAY 25th:
BEST announces sponsorship of 1st KSP event of 2012 season.
BEST team riders, Pedro Henrique, Nuno Stru and Kristin Boese will give the new 2013 Cabo its first competitive outing at the event. Headquartered within site of the waves at Guincho beach BEST are ideally positioned to partner with the KSP. Kite designer Peter Stiewe commented, "There's a great synergy between the KSP and BEST, with the release of our new wave kite, the Cabo, we have a dedicated wave kite with which our team riders can take on the best in the world". Team Rider Nuno Stru said, "The Cabo has been developed right here in Guincho. There's no better way build the perfect wave kite than to have some of the best waves in Europe right on your doorstep."