SCROLL DOWN FOR THE LIVESTREAM FEED, LIVE SCORES AND HEAT LADDERS
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LIVETICKER DAY 6 (GMT+2) (SUNDAY – FINAL DAY)
Current discipline: Women’s Freestyle Single Elimination: semi-finals
19.41 Event still on hold. Find an overview on the situation – click here.
18.30 Pippa van Iersel had just got herself back into contention after a poor start: a crash and a 3.83 for a raley-to-blind, but the conditions are difficult – up and down, a bit choppy. So many people and competitors. Hard to focus with the big party on the beach! This is kitesurfing in Tarifa! Looks like it’s going to be between Taabel, Valesa and van Iersel. Maureen Castelle from France in fourth has 0.7 points from a raley and two crashes.
18.20 After 5 trick attempts each in this semi-final Pauline Valesa and Therese Taabel looking strong, but tightly packed at the top: 15.6 and 15.3 respectively just before the heat AP flag went up doing a strong wind shift. Hold on… when the heat re-starts, the previous 3 tricks already done will count.
18.07 Confirmation that Nathalie Lambrecht went through ahead of Therese Thaabel in their heat against Hannah Whiteley. So Hannah’s out and we’re currently watching the women’s first Freestyle semi-final between Maureen Castelle / Therese Taabel / Pauline Valesa / Pippa van Iersel. After that, we will SWITCH BACK TO Kite-Surf strapless freestyle quarter finals.
18.00 Sorry for the silence from your live ticker here – lots of action in HQ here with both disciplines on the water back to back and two live pages – check the KITE-SURF STRAPLESS FREESTYLE HEATS HERE! Open in a new tab while you watch the livestream and get the full experience as we bounce back and forth between disciplines!
17.15 Just 3 girls in the heat: Valesa / Arnaus / Novotna: Pauline Valesa was in control throughout, though Rita Arnaus had a very impressive S-bend backside 1 earning 6.3 points on her fourth trick, was close in second and looking good. After three crashed tricks however Czech rider Paula Novotna pushed Rita into third position on her last trick, with Rita going last. Pressure was on for the Spanish Slingshot rider, although she only needed a 1.97 for second… surely she could… she only managed an S-bend… and got a 1.07. Not enough. Harsh. Valesa and Novotna go through.
17.00 Women’s Freestyle single elimination (featuring 10 women) on the water now, and every second heat we will then be continuing with the men’s Kite-Surf strapless freestyle quarter finals! Kite fiesta here at Valdevaqueros. Oh yeah!
MEN round one and two heat notes:
16.55 Confirmation of the semi-final line-up to come when the men resume after the women’s contest:
Semi final 1: Gianmaria Coccoluto / Luis Alberto Cruz / Adeuri Corniel / Maxime Chabloz
Semi final 2: Jerome Cloetens / Stefan Spiessberger / Liam Whaley / Carlos Mario
16.50 Final heat, round 2: Approaching the final stages of this heat, Italian Gianmaria Coccoluto already has a podium finish this season and is one of the leading contenders for this year’s title and was taking it to Carlos Mario from the start. There’s no other way to ride against the Brazilian and Carlos was struggling a bit, not high scoring tricks and a crash already used up. After 4 tricks: Coccoluto 26.88, Mario 20.87, Guillebert 19.67, Delmas 13.6. Fifth trick time and the screw starts to turn on the heat. Crashes for both Coccoluto and Guillebert and just a 3.77 backside 315 for French Delmas. Mario stayed cool to slot a 5.83 KGB. Looked like Coccoluto and Mario going through on 26.88 and 26.7 respectively. Coccoluto caught an edge, so suddenly Guillebert needed a high 7.42, but totally possible. He made a beautiful double rotation on the 317, tried to land to toeside making it a 319 he would have been going through, but just stumbled on landing. Great effort. So before Carlos’ last trick attempt he was through, with that 5.83 KGB putting the pressure on when just about every other competitor crashed on their penultimate trick. A good lesson there for those riders who have gone out trying to do more complicated tricks than necessary at crucial stages. Champions get it right in the head.
16.15 Penultimate heat, round 2: Topsy turvy heat this one with riders changing position with every trick, all the way up to the sixth and final trick attempt. Whaley was last in the rotation but already in first with one trick to go. Luis Alberto Cruz went first and crashed, but stayed in second. Alex Pastor needed a 5.73 to move from third to second, but only scored a 5.5. Cruel for the ex World Champ. So one rider to go, Juan Rodriguez needed a pretty good 6.76 to move to second to qualify. He took his time. Massive chance for the season rookie from Colombia who really impressed in his round one heat. It’s moments like this in big heats that make the tension and can make a name for new riders. He loaded up and went for a frontside 317, only making a 315. Gusty conditions making it hard to navigate your way around a trick… so it’s local star Liam Whaley and firecracker Dominican Luis Alberto Cruz who go through. One more heat to go in round two, then we’re moving over to the ladies!
16.00 Second heat, round 2: Maxime Chabloz, 18 years-old, currently second in the championship, powered into the lead in this heat after being below his best in round one. 27.08 total after 4 tricks compared to 21.56 for Jerome in second at that stage. Maxime’s 8.1 score for backside 317 was a very ominous opening trick and he continued to dominate in a near faultless heat for him. Dominican Posito Martinez is a real all rounder, a big air world champion in the past, King of the Air competitor and a superb Freestyler, but it looked like he’d be battling with Louka and Jerome for second place. Louka Pitot had two crashes from five tricks, so needed to make his last trick, needed a 5.96 for second, Maxime was already out of reach at the top. On his last trick Posito needed a 5.31… which should be a safe trick within these world tour realms… but you’ve got to hold your nerve and in a controversial moment, the judges counted his load up and unhook as a trick attempt, so zero points! Pitot went for a hinterberger 5 but didn’t get the amplitude needed. So another super performance from local boy Jerome Cloetens who goes through behind Maxime – the Swiss rider amassing 27.11 – highest heat score so far today. He thinks he’ll have to pump his 9m now as conditions really building – he was stacked on his 11.
15.40 Second round, first heat (#09 on the ladder below). Second trick was a banger for hotshot teen Valentin Rodriguez – an 8.13 for a big backside 317, but after four tricks each it was veteran Stefan Spiessberger in his 9th year of competition leading the way with 2 tricks to come for each rider. No big scores for Stefan but Valentin’s crash on his first trick was hurting at that stage. Things obviously even out after 6 attempts which allow for 2 crashes (4 tricks counting). Missing in this note so far: Adeuri Corniel – Vice World Champ and a favourite again, but two big crashes mid heat, but heading into the all important last trick, Adeuri needed just 3.87 to move from fourth to first. Intersting… Del Rosario only managed a 4.83 backmobe. Spiessberg crashed his last trick, so the result was out of his hands! Adeuri played sensible (the big screen on the beach told him what he needed) and a slim 5 gave him 5.73 points – moving him into the lead. New tour contender Valentin needed a 5.44 for to take first, just 3 points would have moved him to second … but he crashed! Oh dear, inexperience showed there with qualification all on him, and well within limits, and he crashed! He’s out. Corniel and Spiessberger through!
15.10 After 4 tricks each, Jerome Cloetens was 0.1 point away from Carlos Mario, leading the heat. 2 tricks each still to go, best 4 tricks counting. Manu de Pfyffer landed a new trick for him, frontblind mobe for trick 5, but was still just short of the top 2 even with having had one more trick attempt. Tom Recalde had a tough time on landings and was out of the running early, crashing plenty. Carlos rammed home his authority with highest heat score 7.93 for a slim 7 and built a gap to Jerome, but with one trick still to go those two were already safely through.
14.50 Good news, we’re back on, resuming heat 8 of the men’s Freestyle single elimination – check it out below on the livestream.
13.50 We’re still on hold. Why not turn your attention to our Freestyle focused image gallery from this week in Tarifa, shot by Ydwer van der Heide: www.gkakiteworldtour.com/galleries/tarifa-2019-freestyle/
13.30 As you saw on the stream, the wind has just dropped back a little, so we’ve gone on hold during heat 8, the last heat of round one, between Manu de Pfyffer / Tom Recalde / Jerome Cloetens / Carlos Mario – the current World Champion. More news soon…
13.25 Mr Pastor does indeed go through, along with Arthur Guillebert. Two massive heats for those guys in round two. No second chance today in this single elimination with just the top two in each heat of round one staying in the competition. Pastor will face Luis Alberto Cruz, Liam Whaley and Juan Rodriguez. Guillebert will go up against Gianmaria Coccoluto and Nicolas Delmas and the winner of heat 8.
13.20 Crucial last trick coming up for heat 7, Pastor and Giuliano currently in second and third and close, with one trick each to go. Only one will progress… Looks like Guillebert has done enough…
13.00 Cruel blow for Alex Neto in heat 6 – just missing out on qualifying for round 2, less than a point behind Dominican Joselito del Rosario who amassed 24.33 from his 4 best tricks, his highest score 6.53 for a double hinterberg. Meanwhile Liam Whaley took the win with four tricks in the 6 point range – his highest was a 6.58 frontblind mobe. Liam and Jose are through. Remember to scroll down for all heat scores and ladders.
12.50 Confirmation of heat 5 result and the top two Juan Rodriguez and Gianmaria Coccoluto convincingly go through… with the Colombian beating the Italian (I’ll let you work out who is who!) by 0.07 difference in the end: 25.43 over 24. 46 after 5 counting tricks. A battle of the backside 317s there for highest heat trick – 7.73 for Coccoluto, but greater overall consistency for Rodriguez. It’s goodbye to Rosslee and Gourney as there will be no time for a double elimination today… most likely…
12.30 Heat 5 will only be a short heat as the riders already managed 3 tricks each before the heat was cancelled yesterday. This heat is the best 5 tricks from 7 attempts from each rider that will count. Due to limited time remaining in the competition, the next heat will change to 6 attempts and the best 4 scores counting.
12.25 Apologies for the technical hitch with the wrong live heat below the stream, to confirm the riders are: Lazare Gournet / Juan Rodriguez / Arron Rosslee / Gianmaria Coccoluto – and it’s heat 5.
12.20 Heat is on! Heat 5 men’s Freestyle single elimination.
11.50 – Good morning everyone and welcome back to the Freestyle live event page. The update is that the wind has been looking more promising from mid morning – much more so than we’ve seen all week. We are super close to a re-start of heat 5 of the men’s Freestyle single elimination, but the wind has just pushed back from the beach in the last five minutes. The Poniente is delivering white caps out the back, so it’s just a matter of time. Clear skies today and genuine Poniente, so we should be starting soon. Stay with us. In the meantime, read about the very strange wind effects we’ve been experiencing here – biggest deepwater packdown ever?
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LIVETICKER ARCHIVE WITH HEAT INFORMATION FROM EARLIER THIS WEEK
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LIVETICKER DAY 5 (GMT+2) (SATURDAY)
Current discipline: Men’s Freestyle Single Elimination
In round one: Top 2 riders go through to the next round
16.40 Wow, just as typing the last comment, the wind suddenly completely dropped and switched very light offshore. Currently everyone is swimming! Mass deepwater pack down session! CLICK HERE FOR THAT
16.35 Race crew moved the competition area a little further downwind today to ensure the best chance of catching this cross-onshore wind direction, which comes around the headland to the right. Who to watch in heat 5? Well, two big podium placers this season – rookie Valentin Rodriguez from Colombia is just 17 and massively impressive this year so far. Italian Gianmaria Coccoluto, just pipped the Colombian to second at round one in Leucate, so two heavy hitters out there now and lots of work for South African Arron Rosslee and Lazare Gournet – who is currently studying a crazy physics degree in Montpellier. What can he do with gravity?
16.25 Chabloz stealing the lead from Delmas right at the end there on the last trick “catching a good gust.” as the Swiss rider admitted on interview. But no mater for Delmas, narrowly edged off top spot in the first heat of the day, but they’re both through. 17 year-old Robby James from Thailand gained good experience in his first world tour event, while it’s disappointment for Egyptian Mahmoud who is a rapidly rising Junior. Should we have time to run a double elimination we’ll see him again, but tomorrow is the last day, so perhaps not.
16.07 AP flag is up after three more tricks completed by each rider since the re-start. Delmas jumped to the front. Race director is calling standby, the wind is back. One minute…
15.45 We will be re-joining men’s Freestyle heat 4, find the current heat situation where it was abandoned yesterday after 3 trick attempts each, with 4 more still to come ( best 5 tricks from 7 attempts count in a heat, each rider takes it in turns to perform 1 trick within 60 seconds). Scores before the heat: Chabloz: 17.2 / Mahmoud 14.7 / Delmas 12.73 / James 3.02
15.40 Need a wind guinea pig? You can’t keep a ripper down – Airton Cozzolino is throwing tricks on his 11m. Read more in his performance yesterday here. Keep your fingers crossed, the wind is definitely coming in. We need just a bit more to re-start the twin-tip heat 4. Scroll down for yesterday’s heat notes.
15.35 As Jo mentioned in the stream below, the wind is fast approaching! Riders are starting to get kites up, we could be on very soon. Stand by.
15.30 Joergen explains the differences between the different events, and why some have livestream and some have not. You can find out more about the star rating for each event in the FAQ section of the website.
15.20 The GKA’s Secretary General talks about the importance of unity and family in kite sports as well as the future of the competition. The Global Kitesports Association is formed by a collection of member brands, the most established manufacturers of kiteboarding equipment, who came together at the end of 2015 to work together to help grow the sport and make it safer together.
15.12 We’re expecting Jo back onscreen at 15.15 with an interview with the boss, GKA Secretary General Jörgen Vogt.
13.40 The livestream cameras are rolling and the daily show is on now. Currently presenter Jo is on a small break, but he’ll be back with all the event updates and more interviews soon. Of course, you can scroll back on the stream to get the juice he squeezed from Ydwer van der Heide and his previous update too.
13.00 Hi everyone welcome to day 5 here in Tarifa, where the event is currently on hold, with strange cloud and frontal conditions holding the wind off for now. The daily live show has just gone live and Jo Ciastula is interview tour photographer and highly sought after lensman in the industry – Ydwer van der Heide – SCROLL DOWN ON THIS PAGE TO WATCH NOW!
LIVETICKER DAY 4 (GMT+2)
17.15 HEAT 4 PUT ON HOLD – WIND DIPPED:
R JAMES / K MAHMOUD / N DELMAS / M CHABLOZ
Two relative newcomers, in Robby James from Thailand and Karim Mahmoud from Egypt, against hot shot freestylers Nicolas Delmas from France and title contender 17 year-old Maxime Chabloz. Delmas is the veteran in the here at 22 years-old. Conditions right on the low end limit according to last heat winner Pitot. Highlight 6.5 front blind mobe from Delmas. Managing to fend off the feisty Swiss Chabloz by just 0.64. One trick to go when we re-start.
16.45 HEAT 3: VAN DIJK / SPIESSBERGER / SERIN / PITOT: Louka Pitot and Stefan Spiessberger emerge as the top 2 in a close heat, just pushing Paul Serin into third and a little further off the pace of the top 3, was Naish Team Europe youth rider, Cohan van Dijk. Gritty work done there, the French rider Pitot prevailing and into round 2, alongside Posito Martinez in that heat who progressed earlier.
16.15 Superb commentary and insight with 2014 World Champion Alex Pastor and competitor Alex Pastor joining Jo in the livestream booth. See him on the water soon!
16.15 HEAT 2: V RODRIGUEZ / J OUAHMID / L CRUZ / N GOMEZ: 17 year old Valentin Rodrigues from Colombia in his first year of competition continues to prove he’s a leading contender for the podium. Technical, controlled, fresh… two crashes from five attempts with two tricks to come, but he’s already safely through the heat with 26.67 score. Luis Alberto Cruz joins him in the next round.
HEAT 1: CORNIEL / MARTINEZ / LARCHER / GARET (no show): 34.66 big score for Corniel who always means business. Disappointing result for him in Leucate and no podium result in round 2 in Gran Canaria, but the Domincan is off to a flier at this important 3rd event. Posito Martinez safely in second with 29.4 from 5 best tricks.
15.45 Currently on the water, heat 1 round 1: Adeuri Corniel / Posito Martinez / Phil Larcher / and Val Garet is absent from the heat. The riders can see each other’s score via a large screen on the beach, so they know the score to beat. 7 trick attempts each in the heat (taking turns each trick), 5 best scores count for each rider.
15.30 Welcome to the first round of the GKA Kite World Cup Tarifa 2019. You can scroll down this page to fine the livestream player and below that the live heat scores and heat ladders. Conditions: 14 – 18 knots. riders out on 12 – 14m kites.