Event Highlights from Colombia!

An electric crowd and pumping music set the stage for the Women’s and Men’s Final heats as we wrap up here in Salinas del Rey, Colombia! With over five thousand people visiting the tiny fishing village on the northern coast, the GKA Freestyle-Kite World Cup Colombia was the place to be this weekend in Colombia! Visitors from across the country flocked to the windy shores to enjoy dynamic action and a true beach-party vibe.

WOMEN’S AND MEN’S FINALS

The eagerly anticipated final rounds of the competition drew in crowds who packed the beach, buzzing with excitement to see the GKA Freestyle-Kite World Cup Colombia 2023 grand finale!

Capitalizing on the punchy conditions, Mikaili Sol put on a dazzling display of power, experience, and technical brilliance in the women’s final, ultimately taking home the event win.

Claudia Leon secured second place with her impressive scorecard, featuring a variety of snazzy combinations. Nathalie Lambrecht also delivered a textbook 315, but a missed landing on a Slim Chance 5 attempt resulted in a third-place finish. Despite dominating in the semi-finals, Bruna Kajiya was forced to settle for fourth place, as she struggled to successfully land most of her tricks and butt-checked the required one.

In the men’s final, every rider brought their A-game, delivering high bar-setting tricks. Manoel Soares opened the final with a bang in front of the enthralled crowd, while Gianmaria Coccoluto executed precise tricks that delighted spectators.

However, it was Maxime Chabloz who stole the show, impressing the judges with his style, variety, and flare. His massive Back Mobe 7 scored 8.23, earning him a well-deserved second-place finish.

Ultimately, Carlos Mario emerged victorious, showcasing his tricks move-for-move and demonstrating why he’s a force to be reckoned with in the competition, and claiming his first win of the season.

FINAL RESULTS

WOMEN

1. Mikaili Sol (USA)
2. Claudia Leon (ESP)
3. Nathalie Lambrecht (SWE)

MEN

1. Carlos Mario (BRA)
2. Maxime Chabloz (CHE)
3. Gianmaria Coccoluto (ITA)

BIG AIR

On the final day of the event, we ran the Big Air expression session. We had three heats of men, they each got 8 trick attempts with three counting towards a final score plus one overall score. Kiteloops, board offs and airs were on full display.

The standouts from the Big Air were Valentin Garat who did a boogie loop board off and then a doobie loop demonstrating superb style and control. Arthur Guillebert who did a kite loop tic tac and a boogie loop board off, going huge. Finally, crowd-favorite Luiz Alberto Cruz landed the only triple handpass of the competition going huge!!!

In the women’s heat, Nathalie Lambrecht competed against Claudia Leon, both women demonstrating controlled sends and technical execution. Nathalie impressed the judges with her board-off kiteloops and huge sends. She narrowly beat out Claudia who was also pushing it and sending big jumps.

THE FORMAT

Although the new variety score is still in its infancy, making its debut at this event, it will take some time for the visual show and real performance development to take shape. So far riders have already responded positively though, clearly enjoying the challenge brought by the changes. Certainly, we’ve seen riders mixing excellent single-trick execution with a vision for new combos that will bring new elements to the game.

WHAT’S UPCOMING

The official competition at the GKA Freestyle-Kite World Cup Colombia 2023 has come to a close. The next event on the calendar is the GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Cape Verde, which is scheduled to begin on March 17th and end on March 27th. This upcoming event will feature a livestream, so be sure to tune in and watch the first wave event of the year, taking place in Ponta Preta. Read all about the event here!

Words: Sensi Graves

Photos: Andre Magarao