The first GKA Awards ceremony will run on the evening of Saturday 25th June in Tarifa as part of the GKA Big Air World Championships opening week!
The sport of kiteboarding is home to a truly eclectic and vibrant mix of athletes and individuals and this is the international awards night to celebrate that. We will also produce an after-show highlights video for everyone to enjoy.
The timeframe that these awards will consider for all categories is any achievements from 1st January 2021 through to Sunday 24th April 2022
This year weβre running four awards categories:
AWARDS CATEGORIES:
BEST RIDER OF THE YEAR (Male and female awards)
This is not simply an award for world champions. We are looking to highlight riders who pour their heart and soul into the sport. We are looking for the riders who create meaningful content that reaches far and wide; riders who achieved something really unique; those who have inspired huge amounts of people. Perhaps not only do they win prestigious events and have tens of thousands of views on their vlogs, but also show up to every demo event that their sponsors put on to help grow the sport locally.
We are looking for the industryβs golden crop. The riders that push, achieve and love the sport.
The public vote for this award will open 17th May and close 7th June 2022
BEST MOVE OF THE YEAR (Male and female awards)
This is a wide open category bringing together the absolute best of all kiteboarding disciplines – with tricks landed any time from 1st January 2021 – 24th April 2022. Once the window for video submissions closes on 24th April, a special committee led by GKA Kite World Tour judges and rider representatives will select a shortlist of ten male and ten female tricks that will go forward to the public & industry voting stage:
A rider from any kiteboarding discipline can enter and upload videos for the Move of the Year award:
– Twintip
– Strapless
– Hydrofoil
The public vote for this award will open 17th May and close 7th June 2022
BEST SOCIAL CONTRIBUTION TO KITEBOARDING (Single award)
Highlighting those individuals who have somehow contributed uniquely to the positive influence of kiteboarding in the world.
The public vote for this award will open 17th May and close 7th June 2022
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (Single award)
Quite simply the rider who has made the most impact with the GKA judging team and event crew in their first season on tour!
There is no public vote for this category.
