2008 Pozo Izquierdo PWA Grand Slam Wave, Slalom, Freestyle

So, sicherlich der bedeutendste und größte Event zusammen mit Sylt steht an. Am Donnerstag ist Inscription, am Freitag erste Races. Ich werde mal ein paar Pics einstellen, auch von der Eröffnungs-Zeremonie die am Donnerstag Abend im Palace Hotel stattfindet...

Heute ist Inscription und die Opening Ceremonie...

Zitat von PWA

The 2008 Gran Canaria PWA Grand Slam ? Event Preview

July 03-12, insane wind, pumping swell, and windsurfing?s biggest players. It can only mean one thing. The PWA world tour prepares for competition at the world-renowned wind factory, Pozo Izquierdo.

Opening its doors from the 3rd to the 12th of July, Pozo?s famed windsurfing arena will be called upon to serve up its characteristic mix of nuclear wind, and pounding waves for a Grand Slam bout of monumental proportions.

Since competition embarked on Gran Canaria?s shores, the biggest names in windsurfing have used this brutal proving ground to settle scores. This year will be no exception, as the 2008 Grand Slam hosts men?s slalom, women?s freestyle, and both men?s and women?s competition in waves.

Men?s Slalom

Rested and ready for action after the trials and tribulations of the Costa Brava World Cup, slalom?s biggest names have confirmed their presence for this high wind, surf-slalom spectacle.

Topping the bill is tour leader, and 2007 World Champion Antoine Albeau (Starboard, NeilPryde), whose dominant form is still to be put to the test. Albeau thrives in stronger winds, and having won this event last year is the obvious favorite to take top honors. Even so, winning at Pozo is no walk in the park, and the likes of Finian Maynard (NeilPryde), Micah Buzianis (JP, NeilPryde, MFC) and Kevin Pritchard (Starboard, Gaastra, Dakine, MFC) are queuing up to topple the French heavyweight.

Women?s Freestyle

With one event in the bag, there?s everything to play for in the women?s freestyle fleet. Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard, NeilPryde) enters riding high on the back of her victory in Lanzarote, however Pozo?s unique mix of howling wind and waves will really test her ability to perform in all conditions.

Arguably the favorite to take this event is Daida Moreno (North Sails), who knows the spot better then anyone. Daida has an untouchable aerial repertoire as well a deep bag of sliding moves, and will be hungry to explode any myths that she?s off the pace. Also in contention is Laure Treboux (Fanatic, North Sails), it?s only a matter of time before her consistent, technical sailing rewards her with an event win this season.

Men?s and Women?s Wave

Renowned for iconic images of soaring, gravity defying jumps, the wave event is the jewel in the Grand Slam?s crown. To truly gain right of passage to windsurfing?s highest echelons, you have to be able win at Pozo, and topple the ranks of super talented locals that train at this spot all year.

Exercising that right will be the 2007 World Champion and current tour leader Kauli Seadi (JP, NeilPryde), who narrowly lost out on victory at this event last year to Spain?s Victor Fernandez (Fanatic, Simmer Style). Fernandez poses a considerable threat to Seadi, being one of the few people who can match his constantly expanding aerial arsenal.

Also flexing their muscles to have a pop at the top spot will be third ranked Josh Angulo, who trains hard for this event, and the UK?s Robby Swift (JP, NeilPryde) who?s got off to a flying start this season, currently lying in fourth.

In the women?s division, this event opens the door to the 2008 Championship. Clear favorites are the Moreno sisters, namely 2007 World Champion Iballa (North Sails), who?s likely to dominate if there?s a wave to ride. Similarly, if the bias shifts to jumping, Daida may well be the dominant force.

Competition starts on July the 3rd. Tune in then, when you?ll be able to follow the action with our live event ticker, daily news summaries, video footage, awesome photo galleries, online elimination ladders and more!

Or, for more information contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com

Š PWA / Andrew Buchanan

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The 2008 Gran Canaria PWA Grand Slam ? Registration Day

The wait is almost over, as windsurfing?s elite wave, slalom, and freestyle fleets register for the forthcoming nine days of high-wind, multi discipline competition.

Greeted by turbo charged trade winds and pumping swell, registration day gave a taste of things to come over the next nine days. Seizing the opportunity to practice in the classic Pozo conditions, the competitors hit the water to familiarize themselves with this truly unique location before registration commenced.

Also prior registration, the trials stage of the wave event fired into action. The trials allow newcomers to the professional circuit, locals, and unranked sailors a chance to compete for ?wild cards?, which grant entry into the main wave event. Four wild cards were up for grabs in the registration day trials, and no surprises, three out of the four were awarded to Pozo locals, who always pose a major threat to PWA regulars when the main event begins.

Following the trials, the day?s formalities commenced, which included registration and a huge group photo of all the athletes present. As always, the turn out for this event has been monumental, with 39 competitors in the men?s slalom fleet, 48 in the men?s wave (the maximum possible), 11 in the women?s freestyle, and 15 in the women?s wave fleet.

Head wave judge Duncan Combs has announced that, weather permitting, first on tomorrow?s bill will be the men?s and women?s wave single elimination. Here?s a quick look at the key players to keep an eye on.

Waves: The Moves and Shakers

Men?s Favorites

Victor Fernandez (Fanatic, Simmer Style, MFC): The 2007 runner up has won in Pozo the last two years and will have no intention of stopping his winning streak this year, as he eyes up the 2008 overall title.
Kauli Seadi (JP, NeilPryde, Mormaii): The 2007 World Champion & current tour leader has all the moves and is dangerously consistent. Ramps or riding, Seadi will rip.
Julien Taboulet (F2, Naish): The crazy French man has style in bucket loads and loves going big. A third place finish in Pozo last year will only have hungered him more for victory.
Nik Baker (Mistral, North Sails): Baker may not have the latest aerial moves, but compensates with years of experience, super slick wave riding and he?s sailed this spot enough to know all its quirks.

Dangerous Locals

Jonas Ceballos (Fanatic, Simmer Style, MFC): Renowned for going massive and an expert rider in the unique Pozo surf.
Vidar Jensen (North Sails): Dialed into his home patch & has a stalled one-handed double forward in his artillery.
Dario Ojeda (Quatro, MFC): Finished fifth last year. He?s afraid of nothing and on top form at the moment.
Marcos Perez (Exocet, Gun Sails): Gran Canaria born and bred. Stylish smooth and sails a tactical heat with confidence.
Phillip Köster (F2, NeilPryde): He?s young, a Pozo local, and if the practice session is anything to go by, dangerously talented.

Women?s Favorites

Iballa Moreno (North Sails): The 2007 Wave World Champion. Stylish, smooth and a real favorite if the surf?s good.
Daida Moreno (North Sails): She?s practically unbeatable if the ramps are good, nailing double forwards, pushloop tabletops and more.
Nayra Alonso (Fanatic / Severne): Back from injury, this Gran Canaria local knows the place like the back of her hand. Good in the air and the waves, she?s ultra competitive and hungry for victory.
Junko Nagoshi (F2, Simmer Style, Dakine): Nagoshi?s been putting the hours in training and is consistently knocking on the podium?s door.

Tomorrow?s skippers? meeting is scheduled for 9.00am, and heats will commence from 9.30am onwards. Be sure to follow every stroke of action here, at www.pwaworldtour.com to:

* Use our live ticker service
* Check elimination ladders
* View results
* Watch amazing video action clips
* Read the daily news summaries
* Browse awesome action photo galleries

For more information please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com <javascript:linkTo_UnCryptMailto('nbjmup+jogpAqxbxpsmeupvs/dpn');>

Š PWA / Andrew Buchanan

The 2008 Gran Canaria PWA Grand Slam ? Day One

One day down, and the men?s and women?s wave single elimination is complete. The action packed day culminated with Victor Fernandez and Daida Moreno taking top honors in their respective fleets, leaving only the double elimination left to settle the scores.

The early rounds

Turning up the heat from the word go, the fist rounds of competition exploded into action. Danny Bruch (F2, Gaastra) started as he intended to go on, knocking out Aleix Sanllehy (F2, North Sails) in round one, then experienced rival Kevin Pritchard (Starboard, Gaastra, Dakine, MFC) in round two.

Local, Marcos Perez (Exocet, Gun Sails) looked dangerous from the outset, fully utilizing his wealth of sailing experience in Pozo to string fluid and powerful turns together on the unpredictable waves. His downfall came when he met Marcilio Browne (Mistral, Gaastra) in the second round.

Levi Siver (Quatro, NeilPryde, Dakine, MFC) took an early exit at the hands of local wonder kid Philip Köster (F2, Neil Pryde), who proved he?s a talent not to underestimate as he continued to cause upset in subsequent rounds.

John Skye (RRD, Naish Sails) and Klaas Voget (Fanatic, NeilPryde, MFC) entertained one of the closest second rounds heats. Both sailors launched into towering one-handed rotations, but Voget would ultimately steal the victory.

The latter stages

As the 48 man fleet continued to narrow, more and more big names dropped from the elimination. Alex Mussolini (RRD, NeilPryde) fell victim to Köster seemingly unstoppable run, and Julien Taboulet (F2, Naish) departed courtesy of Browne?s impressive freestyle-wave fusion.

Local favorite Dario Ojeda (Quatro, MFC) was stopped in his tracks by the super smooth wave riding of Josh Angulo (MauiSails, Dakine), and Bruch continued to dominate the airwaves with his gravity defying aerial rotations, defeating Scott McKercher (Starboard, Severne).

Entering the quarters, crowds were treated to arguably the heat of the day, when underdog Köster took on the might of competition favorite Victor Fernandez (Fanatic, Simmer Style, MFC). Fernandez may well have thought he?d done enough when he landed a perfect double forward, only for Köster to hammer straight back at him with a tweaked pushloop into forward loop. The scene was set, and the pair went off the scale with their jumps. Eventually Fernandez took the victory, but Köster had showed just what he?s capable of.

The 2007 world champion and current tour leader Kauli Seadi (JP, NeilPryde, Mormaii) was caught sleeping by highflier Bruch. Seadi didn?t go down without a fight and carved into devastating wave rides, but his downfall came in the air, where he failed to match both Bruch?s power and height. Bruch advanced, gaining a huge moral and confidence boost with the victory.

Also departing in the quarterfinals was Browne, who was beaten by teammate and mentor Nik Baker (Mistral, North Sails), and Angulo, who fell at the hands of double looping maestro Campello. Campello?s so confident with his doubles that sponsors JP and NeilPryde have offered him a $10,000 bonus if he can land the first ever triple forward loop, and catch it on camera.

The semi finals were a fierce affair. Campello sized up Fernandez, and Baker took on Bruch. Kick-starting the heat, the sailors left the beach and launched into three practically simultaneous forward loops. Gaining momentum from here, battle of the double loops commenced between Campello and Fernandez. Choosing the better ramps, Fernandez started to edge ahead, and super slick wave riding would finally condemn Campello to the losers final along with Baker, who was unlucky with his timing, and rarely found ramps to notch up his jump scores. Bruch on the other hand continued to fly higher than ever.

The final got off to a slow start as the waves just refused to show up. When they finally arrived, Fernandez executed a perfect double loop and some super technical wave riding. Bruch replied with a soaring one handed, one footed backloop and some aggressive riding of his own. It was a close tussle, but Fernandez delivered a more polished, and technically higher scoring repertoire to take first place ahead of Bruch.

In the losers final, Baker one again struggled to find ramps, opening the door for Campello to loop to victory, throwing in a shovit air spock for good measure.

The fifteen strong women?s elimination followed a marginally more predictable path. Karin Jaggi (F2, North Sails) pieced together a solid quarterfinal heat to advance ahead of Silvia Alba Orozco (MFC), and Laure Treboux (Fanatic, North Sails) met her match when she faced Iballa Moreno (North Sails).

In the bottom half of the draw, Nayra Alonso (Fanatic, Severne) had to deliver a stellar performance to defeat Japan?s Junko Nagoshi (Simmer Sails, Dakine) and Daida Moreno (North Sails) unleashed tabletop forward perfection to fend off her rival Evi Tsape (Fanatic, NeilPryde).

The semi final saw some solid wave riding from Alonso, who picked up the set waves on the outside and slashed her way down them, right to the inside. Jaggi also produced moments of genius in her riding, but ultimately couldn?t reply to the Iballa Moreno?s dialed artillery of aerial acrobatics. Alonso?s fate was a similar one, entering the losers? final after some devastating loops from Daida Moreno.

The final, Moreno vs., Moreno would boil down to wave riding, as the siblings seemed to match each other move for move in the air. Daida?s tactics paid off, as she meticulously alternated jumps with rides, where as Iballa left the riding section of her score sheet empty until it was too late to summon a ride of sufficient magnitude to topple Daida. Daida took the victory, with Iballa claiming second.

In the losers final, Jaggi?s more tweaked, higher table tops and smooth wave rides added to a score that Alonso struggled to match, despite getting some nice rides in herself. Jaggi took third and Alonso fourth.

That concludes day one of competition. Tomorrow, the wave fleet have their skippers meeting at 10am, and the race fleet have their skippers meeting at 11am. Be sure to tune into pwaworldtour.com to follow the next chapter of the 2008 Gran Canaria PWA Grand Slam.

PWA / Andrew Buchanan
http://www.pwaworldtour.com

Noch 3 Pics von Dunki, morgen kommen mehr. Wir haben hier eine sehr schlechte Verbindung, aber sehr viel Wind, bis 40 Knoten locker täglich...

Tag 2:

Zitat von PWA

The 2008 Gran Canaria PWA Grand Slam ? Day Two

Antoine Albeau shows he?s still the man to beat, winning both of day two?s slalom eliminations with a perfect run of first place finishes.

Blue sky and solid wind welcomed the start of day two?s slalom spectacular. Swinging into action shortly after midday, the heats delivered mind-boggling racing from the outset.

Race one

The dominant forces at work in the first round of race one were Micah Buzianis (JP, NeilPryde, MFC), Bjorn Dunkerbeck (North Sails, T1), Arnon Dagan (Fanatic, Gaastra) and Antoine Albeau (Starboard, NeilPryde), who all motored to the lead in their respective heats.

Entering the second round of heats, the wind dropped down and became very gusty, making the racing far more testing for the sailors. Shock came at the start of heat five, when Ben Van Der Steen (Exocet, Simmer Sails), Dunkerbeck, and Jesper Orth (Starboard, Severne) all crossed the start line early and were disqualified. In that same heat, Ross Williams (Tabou, Gaastra) adjusted to the changing conditions well, to sail a blisteringly fast race and advance into the final. Also putting the hammer down to fend off the opposition were Buzianis, Finian Maynard (RRD, NeilPryde), Jimmy Diaz (North Sails) and Thomas Larsen (Mistral, NeilPryde), who took up positions in the final as well.

In heat six, Albeau claimed victory thanks to a smooth overtaking maneuver to leave Benoit Moussilmani (F2, Simmer Sails) in second. Also advancing into the final were Kevin Pritchard (Starboard, Gaastra, Dakine, MFC), Sylvain Moussilmani (F2, Simmer Sails) and Cyril Moussilmani (Fanatic, North Sails).

The losers final was riddled with more disqualifications as Ludovic Jossin (F2, The Loft), Robby Swift (JP, NeilPryde), Patrick Diethelm (F2, North Sails) and Dagan started too early, leaving only six sailors left to battle it out. Seizing the opportunity, Steve Allen (Tabou, Gaastra) stole the lead, only to fall gybing, leaving the door open for Dunkerbeck to take the win. Van Der Steen sailed consistently to take second, Taty Frans (Starboard, North Sails) came in, in third Sylvain Moussilmani fourth and Matt Pearch (Mistral, North Sails) took fifth.

In the final, Albeau, Pritchard and Maynard broke away from the pack after the first gybe and proceeded to open up a considerable lead. The spearheading threesome jostled, but on the finish line maintained the same formation that they had had for the entire race. Albeau first, Pritchard second and Maynard third. Buzianis fronted up the second group of sailors to take fourth, and Sylvain Moussilmani claimed a solid fifth place finish.

Race Two

In evermore challenging conditions, the sailors settled into the second elimination of the day. The usual suspects stamped their authority on the first round, with Maynard, Pritchard and Albeau winning their heats. Also joining them was Josh Angulo (MauiSails, Dakine) who showed he?s not one to be left out of contention when the going gets tough.

Moving into the second round, heat five saw Pritchard find his groove and cruise to victory ahead of Maynard who pressured in second, Dunkerbeck was fast in third, Williams took fourth and Cyril Moussilmani was the last person to advance into the final in fifth.

In the bottom half of the draw, Buzianis showed class when he squeezed passed Angulo to secure a podium finish in third. Dagan dug deep with a solid performance to push him into second, and the familiar face of Albeau occupied the top spot following a trademark display of textbook slalom racing.

The decreasing wind meant the competitors had to rig up bigger sails for the finals. The losers final had arguably the most testing conditions as the wind gusted anywhere between 15 to 25 knots around the inside marks.

Playing a tactical game from the word go, Van Der Steen opened up a solid lead, and showed determination to hold off sustained attacks from Peter Volwater (North Sails) and Angulo. On the finish line he was rewarded for his efforts, stealing first position from his hungry rivals. Volwater kept his peddle to the floor to take second, and Angulo charged across the finish line in third, ahead of Swift in fourth and Diethelm in fifth.

The final of race two was laden with truly spectacular sailing. Albeau showed why he?s World Champion, entering the first mark in sixth and coming out in second with a magnificent gybe through the fleet. He then proceeded to chase heat leader Maynard, who stood firm and held his lead around marks two, three and four, only succumbing to Albeau on the final reach. Eager to defend second place Maynard forced advancing Buzianis downwind and into the path of his dirty wind. His tactic paid off, only Maynard hadn?t spotted Dunkerbeck, who screamed over the finish line in the gap left upwind. When the dust had settled, the finals results read: 1st Albeau, 2nd Dunkerbeck, 3rd Maynard, 4th Buzianis and 5th Pritchard.

The end of the second race signaled the end of another highly successful day in Pozo. Tomorrow?s set to deliver even more twists and turns, so be sure to stay tuned to pwaworldtour.com to follow every stroke of the action on day three.

PWA / Andrew Buchanan

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Ja, ist wahnsinn. Hammer Bedingungen...

Gerade läuft Freestyle, danach Slalom. Später stell ich Pics ein, sehr schlechte Internetverbindung hier. Gehen jetzt wieder nach Arinaga...

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The 2008 Gran Canaria PWA Grand Slam ? Day Three

Battering 40-knot winds set the scene for a full day of freestyle and race action at the infamous Pozo Izquierdo windsurfing arena.

Continuing her run of dominance after winning in Lanzarote, Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard, NeilPryde) took top honors in the first freestyle single elimination after defeating Daida Moreno (North Sails) in the final.

In the slalom fleet, Antoine Albeau (Starboard, NeilPryde) showed devastating form to win both race eliminations, adding to his run of first place finishes in all four race eliminations so far.

Women?s Freestyle Single Elimination

The first freestyle elimination hit the water in winds gusting up to 45 knots at times. In the first quarterfinal Laure Treboux (Fanatic, North Sails) and Sarah-Quita Offringa looked more comfortable than rivals Silvia Alba Orozco (MFC) and Yolanda Freites De Brendt (Fanatic, North Sails), landing more technical moves to advance into the semi final. Joining them were Junko Nagoshi (Simmer Sails, Dakine) and Daida Moreno, who defeated opponents Iballa Moreno (North Sails), and Evi Tsape (Fanatic, NeilPryde).

Shock came in the semi final, when Treboux injured herself while competing with Offringa. She was forced to swim ashore and seek medical assistance, leaving Offringa to take the victory by default. In the second semi final Daida Moreno defeated Nagoshi with a solid performance that included a ponch on the inside and huge stalled forwards off the rolling swell on the outside.

Since Treboux could no longer compete, Nagoshi took third place in the losers final, leaving Offringa and Daida Moreno to battle it out in the final to see who?d take victory in the elimination.

Piling the pressure on Offringa, Moreno landed a clean backloop, and a one-footed forward early in the heat. Offringa didn?t try and compete with Moreno?s powerful jumps, instead opting for technical sliding moves like a puneta 900 and a funnel, alongside a solid base of safer moves. This tactical and varied routine was enough for her to claim the victory in a 3-0 judging decision. Offringa will now have to defend her position from advances in the double elimination.

Race 3

Surf slalom was the order of the day when the race fleet heat hit the water. First up was elimination three, which culminated in a monumental final showdown of slalom?s fastest players.

Hitting the start line as the green flag was hoisted, Albeau and Angulo (MauiSails, Dakine) set the pace on the first reach, however it was all change at mark one. Angulo?s concentration lapsed, allowing Pritchard (Starboard, Gaastra, Dakine, MFC), Dunkerbeck (T1, North Sails), and Williams (Tabou, Gaastra) to pass him. The fleet continued to jostle for positions as they rounded marks three and four, leaving a drag race down the final reach to settle the scores. Albeau looked untouchable in first, leaving Angulo, who?d clawed his way back through the pack, and Pritchard to fight for second. Pritchard put the pedal down and accelerated across the line to beat Angulo to the number two spot. Angulo took third, Dunkerbeck fourth, and Williams came home in fifth.

In the losers final, Micah Buzianis (JP, NeilPryde, MFC) showed class and determination to fend off Taty Frans (Starboard, North Sails) and Sylvain Moussilmani (F2, Simmer) to take the win. Frans sailed well and stole second from Moussilmani who finished in third.

Race 4

Race four saw some uncharacteristic errors from Buzianis, Maynard and Williams, who all failed to make the top five of their respective semi final heats, thus not qualifying for the final.

More upset came in the final, when Pritchard and Angulo crossed that start line early, forcing the heat to be rerun without them. The rerun saw more dominance from Albeau, however he was put to the test by Volwater (North Sails), who was hot on his heels around the four mark course. Albeau, the seasoned professional, kept his cool and executed perfect gybe after perfect gybe, to open up a lead that meant he was unchallenged down the final reach. Volwater on the other hand, had Cyril Moussilmani (F2, North Sails) to contend with. The Frenchman put the hammer down in a race to the finish line, sneaking past Volwater. Volwater took third, ahead of Cedric Bordes (Tabou, Gaastra) in fourth, and Dunkerbeck in fifth.

In the losers final, Williams owned the show, opening up a huge lead ahead of his nearest rival, Buzianis. Untouched from the first gybe onwards, Williams went on to win in comfortable fashion, leaving Buzianis to take second, and Allen third.

On completion of the second full race of the day, the race committee called an end to day three of competition, giving the sailors an opportunity to rest their bodies in preparation for more high wind windsurf antics tomorrow.

Tomorrow?s first skippers? meeting is scheduled for 10.00am (for the wave sailors), and depending on conditions, heats will commence from10.30am. Be sure to follow every stroke of action here, at www.pwaworldtour.com to:

* Use our live ticker service
* Check elimination ladders
* View results
* Watch amazing video action clips
* Read the daily news summaries
* Browse awesome action photo galleries

For more information please contact the PWA office via info@pwaworldtour.com <javascript:linkTo_UnCryptMailto('nbjmup+jogpAqxbxpsmeupvs/dpn');>

Š PWA / Andrew Buchanan

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Heute Full Fleet Slalom, ein Lauf, bevor der PWA zum 2. Mal die Boote verreckt sind. Danach keine Rennen mehr...

Dunki mit Scheissstart, das Startboot wurde urplötzlich während der Startsequenz versetzt, sodaß er abbremsen und ausweichen mußte und gestürzt ist.

Dennoch 14.

Und noch ein paar Pics. Sehr gut drauf übrigens der auf GC lebende Deutsche Philip Köster. Hammer, ist in seinem Lauf einen Double gesprungen, gestanden, trotzdem gegen Fernandez ausgeschieden. Promi-Bonus nennt man das wohl, Fernandez hätte def. ausscheiden müssen...