- Men’s Defender GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Sylt 2024 winners crowned on day four in Sylt
- Women’s heats reach climax ahead of finals
By Caroline Morris
A bit of rain wasn’t going to stop the show as the day’s action opened with the quarter-final in the men’s Defender GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Sylt 2024.
Heat one saw Kiko Roig (ESP) going head-to-head against Gabriel Benetton (BRA) with a timed seven-minute freestyle battle, followed by eight minutes of wave riding. It was an incredible opening for both riders, but Benetton maintained the lead as he switched boards for the second half. Benetton’s strength in the wave segment particularly showed and he took the win, going through to the semi-final and knocking out last year’s champion.
The comeback king
Heat three promised to be a very exciting round as comeback king James Carew (AUS) was pitched against long-term competition favourite, Matchu Lopes (ESP). Carew was riding full throttle, and the power from both riders led to some heavy crashes.
Carew pulled the biggest loops seen in competition and scored a 9.5 for a kite loop tic tac. Riding backside in the wave segment, Carew was expertly looping the kite to stay in position, while Lopes still needed to place a decent third score on the board. However, riding overpowered in over 35 knots with side-onshore wind and a strong current made the conditions really challenging. Unfortunately, Lopes got knocked out of the competition, leaving the audience to wonder if Carew might end up joining rival Airton Cozzolino in the final.
Another shock result
Round four heat four was not the show that the audience expected as neither top-ranked Airton Cozzolino (ITA) nor Nicola Abadjiev (BUL) managed to place a score in the first minutes of the heat. The North Sea was looking wild and seeing Cozzolino struggling was not the norm. With just ninety seconds to go, Cozzolino was still in second place, needing another 2.52 on his score.
Cozzolino hacked three turns on a wave putting a good score down, but the judges were deliberating if it was enough to take him through to the semis. The crowd were kept on tenterhooks but went wild hearing the news that Abadjiev had knocked Cozzolino out of the competition with another shock result.
“This is my best result so far”, said Abadjiev; “I’ve been doing the full World Tour for four years now and I’m happy I managed to win again against Airton, as he’s the biggest name in our sport and such an amazing guy and inspiration for me.”
Women’s final decided
The focus moved to the women where heat two was a tense fight in the semi-final with Kesiane Rodrigues (BRA) against Capucine Delannoy (FRA) in conditions gusting over 40 knots. Delannoy opened up well, performing strongly in the freestyle segment as Rodrigues was hungry for her chance.
The challenging shore break exacerbated the battle, and Rodrigues put up a very close fight. However, Delannoy just slipped through with 0.69 advantage, securing her a place in the women’s final against heat one winner, Camille Losserand (SUI).
Tense action and close calls
Switching back to the men, tense semi-final heats saw Benetton beat Casati, and Carew cemented his place against Abadjiev despite the nuking wind and driving rain.
As blue skies started to peek out of the clouds, a sizeable crowd gathered to watch Benetton take on Carew in the final. Carew flew to the moon in his opening trick while Benetton wasn’t quite getting the pop he was hoping for on a triple front roll attempt.
Carew placed his first three scores all above seven points each, just as Benetton landed the triple front roll he previously attempted, scoring a massive 9.18. In the final freestyle minute, the riders were almost level pegging, with both showing the capability to take the win.
As the buzzer sounded signalling the upcoming start of the wave segment, Carew switched equipment and headed back out onto the water but with crossed lines, not wanting to waste a moment fighting for a win.
Meanwhile, Benetton was already out the back having found a great section amongst the waves and got some lovely turns in. The competition was tight and Carew answered back by milking his wave until the shallows to just push ahead on the scores.
The battle continued as Benetton pips Carew to first position once again after a 6.5 wave score. As a massive spray signalled Carew throwing down in the waves, the buzzer sounded and the title could have belonged to either athlete.
After a tense and very close heat, James Carew from Australia secures his comeback and becomes the Defender GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Sylt 2024 winner! Gabriel Benetton takes second place followed by Lorenzo Casati in third place.
“That was a crazy day; the wind is around sixty knots and the craziest thing I have ever seen” said Benetton. “It was a great final, with a super close heat and I’m stoked about my performance”.
Congratulations to the winners and stay tuned for more action here in Sylt as the women’s finals will conclude tomorrow.
words: Caroline Morris
images: Lukas K Stiller
Defender GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Sylt 2024 results
1 James Carew (AUS)
2 Gabriele Benetton (BRA)
3 Lorezo Casati (ESP)
4 Nicola Abadjiev (BUL)
Follow the whole event here
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