Greek windsurfer Lennart Neubauer was crowned champion of the men's double elimination Freestyle at the 38th World Windsurfing Championship in Fuerteventura, surpassing Belgian Yentel Caers by less than a point. The women's competition was postponed due to poor sea conditions.
The winds and waves of Fuerteventura witnessed another historic day of windsurfing. Greek Lennart Neubauer triumphed in the men's Freestyle final of the 38th World Championship, thus reclaiming the title he had previously won in earlier editions. The victory came after a thrilling heat in which both finalists achieved the two highest scores of the championship.
A nail-biting final between Neubauer and Caers
The final kicked off at 17:27 with conditions that the organisers deemed the best of the event for Freestyle practice. Neubauer opened with a fully planned double culo, while Caers responded with an air skopu. The exchange of maneuvers raised the difficulty at times.
Caers completed an air funnel into burner, a spock culo, a shifty-shaka, a double culo, and a double forward loop. At the halfway point of the heat, the Belgian had accumulated 44.43 points and dreamed of forcing a Super Final. But Neubauer did not give up.
The Greek responded with a double burner and a shifty-shaka. In the decisive stretch, he executed a spock into fully planned double culo and then a powerful pushloop. That sequence allowed him to achieve the highest score of the entire championship, surpassing Caers by less than a point in the final minutes.
“It was one of the most intense heats of my career. I knew I had to give it my all to regain the title,” Neubauer declared after the victory.
Belgian Yentel Caers finished in second place, while Swiss Balz Müller completed the podium by winning the battle for third place against Italian Jacopo Testa.
Comeback by Sam Esteve and Müller’s podium debut
The day also featured standout performances, such as that of Frenchman Sam Esteve, who recorded the best score of the day with 41.31 points in his heat against Steven Van Broeckhoven. Esteve extended his comeback from earlier rounds, although he ultimately fell to Testa and finished sixth.
Balz Müller, for his part, secured his first podium in the World Tour after defeating Testa in the eighth round. The Swiss started with his characteristic chebongka, a double culo, a shifty, and an air kabikuchi, and maintained the lead until the end. Testa finished fourth, but his comeback from lower rounds was one of the stories of the day.
The sea postpones the women's conclusion
The women's competition, on the other hand, could not be completed. The challenging sea conditions forced the interruption of the only heat held, which pitted Helena Derya Lale against other competitors. The organisation decided to postpone the resolution to Monday, July 20, when the sea conditions are expected to improve.
For Canarian windsurfing fans, the event in Fuerteventura remains one of the most anticipated on the calendar. The championship, now in its 38th edition, attracts the best specialists in the world and solidifies the island as a key destination for this sport.
The next stop on the World Tour will be in the waters of Cape Verde, where the riders will once again compete in demanding wind and wave conditions. In the meantime, Neubauer has already shown that he feels at home in Fuerteventura.
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