He is only 22 years old, but already has a freestyle world championship title to his name and currently tops the freestyle rankings ahead of the final event on Sylt later this month. However, Lennart Neubauer is not just a freestyle ace – the Greek-German windsurfing talent is also making great strides in the wave discipline, as underlined by his outstanding fourth place in Tenerife in August, which may well have come as a surprise to many.
Interview: PWA / Chris Yates
Hey Lennart, congratulations on your win in Fuerte and your fourth place in Tenerife – how was the summer for you overall?
All in all, this summer felt like a bit of a breakthrough. Not so much in freestyle, but mainly in wave riding. Of course, the win on Fuerte was brilliant, but the most unforgettable moment by far was coming fourth in the wave event on Tenerife. What’s more, I got through the whole Canary Islands trip virtually injury-free, unlike last year, when I couldn’t compete in Tenerife because of my ankle injury. So, to be honest, this summer went as well as it possibly could have.
You’ve now racked up an impressive record on the Freestyle Tour – four wins in the last five events – how pleased are you with that?
It’s really satisfying to have won four of the last five events. I really feel like I’ve found my rhythm and know what works for me in competition. What’s really helped me is not taking everything too seriously and not putting too much pressure on myself regarding the result. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter whether I win or lose. I’m in it for the fun and the challenge, but also to show the world what a cool sport we’re involved in. Above all, I want to show young people all over the world that there’s more out there than just football and basketball.
From the spectators’ point of view, the conditions during the final on Fuerte were among the best we’ve ever seen at a competition – what was it like for you, as a rider, to compete in those conditions?
The conditions were absolutely mad. By far the best I’ve ever had on Fuerteventura, and possibly even amongst the best of my entire PWA career. The waves were just like being in a skate park. I spent the whole day watching from the hotel and could hardly wait to get out on the water and compete in the double elimination. It was a brilliant battle against Yentel (Caers, Ed.), and the heat he had against Balz (Müller) before mine was incredible too. I actually watched their entire heat from the beach before it was my turn. It was an unforgettable experience, and these conditions really allowed us to show what freestyle is all about. I think that was a very good thing for the sport.
I want to show that there’s more out there than just football and basketball.
What drives you to help develop the sport further?
We can see that new moves go down really well on the tour, and that really motivates me as a rider to keep pushing my limits. Learning a new trick properly and then being able to show it off in competition is something that really excites me. It also keeps the sport interesting, rather than seeing the same thing over and over again. Imagine if every rider introduced just one new trick every year – the whole tour would look completely different from one year to the next. I think the sport is heading in the right direction.
Before the event in Fuerteventura, you landed a Shifty in forward and admitted beforehand that you were nervous before heading out – how do you personally manage to push past these limits, and do you have any tips for amateur surfers who want to step outside their comfort zone?
I believe fear is there to protect us. If we hadn’t felt fear in the past, we would probably have lost our lives quite easily at the hands of a lion, a huge wave or a serious fall. So fear is there to help us, though that doesn’t always mean it’s necessary. I try to see it as a signal my brain sends me to be careful and stay focused. That fear never disappears completely. What has changed over time is that I’ve developed a much better feel for my equipment, so I have more control. Even when I’m trying something new, such as the Shifty Forward, I’ve done so many Shiftys and so many Forwards that I know exactly where I am at every stage of the trick. But fear is still something I constantly have to contend with when I’m trying out new things or heading out in tricky conditions. It’s about managing it and not letting it overwhelm you, but instead using those butterflies in your stomach to your advantage.
After Fuerteventura, you travelled on to Tenerife to compete in the wave event – where you achieved a brilliant fourth place, which is by far your best result to date in the wave discipline – was this result a bit of a surprise to you? And what exactly have you been working on?
Tenerife was interesting because I went there as a challenger and was simply hoping to make it into the main event. Once I’d managed that, I was already happy. Then I won my first heat, which put me straight into the top 16 – so by that point I’d already achieved my goal and the pressure was sort of off. From then on, I just thought to myself: how cool would it be to go further? I had nothing to lose. I’d just come off the back of a freestyle win in Fuerte and had already achieved my best-ever result in the wave event, so I just gave it my all and believed I could do it. That’s probably the most important thing this event taught me – to believe in myself in the wave event too. In freestyle, I know I can do it. In wave, Tenerife made it clear to me that I can do it there too. I just went out there and did my thing, showing off my push-forwards and my doubles, and eventually made it through to the semi-finals. Making it from the quarter-finals to the semi-finals was probably the best feeling I had during the whole event. Then getting into the final was an incredible feeling, but at that point it almost felt like I was in a video game. I came out of the water, everyone was cheering, and I could hardly believe it because I’ve never seen myself as one of those guys. But when I think about it honestly, my jumps are actually pretty decent. The most important thing I really need to work on now is my wave riding. I happened to catch a few good waves during the event, and that really paid off. Once I’d reached the final, the pressure was off, which had actually been holding me back a bit. I felt I had to prove that I belonged in the final, and that mindset didn’t really work. But it didn’t matter. I was extremely pleased with the result and now know that I’ll get the hang of riding the waves.
In freestyle, I know I can do it. In wave riding, Tenerife has shown me that I can do it there too.
In the past, we’ve seen people like Ricardo Campello, Kauli Seadi and Marcilio Browne make a highly successful transition from freestyle to wave riding – is competing in the full wave tour something you’re aiming for in the future?
Yes. I want to become World Wave Champion. I’m really keen to compete in the entire Wave Tour, possibly as early as next year, depending on my schedule. At the very least, I’d like to take part in four full events, which should really boost my wave ranking. I think freestyle is a great stepping stone into the wave discipline. Just like the lads you mentioned, lots of great wave riders come from a freestyle background. That’s where you learn to handle the kit with great precision and get a really good feel for the equipment. So yes, I can definitely see myself taking part in the whole Wave Tour.
Sylt is now just a few weeks away – how are you feeling ahead of the event, where you’ll be aiming for your second world title?
I’m not thinking about the world title. I’m not even thinking about winning this event. I just want to perform as well as I can – ideally, break the 40-point mark in every heat and do my own thing when I’m out there. I really do enjoy this pressure. Every time I compete, it feels a bit different, but at the same time it’s still similar. I’m just curious to see how it will feel this time. I’m feeling very confident about my windsurfing at the moment. I know that if I ride well, I’ve got a very good chance of winning.
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