Freestyle Pro Tour spectacle: Sam Esteve crowned Tow-In Champion in Geneva, Yentel Caers reaches new heights

Geneva, Sunday 12 October: Tow-In Finals. Six of the world's best freestylers delivered a spectacular showdown on the mirror-smooth Lake Geneva. With Sam Esteve, Lennart Neubauer, Yentel Caers, Steven Van Broeckhoven, Bodhi Kempen and Balz Müller, a high-calibre field of participants lined up at the start, providing great moves and thrilling action. After an exciting competition, Frenchman Sam Esteve came out on top with an impressive performance and was crowned Tow-In Champion of Geneva. Lennart Neubauer not only secured second place in the day's competition, but also overall victory in the Tow-In classification for the 2025 season - his second title in a row. The athletes will now head straight on to the season finale in Naxos, Greece, where almost 50 riders will compete for the last points of the season from 17 October.

Thrilling competition day with a clear format

The morning began with the skipper's meeting at 10:00 a.m., where the format for the day was confirmed: Each racer had three heats, with the best two counting towards the classification. At 13:00, the athletes started their warm-up session to perfect their timing behind the boat and get used to the glassy conditions of Lake Geneva. Lennart Neubauer focussed particularly on his flatwater combinations and explained that he "couldn't beat Yentel on the wave" - a reference to his strategy, which focused on technical precision rather than explosive height. The finals finally began at 2.30pm and spectators flocked to Tropical Corner to catch the action up close. Balz Müller stayed true to his word and was the only participant on the foil, which went down very well with the audience.

Sam Esteve with explosive performance to victory

French powerhouse Sam Esteve came into the final with fire in his eyes. He opened with a clean double air funnel into funnel, which was awarded 8 points. This was followed by one of the most explosive moves of the entire competition - a massive, perfectly tweaked one-handed double air rotation that sent the crowd into ecstasy. The judges honoured this performance with 8.67 points, giving him a total of 16.67 points after just two runs - enough to secure victory even before his third attempt. In his final run, he attempted a triple, but was unable to complete it due to a slightly too low take-off. It no longer mattered - the job was already done. As the riders came ashore for the last time, a huge crowd gathered at Tropical Corner to watch the award ceremony. The atmosphere was electric - cameras flashed, music blared and fans cheered as Sam Esteve was crowned Freestyle Pro Tour Geneva 2025 Tow-In Champion.

Lennart Neubauer secures overall victory

Lennart Neubauer took a different approach to his competitors. True to his technical reputation, the Greek freestyler focussed fully on combinations instead of wave-assisted tricks. He opened with a precise double burner on the flat, which earned him a solid 7 points. For his second run, he orientated himself on Yentel Caers' playbook and attempted a double air culo over the wave - an ambitious move that he couldn't quite pull off. His final run, however, was brilliant: a double air funnel into funnel, where he jumped off and rotated so quickly that he almost crashed into the pontoon. The judges rewarded this move with 8.67 points, which earned him a total of 15.67 points and second place in the daily ranking. After his victory in the pool at boot Düsseldorf earlier in the season and second place in Geneva, Neubauer secured the overall title of the Freestyle Pro Tour 2025 in tow-in - his second title in a row.

Yentel Caers in third place with spectacular moves

Yentel Caers was the man to beat all week. No one went as high or as powerful, and he wasted no time proving it. His opening move was a massive SamAir that scored 8 points - only a few points were deducted because he lost his front hand on the boom during the landing. In his second run, he attempted a one-handed burner 360 Sam Esteve style, but slipped out of the foot straps on landing, earning him 6.67 points. In the hunt for a big final, Yentel went all out for a triple rotation attempt, but couldn't quite pull it off. He finished in third place with a total of 14.67 points - still an impressive performance from the Geneva 2024 champion. If there had been a prize for the biggest sends of the event, Yentel Caers would definitely have been the one to receive it.

Experienced professionals complete the starting field

Steven Van Broeckhoven was in top form. The Belgian freestyle legend opened with a textbook pasko, which he landed perfectly dry, before following it up with a one-handed burner 360 - the same combination that had secured him a place in the final. Despite a slightly lower total score than in the qualifying round, Steven's performance again underlined his class and experience, and he finished the competition with a total of 11.5 points. Bodhi Kempen couldn't quite repeat his outstanding performance from the qualifying round either and struggled to find the same consistency in the final. His best run included a fallen pasko, which only earned him four points as his best score. Balz Müller stayed true to his word and was the only one travelling with a foil. In classic radiculo style, he went all out for entertainment, crashed on a freehand burner, then landed a stylish burner 360 and even attempted a kono on his final run.

Outlook for the season finale in Naxos

At the end of the event in Geneva, the overall Tow-In title was also decided. After his victory in Düsseldorf earlier in the season and second place here in Geneva, Lennart Neubauer was crowned Freestyle Pro Tour Tow-In Champion 2025, securing his second title in a row. Unfortunately, the Foilstyle discipline had to be cancelled again due to a lack of wind - and as Geneva was the only stop on the Foilstyle calendar this year, unfortunately no title was awarded. But the 2025 Freestyle Pro Tour season is far from over. The fleet is now heading to Naxos, Greece, for the biggest event of the season. Almost 50 riders from around the world will compete in the Freestyle Pro Tour 2025 season finale, which kicks off on 17 October.

Results:

Tow-In Final FPT Geneva 2025:

• 1st Sam Esteve: 16.67 points
• 2nd Lennart Neubauer: 15.67 points
• 3rd Yentel Caers: 14.67 points
• 4th Steven van Broeckhoven: 11.5 points
• 5th Bodhi Kempen: 4 points
• 6 Balz Müller

Overall ranking Tow-In FPT 2025:

• Champion: Lennart Neubauer