The 2026 GWA Youth & Junior Championship, held from 27 to 30 August as part of the California Windsurf Cup, brought the highlight of the season for young windsurfers to Pelzerhaken. More than half of all competitors in the DWC season finale were under 21 years of age. The junior titles were awarded in three age groups: Junior U17, Youth U19 and Youth U21. Jesse Richter from Kiel dominated the U21 class, Paul Regber from Kiel triumphed in the U19s and Mika Henning came out on top in the U17s. The young competitors benefited from the professional organisation and were also able to collect points towards the annual rankings of Germany’s top windsurfing series.
Richter dominates both disciplines
Jesse Richter from Kiel proved himself to be the clear winner in both disciplines. In the Fin Slalom, he won the U21 title, with Maximilian Niclaas Damm finishing as runner-up ahead of Berlin’s Pelle Bo Behrendt. Richter also gave his rivals no chance in the foiling event; Behrendt once again had to settle for second place, whilst Thies Johnsen completed the podium. Thanks to his victories in both disciplines, Richter also secured the overall U21 title. In the overall standings, the results of all races in both disciplines are combined to determine the best all-round racer.
Paul Regber from Kiel won the GWA Youth U19 Foiling title under unusual circumstances: he did not compete using standard funboard equipment, but with the pre-Olympic iQFOiL Youth kit. Although the Dane Gustav Permin finished at the top of the podium, his nationality meant he was unable to win the GWA Championship title. Regber’s training partner Tom Franke became GWA Youth U19 Foiling Vice-Champion, also on iQFOiL equipment. Noah Schmäh completed the podium as the third athlete from the SVSH regional squad. In the fin slalom, Jesper Mo Thomsen from Flensburg claimed the U19 title ahead of Felix Rhode and Philip Köhlert. Köhlert otherwise competes for the iQFOiL regional squad of the Schleswig-Holstein Sailing Association. In the overall standings, Regber came out on top to become GWA Youth U19 Champion ahead of Noah Schmäh and Felix Rhode.
Mika Henning: in a class of his own
Mika Henning was in a league of his own in the U17 juniors. He dominated both the fin slalom and the foiling events, securing all three possible titles in his age group. In the fin slalom, Mika Lievens finished as runner-up in his rookie season. Loris Freund also made it onto the podium in his rookie season. In the foiling event, Henning once again came out on top. Julian Ahrens from Kiel, a member of the SVSH regional squad, became GWA Junior U17 runner-up. Til Klöpping took third place as a rookie. In the overall standings, Henning topped the table thanks to his title wins in both individual disciplines. In a sensational performance, Lena Schmäh from Kiel claimed the GWA Junior U17 Vice-Champion title in the women’s category. Tom Bruch, as a rookie, surprisingly secured third place.
The pre-Olympic iQFOiL Youth & Junior equipment is approved by the International Funboard Class Association. iQFOiL competitors must use one-design equipment, which is limited in both quantity and size, whilst their rivals in the open category have access to a wider range of more varied and modern equipment. Despite this disadvantage, a number of iQFOiL athletes also made a strong showing in the overall standings. To take this disadvantage into account and provide a strong national platform for the pre-Olympic class, a special classification was introduced for foiling. In the iQFOiL Youth category, Paul Regber triumphed ahead of Tom Franke and Philip Köhlert. The SVSH regional squad thus secured all three podium places in the older youth division. In the iQFOiL Junior category, rookie Til Klöpping immediately made it to the top. With Lena Schmäh from Kiel and Smilla Petersen from Flensburg, two athletes from Schleswig-Holstein secured the remaining podium places.
All results at