22 world championship titles in all disciplines, ten years unbeaten - we're not talking about Dunkerbeck or Naish, but Sarah-Quita Offringa. She has been shaping women's windsurfing for almost 20 years and is far from tired of it. In wave riding, on the other hand, it was the Moreno twins who seemed almost unbeatable for a long time. Daida announced her retirement last year, while Iballa has only been competing in a few events for some time now.
After a long time, Lina Erpenstein is once again one of the top German athletes in the world. "My goal is to become world champion. I'm closer than ever before," she recently said in a surf interview. In order to achieve this goal, the doctor wants to concentrate fully on the sport and train specifically after her practical year. "If I don't succeed in becoming world champion, then at least I've tried everything I can do. But maybe I'll make it - I firmly believe that. I'm 26 years old now - so if not now, then when?"
There is a lack of support for women
Despite many big names and impressive performances, it is more difficult for professional female riders to follow their careers than their male counterparts. "Because there are no separate women's events, we are of course always compared directly with the men, which is unfair," says Lina. Sarah-Quita Offringa also said in an interview last year: "You also have to look at the background: Women who don't get a budget for equipment and have to pay for their own trips. Many work or study all year round and surf on the side. How can you compare a full-time job with part-time - or even less? There are many men who have thrown themselves fully into windsurfing because they have been given the opportunity to do so. That automatically leads to a higher level."
One person who campaigned for equal conditions for many years was Daida Moreno. As the organiser of the World Cup in Pozo, she and her sister Iballa equalised the prize money for men and women. In doing so, they set an example, but were also met with hostility. Looking back, Daida says: "The number of women competing has increased significantly, as has the level of the heats. I've seen the level rise throughout my career and I'm incredibly happy about that. And I really hope that many of these women can stay on the tour long enough to be examples for younger generations."
The future: lightweight material and camps
To get more women interested in windsurfing in the first place, the equipment is also an important factor: "One positive development that I see is better equipment, specially developed for women and lightweight people," says Daida Moreno. "With these boards and sails, many people can cope much better and realise their full potential." Additional motivation can come from windsurfing camps, for example, where women and girls push each other.
Lina Erpenstein regularly organises girls' camps at the Baltic Sea: "When women are among themselves, they feel more comfortable and don't have to compete with men. It may sound a bit generalised, but men can achieve a lot with strength and a 'go for it' mentality. Women often can't do that, so they have to take a different approach," explains Lina. "It's more about technique, and that works very well. For example, we had a woman at one of the camps who learnt how to tack quickly in three days and she now wanted to show her husband because he's been working on it forever."
Sarah Hauser is a woman who always makes for spectacular images. The New Caledonian is not only the personal trainer of Brawzinho and co, but last year she once again beat her own world record for the biggest wave ever ridden by a woman. "I was told to live a safe life. I was told to stop dreaming. At some point, I stopped listening," she reported in the 2017 film "Girl on the Wave", which traced her life. Since then, countless waves and IWT titles have been added.
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There are some great talents in the competition field who could one day follow in the footsteps of Offringa, the Morenos and other influential female windsurfers: the German-Spanish Alexia Kiefer and Sol Degrieck from Belgium have already celebrated their first successes in the World Cup, and last year Maria Behrens from Lübeck also impressively showed her potential!
A portrait of the best female windsurfers in the world:
- Interview with Lina Erpenstein - Between the World Cup, Girls Camps and the DJ booth
- Interview with Sarah-Quita Offringa: "I'm running out of time!"
- Sarah Hauser - Little lady for great deeds
- Interview with freestyle windsurfer Oda Johanne Brødholt
- Interview with Daida Moreno - The Queen of Pozo resigns
- Shawna Cropas - the Queen of Hookipa
