iQFOil talent: Who is Lenny Friemel?

Alois Mühlegger

· 18.11.2024

Thanks to the foil boards, Lenny Friemel can even complete good training sessions at Lake Wolfgangsee in Austria or at his home in Chiemsee.

Lenny is supported by his club SV Wacker Burghausen and the Bavarian Sailing Association

The iQFOiL Youth board is the ideal preparation for future Olympic material.

The Upper Bavarian gained his first regatta experience on the Techno 293 on Lake Garda.

The next step: going to Kiel to study - and surfing a lot!

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Photo: privat

He belongs to the foil generation - for 18-year-old Lenny Friemel from Burghausen in Upper Bavaria, foil windsurfing is the key to a successful regatta career. In this interview, he reveals what he has already achieved as a youngster and what his goals are.

First of all, his first name has nothing to do with the surname of the famous Waterman Kai Lenny from Hawaii. But the 18-year-old talented youngster from Burghausen in Bavaria is determined to climb the career ladder. After a tough qualification process, Lenny has now made it through to the Youth Sailing World Championships organised by the World Sailing Federation for the second time and has been nominated by the DSV again, as he was in 2023. In the summer of 2024, he competed on the iQFOiL Youth Board on Lake Garda in the Olympic junior class against almost 40 opponents from all over the world.

Burghausen may be on the Salzach, but there is no lake in sight. Windsurfers instead of canoeists, how come?

My father has always been an enthusiastic windsurfer and sailor. My family often took me to Lake Wolfgang, where I learnt about Opti sailing and windsurfing during a beginners' week.

So you sailed your first regattas in the Opti relatively soon?

Yes, insignificant regattas without ambitions. But it was a really good time.

In windsurfing, it took a while until the first competition. Do you remember how it started?

After my time in the Opti, I tried out a few other boat classes. But as I've always really enjoyed windsurfing, I asked myself why I wasn't racing around the tonnes on something faster and more exciting. In 2020, I also travelled on a foil board for the first time, which was a really key experience.

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Like many others, the Techno 293 youth board was a good place to start. Did you find it suitable?

In the beginning, foil regattas would have been too much for me, so I gained experience on the Techno, where everything went a bit slower. There was also a great Techno293 youth group at the RSC Chiemsee.

So you'll soon be going to international competitions with the RSCC youth group? Straight to the European and World Championships? Or before that to the German Youth Championships?

It was a great group dynamic. I rode once in the U17 age group at every championship and really learnt a lot, especially about pumping.

Two years ago, the Techno WindFoil youth foil board was launched. You invested, but didn't stick with it.

Yes, that was a real bad investment. I didn't sail a regatta with it, and I didn't use it much overall.

Shortly afterwards, the iQFOiL Youth Board came onto the market. Why did it catch on?

The iQFOiL Youth and Junior equipment is easier to sail and closer to the big Olympic equipment. The marketing was also better and World Sailing selected it for the Youth Sailing Worlds.

More about iQFoil:

More and more young people want to switch to the iQFOiL Youth board at the age of 13, 14 or 15. Won't they be overwhelmed with the large sails - currently eight-zeros are still permitted this year - in the right wind?

No, that's possible. At this age, you would ride in the U15 or U17. Both age groups start together in a field with junior material. There you foil with a very light seven-mast sail with an RDM mast. If this is too much for you, you can also start with a 5 or 6 metre rig of the same design. Only later in the U19 on the youth equipment is there a heavy and performance-orientated rig with eight square metres for everyone in any wind. The iQ sails can also be trimmed for a wide wind range, and in strong winds you can pull the sails flat as a board.

Rule change: sails in the iQFoil are getting smaller

After your first successes in the youth regattas, the Bavarian Sailing Association took notice of you and included you in the junior squad. What does the support currently look like?

The trainer costs are partly covered.

Training, coaches, equipment, everything costs a lot. Who finances this?

As I said, a bit of the Bavarian Sailing Association. Mostly my parents at the moment. My club, SV Wacker Burghausen, is also covering a lot, such as material costs, entry fees and storage costs. They are a great help. I'm also looking for sponsors for future investments.

You start for SV Wacker Burghausen. Sounds more like a football club than a surf club.

The sports club is very broadly based and also has a windsurfing section, among other things. But of course there is also football.

I'm moving to Kiel to study - there's more wind there to surf a lot!"

Last year, the German Sailing Association (DSV) took notice of you and sent you to Buzios (Brazil) for the World Sailing Federation's Youth World Championships. What were your impressions?

It was a really great event, especially the location. We had 35 degrees and a whole range of conditions. The equipment was provided, so we had brand new stuff. Unpacking was one of the highlights. As there was only one starter per nation, the level was very high and the field was very small. All in all, it was a special event. The DSV also covered all the costs. In addition to racing, you could also explore the city of Buzios and go surfing. I really enjoyed it and I was particularly pleased with my first days of racing. In the end, I finished 16th as I had problems with the strong winds on the last two days.

Sophia Meyer and Lenny Friemel with top results at the World Youth Championships

You were recently at the Youth Sailing World Championships on Lake Garda. You wanted to be in the top ten. It didn't quite work out. What was the reason?

As in Brazil, the equipment was supposed to be provided, but it didn't arrive in Torbole. This was only announced a few days beforehand, so I had to start on equipment that hadn't been run in. I let this throw me off my stride a little. Unfortunately, it was down to the starts and my speed. The strategy and tactics were okay, but I'm only really satisfied with my manoeuvres. On the last day, I was able to finish the regatta on a positive note with individual placings of 5th, 9th, 9th and 5th. 14th place in the final result, just six points behind eleventh place, is annoying.

However, the iQFOiL Youth Championship on Lake Constance went splendidly. Eight races, eight Victories for you. Why the increase in performance?

The level is lower nationally. I also coped very well with the gusty light wind we had in Überlingen.

What are your sporting goals for the next few years?

If I make as much progress as I have recently, I'll be happy. Slowly, I will also start to put what I have learnt into practice. I will enter the U23 and senior categories and try to establish myself there, which will be very difficult. I'm still too light, but I was still able to gain experience at the U23 World Championships on Lake Silvaplana. My overarching long-term goals are the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles/USA or 2032 in Brisbane/Australia.

You graduated from high school in June. Are you already thinking about your career and studies alongside sport?

I'll probably move to Kiel, I want to study mechanical engineering there. I also have better training opportunities on the Baltic Sea, but above all more wind to surf a lot.

Fact about Lenny Friemel

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