Maui Quatro Pro U21 winner: "The overall podium would be crazy" - interview with Leon Maethner

With the Quatro Maui Pro off Hookipa kicked off the World Cup season with a real cracker. In addition to the victories of Bernd Roediger and Marine Hunter in the professional category, Leon Maethner also rode into the limelight. The 18-year-old, who is on Instagram with his big brother Marlon under the label "Surfkerle", won the U21 classification. In addition to the Japanese Ryo Noguchi, he also left Anton Richter - also from Kiel - and the reigning world champion Jake Ghiretti behind.

Hi Leon, how did the heats go from your point of view? Did you realise straight away that something was up?

The heats went really well for me. We had 17 minutes per heat. The announcement was that 2 waves counted. There wasn't enough wind for jumping. But the conditions for riding the waves were great with nice, almost three metre high waves. The wind could have been a bit stronger and less onshore, but with my 5.0 it was fine. I managed to catch a good wave right at the start of each of my heats and scored two very good scores with another nice wave. After winning the semi-final, I already had the feeling that a podium place could be possible. But to actually win the Maui Pro U21 World Cup was amazing and of course made me really happy.

Did you have a particular tactic in the heats?

My tactic in the heats was to grab a good wave from the very outside early on and start as directly as possible with a solid score, and then secure a good starting position with a second wave. After that, I was able to take more risks in order to achieve an even higher score. And luckily that worked out well.

The fact that I spent almost six months on Maui with my family in 2023/2024 definitely helped me for the contest!"

You've been on Maui with your family for a while, did you have a little "home advantage"?

The fact that I spent almost six months with my family on Maui in 2023/2024 definitely helped me for the contest. I actually had a bit of a home advantage because I windsurfed in many different conditions during my time in Ho'okipa, with different swell and wind directions and of course in a wide variety of wave heights. This was a particular advantage in the tricky onshore conditions at the Maui Pro World Cup.

• "Surf guys" from Kiel: Who are Leon and Marlon Maethner?

Do you sometimes look to the Hookipa greats like Roediger, Noireaux, Siver, Braw and co. for inspiration?

Of course I try to learn something from the pros! I then try to recognise and better understand exactly how a trick works or what the pros do differently with certain turns. The problem, however, is the realisation! That's another matter. In any case, it's great to share the waves with the windsurfing greats out there in Ho'okipa! It's a lot of fun!

How did you celebrate your victory?

I celebrated my win with my family and friends. I went out for a delicious meal, then celebrated at the awards ceremony and afterwards I went to a party with friends.

What is your favourite move and what are you still working on?

My favourite move at the moment is a nice aerial or a clean cutback with lots of spray. And I'm currently training mainly on the Wave 360.

You also beat the reigning Junior World Champion Jake Ghiretti twice - do you fancy your chances of winning the World Championship this year?

Yes, I scored better than Jake in the semi-finals and final and am now joint top of the world rankings in the U21 division. I'm obviously very happy about that. As far as my World Championship chances are concerned, I'll just have to see how things go in the next few events. It would be crazy for me to make it onto the podium overall this year. But that will be a big challenge.

What's next for you?

Firstly, depending on the wind, I'll be travelling to Denmark over the coming weekends and then to the Canary Islands for a few weeks over the summer. There I will be taking part in the PWA/WWT World Cups on Gran Canaria and then on Tenerife. Fortunately, both events will take place during my summer holidays. I'm also hoping to compete in the Youth World Cup in Denmark and, of course, the Aloha Classic in autumn. But I still have to fit this in with my upcoming exam schedule. After the summer, I start my final year at school, when the exams count towards my A-levels. Even though my school is very supportive of competitive sport - and I'm in a special sports class that allows us to take part in competitions during school hours - it will still be difficult to miss a lot of lessons and make up for exams in this last year of school and still get good grades for my A-levels... So I'll have to see how I can fit everything in. Unfortunately, the Grand Final in Chile is right in the middle of the exam period for the Abitur, so I probably won't be able to attend. At the moment I'm just happy with my result from the Maui Pro U21 and I'm delighted about it!

Thank you very much and good luck!