Olympic class: IQFOiL World Championships in Aarhus - Magetti and van Opzeeland in the lead at the start

The first day of the iQFOiL World Championship 2025 in Aarhus kicked off with four high-intensity races in both the men's and women's competitions before the wind died down a little in the late afternoon. In the women's competition, the Italian Olympic champion from Paris 2024, Marta Maggetti, immediately set an exclamation mark. She took the lead in the overall standings with two race wins, a second place and an eighth place as a streaker. Hot on her heels are two strong Israeli athletes with equal points: The reigning world champion and Olympic silver medallist Sharon Kantor and Tamar Steinberg, who has already won the iQFOiL International Games in Cádiz and the Semaine Olympique Française in Hyères this season.

Maggetti was surprised by her strong performance after the successful start: "It went really well, although I didn't expect it. It was a very difficult day with gusty winds and pressure drops. You really had to keep your eyes open to see everything." She said she was particularly proud of her victory in the last race of the day, in which she scored points with a bold tactical decision: "I believed in something that the others didn't see. I was practically alone on the left side of the first cross and crossed first with a decent lead. Then the wind dropped sharply and they caught up - I could hardly wait until the race was over!"

Van Opzeeland leads the men's race, Badloe makes a comeback

In the men's event, which was split into two qualifying groups, the yellow group completed all four planned races, while the blue group only completed three races due to a course change. At the top of the overall standings after the first day is Dutchman Luuc van Opzeeland, who impressed with consistently strong performances. He is closely followed by his compatriot and 2020 Olympic champion on the RS:X, Kiran Badloe. Third place is currently occupied by Frenchman Tom Arnoux.

Kiran Badloe, who has returned to competition after a break, described the challenging conditions on the opening day: "We had a challenging combination of conditions - it was really tricky out there. From wind direction changes from left to right to pressure fluctuations up and down, it was all there. It was just about staying consistent." The experienced Dutchman emphasised the importance of a good start to the World Championship: "Aarhus is a challenging venue. It will be a long week, but a good start is half the battle. I will try to keep this momentum going."

Outlook for the coming days

Theresa Steinlein is in ninth place after the first day, but managed to scrape onto the podium in her group. Sophia Meyer is in 62nd place, Alica Stuhlemmer is 75th, the best German man is Max Körner in 36th place, Jakob Ditzen is 61st and Fabian Wolf is 63rd. PWA expert Johan Søe is in 13th place for the time being at his home World Championships.

Lighter winds are forecast for the second day of the competition, and slalom races may then be organised. All information and results at iqfoilclassofficial.org