In ideal wind conditions of 18-22 knots at the Bonaire PWA Youth Slalom World Cup, there were initially five foil slalom races, followed by a further five rounds of classic fin slalom. A full programme on the fourth day in a row. According to his GPS watch, Tycho Smits covered over 90 kilometres - proof of the high intensity of the competition day.
The morning began with the foil races in perfect conditions. While overall leader Kasper Nielsen experienced a turbulent day with missed starts, Thijs Hanemaaijer and Brendan Lorho fought thrilling duels. Races three and four of the day were only decided at the finish line. Hanemaaijer initially secured a narrow victory, but Lorho struck back in the following race. Despite the difficult day, Nielsen was able to maintain his lead in the overall standings with a 3.5-point advantage over Lorho. Hanemaaijer is only two points behind in third place, which promises an exciting final day.
In the girls' race, Bobbi-Lynn De Jong, who had dominated so far, showed signs of weakness for the first time. Her sister Kit De Jong seized the opportunity and took three race wins. Although Bobbi-Lynn still has a clear lead in the overall standings, there are signs of a fascinating duel between the sisters in the future.
Fin Slalom: Perfect scores and close fights
After the lunch break, the fin slalom races continued. In the boys' U21 class, the favourites fought close duels. Brendon Lorho, Thijs Hanemaaijer and Storm Nicolai were able to maintain their podium positions, but Ibrahim Ali Dönmez put in a strong performance and improved to fourth place. The dominance of some athletes was impressive: Tycho Smits, Bobbi-Lynn De Jong and Arxon Gomperts each put together a perfect series of 18 wins in 18 fin races in the entire event so far. After a weaker previous day, Julien Blom was also able to win all of his runs on the fourth day.
The competition in the boys' U13 class deserves special mention. Despite their young age, they delivered exciting duels with overtaking manoeuvres and tactical skill. Three more foil races are planned for the final day of competition in the morning, followed by two final fin slalom runs in the afternoon. In view of the close points differences, the final day promises to be exciting once again in all classifications.
