On the fourth day of competition at the 2026 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam, the women’s freestyle title was up for grabs. With a maximum of five heats to be contested, the final day got underway at 12 noon in conditions that pushed even experienced athletes to their limits. Wind gusts of well over 35 knots and a significant residual swell from the The day before, when the men put on an epic final, turned the water into a battlefield.
Naturally, the spotlight was very much on Maaike Huvermann yesterday: the 28-year-old Dutchwoman had qualified via the Victory in the single-elimination tournament on Saturday She had put herself in an excellent position and was on the verge of making history. But standing in her way was Sarah-Quita Offringa, a 16-time freestyle world champion who had cemented her dominance at this spot for almost two decades.
Offringa fights his way back
Sarah-Quita Offringa had the chance to secure her 17th World Championship title in the double elimination. In the semi-finals, the Aruban first defeated Germany’s top freestyler, Lisa Kloster, setting the stage for a rematch of the first final. The conditions were anything but ideal for technical perfection; in fact, they were almost too strong, turning the heats into a battle for survival rather than a showcase of the best manoeuvres. However, Offringa managed to deliver a flawless performance under this extreme pressure and force a super final. The outcome was decided in a single heat that would determine the world champion.
The conditions on the day of the final presented all the athletes with enormous challenges. The significant swell from the previous day, combined with the strong wind, made it difficult to perform the most technically demanding manoeuvres. Instead, the competition turned into a test of mental strength and the ability to land power moves under the most adverse conditions. Offringa proved once again why she is regarded as an elite athlete – not only in terms of her riding skills, but also mentally. She landed a host of power moves and coped with the extreme conditions just that little bit better than her rival. In doing so, she secured her 29th world title overall across all disciplines.
Huvermann’s dream is narrowly dashed
Immediately after getting out of the water, Offringa was overwhelmed by her success. “Oh my God! This is so crazy, I hadn’t even thought about it,” she said, referring to her 29th overall world title. “It was all about getting through the double elimination and seeing if I could challenge Maaike. I can’t believe I’m standing here now. I wasn’t sure if it would go my way,” Offringa added afterwards. The particular challenge made the victory even more valuable to her: “It feels absolutely incredible. It’s great when you’re pushed so hard. The standard of all the girls is rising dramatically, so I had to give it my all to rise to the challenge.”
“The standard among all the girls is rising dramatically, so I had to give it my all to rise to the challenge.” (Sarah-Quita Offringa)
For Maaike Huvermann, the competition ended in a heart-wrenching defeat. The 28-year-old had invested so much time and energy in her latest bid for the world title and had come closer to her goal than ever before. She achieved something that no one had managed in almost two decades – she beat Offringa in Fuerteventura, at least in the single elimination. Even though it wasn’t her ultimate goal, Huvermann still secured another runner-up spot in the World Championships. The Dutchwoman can be proud of her performance and has proved that she can seriously challenge Offringa.
A German hat-trick courtesy of Kloster, Schill and Lale
Lisa Kloster put in a strong performance against Sandra Schill and successfully defended her third place from the single elimination. The German thus finishes the year in third place in the world rankings for the second year running. Schill finished fourth on her World Tour debut, just ahead of Helena Lale from Severne Windsurfing, who rounded off the top five. With the conclusion of the official freestyle competition, attention turned to the start of the women’s and men’s Slalom X, which was due to begin on Wednesday 22 July. The official prize-giving ceremony was scheduled for Tuesday at 12 noon.
All heats and results can be found atpwaworldtour.com