PWA World Cup: "No Rules" in racing - that's the idea, that's what the riders say

It sounds strange at first that no rules should apply to racing in the PWA World Cup. But the "no rules" concept, which has been in place in the World Cup for many years, is definitely justified. In a video from the event in Guadeloupe, the PWA explains the idea once again and lets many riders have their say.

Originally, the competition rules from sailing were slightly adapted for windsurfing. But windsurfing is much faster, and for a while protests were the order of the day after the races. Just as Manuel Neuer in the Bayern goal reflexively raises his hand in protest, some riders ran to the judges after losing heats and complained about rule violations, which then had to be reviewed. Before live streams and drone recordings, this was only possible by hearing the drivers and witnesses concerned, a very lengthy process that took a huge amount of time.

"The rules simply no longer made sense," says Maciek Rutkowski. Nico Prien adds: "A lot of time was lost in protests, even though the conditions were good." This is why "no rules" have been in place for many years: no right of way, no obligation to stay on course. This has made the races much more exciting and spectacular; a "magic move" can happen at any time and change the race. The only exception: gross endangerment of others leads to disqualification ("Dangerous Sailing").

Contact leads to a crash

PWA judge Francky Roguet emphasises that he recognises when a crash is deliberately provoked. It is actually in everyone's interest not to have any contact, says Maciek Rutkowski: "One contact leads to a crash, and that's usually the end of the race." You drive under a "gentlemen's agreement", "after all, you want to be able to look the others in the eye on the beach," says Nico Prien.

Blanca Alabau even thinks that "No Rules" makes racing safer, and everyone else is a big fan: "It definitely has more positive aspects, it makes the sport more exciting," says Dutchman Sam Stroosma.

"No Rules" - exciting documentary

Maciek Rutkowski had already produced an extremely worthwhile short documentary about "No Rules" in 2015 - with plenty of spectacular race scenes:

PWA World Cup: These rules apply to waveriding, freestyle and slalom