Wave Rally: Fun contest with top conditions - Karin Jaggi ahead of Helena Lale

The Wave Rally 2026 in Geraldton was a complete success and had much better luck with the wind than the first edition last year. Local Anton Pain was crowned the new Wave Rally Champion in the dramatic mega final, replacing last year's winner Albert Pijoan. The innovative competition format with its combination of wave riding, racing and a final beach sprint proved to be a complete success. With 74 participants from all over the world and their families, the event recorded a significant increase compared to the previous year and, according to the organisers, provided an economic boost for the region.

The organisers, led by Paul van Bellen, proved to have a lucky hand with the decision to compress the competition into two days. While Sunday offered hardly any wind and waves, Friday and Saturday presented themselves with ideal conditions for the Wave Rally. On the first day of the competition, an impressive 40 heats were completed every ten minutes in constant 25 knots of wind and excellent waves. This allowed the Wave Rally concept to be fully realised for the first time under optimal conditions. Although the individual heats only lasted around six minutes, they represented an enormous physical challenge for the starters and offered the spectators spectacular action on the water.

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Karin Jaggi ahead of Helena Lale in the women's category

The second day of competition brought the decision in the various weight classes and culminated in the eagerly awaited mega final. Here, local Anton Pain prevailed against strong international competition. Although the Dane Jesper Orth won the race on the water, Pain's faster legs in the final beach sprint secured him the overall victory. Last year's winner Albert Pijoan completed the podium in third place. Also noteworthy was the performance of Avan Griffith, who was considered one of the fastest riders on the water, but lost his chances of reaching the final due to an unfortunate crash at the beach start and another crash during a jibe outside the competition zone

One innovation of the Wave Rally 2026 was the introduction of different weight classes, which ensured fair competition conditions. In the lightweight class, Frenchman Max-Aurelien Le Metayer came out on top ahead of Anton Pain and Mathew Robertson. In the middleweight division, Logan Haggerston triumphed ahead of Stephane Lefebvre and Jonah Desforges. In the heavyweight class, Albert Pijoan secured victory ahead of Jesper Orth and Neil Connan. The women's competition was won by the experienced Karin Jaggi ahead of Helena Derya Lale from Germany and Isabelle Scharff. The class winners qualified for the grand final, in which Anton Pain ultimately came out on top.

The best pictures of the Wave Rally can be found in the gallery above

The video of the Wave Rally 2026

Results Wave Rally 2026

Mega Final

1. Anton Pain
2. Jesper Orth
3. Albert Pijoan

Ladies

1. Karin Jaggi
2. Helena Derya Lale
3. Isabelle Scharff

Lightweight

1. Max-Aurelien Le Metayer
2. Anton Pain
3. Mathew Robertson

Middleweight

1. Logan Haggerston
2. Stephane Lefebvre
3. Jonah desforges

Heavyweight

1. Albert Pijoan
2. Jesper Orth
3. Neil Connan