It was already clear before the start of the regatta that there would be a new winner for this year at the Windsurf Cup in St. Peter-Ording: the top favourites Nico Prien and Michele Becker were still in Gran Canaria at the PWA World Cup. Becker, who has won all three tour stops so far, would therefore not be able to continue his streak. After the event opened late on Friday - the construction had to be interrupted due to the storm on Wednesday - the focus was on the pursuers Gunnar Asmussen and Fabian Wolf.
But first it was time to wait. After the storm, a persistent calm and Caribbean temperatures settled over the event site on Ordinger Strand, so that the focus on Friday and Saturday was initially on the supporting programme with a vanlife exhibition, catering, shopping opportunities and parties. It was only on Saturday evening at around seven o'clock that a breeze of twelve to 16 knots set in, which the race organisers immediately took advantage of.
Asmussen and Wolf with one win and one slip-up each
There were 22 starters and two eliminations, each with four heats, were held until sunset. Fabian Wolf won the first heat and secured the first 500 euros in prize money from LVM Versicherung, which is always awarded to the winner of the first race in the Windsurf Cup. Wolf, who also starts in the iQFoil at the same time, seemed to be on his way to his first event win of the season. Gunnar Asmussen, on the other hand, crossed the start line too early together with other riders and was disqualified.
But in the second elimination, the tide turned 180 degrees: early start Wolf, victory Asmussen. The smiling third was Lars Poggemann, who had consistently finished in the lead with two third places. As there was not enough wind for further races on Sunday either, this meant the first win in the Windsurf Cup for the Patrik rider.
Strong juniors in the Windsurf Cup
The Dutchman Sem Luka Stroosma came second in the final classification with a second and a fifth place, followed by Leo Richter in third place. This is his best result so far in the Multivan Windsurf Cup. With Richter, Stroosma and Koen Hessels, who also travelled from the Netherlands, three U21 riders are represented in the top 5. Gunnar Asmussen and Fabian Wolf finished in fifth and sixth place respectively.
The next event in the Multivan Windsurf Cup is the German Championship on Sylt from 25 to 30 July. In addition to the decisive ranking points, the GWA Championships and the International German Championship in Foil Slalom will also be at stake there. However, the PWA World Cup on Fuerteventura is partly running in parallel, so the decision will probably be made in the absence of Michele Becker and Nico Prien.
Results Windsurf Cup St. Peter-Ording
- Lars Poggemann
- Sem Luka Stroosma
- Leo Richter
- Koen Hessels
- Gunnar Asmussen
- Fabian Wolf
- Jonne Heimann
- Felix Wehkamp
- Pawel Dittrich
- Meno Büchler
Also interesting:
- Finn classification in the DWC: Matthias Regber on the new classes in the Windsurf Cup
- Fabian Wolf on home regattas, DWC and iQFoil in comparison and the Kördel dominance
- Multivan Windsurf Cup: This is the DWC calendar for 2023
- Interview with Michele Becker: "Without competitions, I would no longer windsurf"
