GWA Wingfoil Tour: From zero to world champion - an interview with Marie Schlittenbauer
Tobias Frauen
· 23.01.2026
You won the world title in your very first World Cup season. Did you even realise how good you were at the beginning?
Not really at the beginning. At the first event in Tarifa, I wasn't that good compared to the others. I knew from Instagram roughly how strong the others were, but it's a different story in a real competition. A lot of them weren't as consistent with their tricks and that helped me to be right up there at the front.
Between the events in Tarifa and Fuerteventura, you then stepped up your game again. What specifically did you train during this time?
I completely relearnt my front flips in particular. At the beginning I was doing them technically wrong because I wasn't using the wing properly. You actually have to use the wing in such a way that the wind pulls you downwards - I re-learnt that. I also worked on my palaus, especially the height. A lot of people can do the trick, but they do it very low, and height simply gives you a lot of points.
Do you analyse your training specifically with videos or training plans?
Not really. I try out a lot and usually do what I feel like doing at the time. Then I try to make the tricks higher, faster and cleaner. It's more intuitive than planned.
I always try to make my moves higher, faster and cleaner."
Did you realise straight away on Fuerte that you could be at the front?
I was riding a different board than usual in the first heat and that was totally unfamiliar. It went really badly at first. But on the second day it was completely different - I was right at the front and even got the full ten points for my moves twice. Things went really well from then on.
You then clinched the World Championship title on Gran Canaria. How did you celebrate this moment?
Very relaxed with the people who were there. The organiser always does a little something and then you just celebrate together.
Where are you from and how did it all start?
I come from Rosenheim in Germany. I started wingfoiling on Lake Garda and we often go there for training. At the very beginning I did windsurfing, then I learnt to kite at the age of nine and started wingfoiling three years ago. I actually thought wingfoiling was pretty uncool at first because it doesn't look good on beginners. But then my dad bought some equipment, I tried it out and then I really enjoyed it. Everything went pretty quickly after that.
Your brother Franz also races in the World Cup. Do you spur each other on?
Yes, definitely. He's a year older than me. As he got better, I also started jumping more and doing tricks. He's still better than me when it comes to tricks, but we push each other. And at the competitions, he signals to me what tricks I still need.
What does your training routine look like outside of school?
I can hardly train at home because there isn't often a good wind. In winter it's sometimes windy, but often too cold. In summer, we go to Lake Garda as often as possible at the weekend and we try to spend longer periods there during the holidays. In winter it's mostly school.
Tarifa was your very first contest ever. How did you approach the heats?
In heat, I always do the tricks that I know for sure first. You need three tricks that count. Once I have them, I'm no longer so nervous and can try more difficult things. That helps me a lot.
When someone posts a new move on Instagram, you get a bit nervous!"
Do you monitor your competitors on social media?
Yes, I do. When someone posts something really new or good, you get a bit nervous. But you can't do anything else but try to learn it yourself.
Will you stick to freestyle or are you also interested in other things like waves or racing?
Freestyle is my main discipline, but I also try out other things. We're flying to Boa Vista in April, there are a lot of waves there and I want to try that out. I've also already tried racing.
Do you have a favourite spot and a favourite move?
My favourite spot is actually Lake Garda, because you almost always have wind there. But I also really liked Gran Canaria because of the big waves. My favourite move is Palau or Frontflip.
Finally: Do you already have concrete plans for the future?
Not really. I'll just keep going as long as I enjoy it. Only when I've finished school will I see what happens next. Maybe I'll take a year off or a year abroad first. At the moment, I just want to ride and keep developing.
