GWA Wingfoil World Cup: 14-year-old Benjamin Castenskiold wins world title in surf freestyle

Benjamin Castenskiold has secured the world title in surf freestyle at the final stop of the GWA Wingfoil World Tour in Gran Canaria. The 14-year-old Dane crowned his impressive season with a victory at the decisive event in El Burrero. With his triumph, Castenskiold made history as one of the youngest world champions in the still young history of the professional wingfoil sport. The competition marked the end of the 2025 surf freestyle season, in which a total of 23 men and 14 women competed for the coveted titles.

New El Burrero spot with ideal conditions

The GWA returned to Gran Canaria for the third time in a row, but presented a new competition venue in El Burrero, north of Vargas. The location impressed with cross-onshore winds and perfect kicker waves - ideal conditions for surf freestyle. Before the event, several athletes were still within striking distance in the men's title race: in addition to defending champion Chris MacDonald, Benjamin Castenskiold, Tomas Acherer and Aleks Acherer also had realistic chances of overall victory. Nia Suardiaz led the women's rankings, but Mar de Arce and Marie Schlittenbauer were also still in with a chance of winning the title.

The high standard of the competition was already evident in the quarter-finals. The athletes each had seven attempts in strong winds, with the best three tricks counting towards the final score. Xavi Corr and Tomas Acherer impressed with huge Palau Frontside 7s and secured their places in the semi-finals. Benjamin Castenskiold underlined his title ambitions with a perfect 10-point score for a spectacular frontside 14 and, together with Luca Vuillermet, progressed to the next round. In the third quarter-final, Axel Gerard and Aleks Acherer prevailed in a close duel against Malo Guenole and Clement Hamon. The last ticket for the semi-finals was secured by Benjamin May and defending champion Chris MacDonald.

Title decided in the semi-final

The tension reached its peak in the first semi-final when the twin brothers Tomas and Aleks Acherer competed against Benjamin May and Benjamin Castenskiold. With the title in sight, Castenskiold put in a world-class performance and scored 29.20 points. Aleks Acherer secured second place in the final, just ahead of his brother Tomas and Benjamin May.

In the second semi-final, Xavi Corr initially took the lead, but Axel Gerard wowed the crowd with a breathtaking double backflip, which was awarded 9.83 points. Defending champion Chris MacDonald and Luca Vuillermet came under pressure and fell several times. MacDonald's last attempt to turn the tide with a risky trick ended with a fall - shattering his dream of defending his title and leaving the door wide open for Castenskiold or Acherer to take the world title.

Castenskiold's coronation in the final

The final between Benjamin Castenskiold, Axel Gerard, Aleks Acherer and Xavi Corr turned out to be a worthy finale to the season. The athletes started cautiously and showed their safest tricks first. Axel Gerard was the first to make an exclamation mark and was awarded the highest score of 10 points for another perfect double backflip.

At half-time of the final, the scores were close together. Once all the finalists had their three tricks in the bag, they increased the risk. Aleks Acherer was unable to withstand the pressure and failed on his final attempts. Xavi Corr did not manage a strong finish either.

The event victory was decided between Gerard and Castenskiold. While the young Dane performed consistently throughout, Gerard had the highest individual scores. However, when Gerard crashed on his last attempt, the decision was made: Benjamin Castenskiold not only secured victory at the event, but also the 2025 GWA Wingfoil Surf Freestyle World Champion title - an impressive achievement for the 14-year-old in his first full season on the World Tour.

Marie Schlittenbauer with another strong performance

The women's World Championships have yet to be decided, with the semi-finals and final likely to be held today. Reigning world champion Nia Suardiaz made a strong statement with a clean backflip at the start of her heat in round 3. Marie Schlittenbauer, who is still recovering from hers rise in Fuerteventura inspires impressed with a massive Palau Frontside 3, followed by a stylish Frontflip - and clearly won with 25.87 points.

The conditions in El Burrero allowed the women to show off their rapidly developing skills to the full. Both Mar de Arce and Manon Dupe made it straight through to the semi-finals. In round 4, Bowien van der Linden put in a very good performance and moved into the semi-finals with a clear lead. Allegra Caffi followed her with a solid and consistent run. Zara Maillard and Viola Lippitsch also secured their places, completing the strong semi-final line-up.