While the women's World Championship title had long since gone to Nia Suardiaz, the men's final of the GWA Wingfoil World Tour season was much more exciting. Francesco Cappuzzo (ITA), Titouan Galea (FRA) and Bastien Escofet (FRA) all still had the chance to win the title. In the end, it was Cappuzzo who went home with the trophy.
Cappuzzo = constancy
After years at the highest level and three runner-up world championships in a row, Cappuzzo finally succeeded in becoming world champion. The Italian showed a flawless performance during the World Cup Cauipe. Although he did not win a single run, his consistency against his title rivals was unrivalled. In five eliminations, Cappuzzo achieved three second places and two fifth places, one of which he was able to eliminate as a scratch result. The two French rivals Bastien Escofet and Titouan Galea, on the other hand, also had a few downward slips in the rankings - which ultimately cost them the title.
The title decision was made on the shallow water lagoon of the Brazilian coastal town - the conditions here are ideal for the slalom discipline, the course is compact and narrow. Frenchman Oscar Leclair, who won his first event on the tour, made the best impression. He achieved this with consistently strong performances - he won three of the five eliminations and only had a dip in the 4th run - a negative result that he was able to cancel out.
The World Cup in Brazil was also interesting from a German perspective, as Yannik Holste sensationally made it onto the podium. Holste started with a sixth place in Elimination 1 and then followed this up with two fourth places, a third place and even a victory in Elimination 4. In the end, Holste was just a touch behind the event's runner-up and new world champion Cappuzzo.
"One-woman show" for the ladies
In the women's event, the World Cup Cauipe turned into an exhibition race for Nia Suardiaz, who was already crowned world champion. Suardiaz won five out of seven races and won with the ideal score of 3.5 points ahead of Kylie Belloeuvre and Bowien van der Linden.
World Cup Cauipe - the results
The complete annual rankings for all disciplines are available HERE. The GWA tour calendar promises exciting competitions again in 2024. The new season is set to kick off in mid-February with the wave discipline on the Cape Verde island of Sal. An event in Saudi Arabia is also being planned - although no event has yet been finally confirmed. As soon as there is official news about the new tour calendar, you will find it here.
Manuel Vogel
Editor surf
