World Cup Hvide Sande: FreeFly Slalom in light winds - Suardiaz & Galea in the lead

At the GWA Wingfoil World Cup Hvide Sande, getting up early was once again the order of the day. Because a stable area of high pressure is currently providing more of a bathing weather, the wingfoilers have to make the most of the few wind phases. For the surf freestyle discipline, this plan had already worked out at the start of the event ( HERE for the report). And getting up early on day four of the event should also pay off for the participants in the FreeFly slalom.

Favourites in front at the World Cup Hvide Sande

In the women's race, the entire field usually takes to the track together as a full fleet due to the smaller number of participants. This means that every race counts directly towards the final standings. The Spaniard Nia Suardiaz fluffed in the very first race of the day - at least by her standards - and could only manage second place. However, it was only a temporary setback, as she won the next six races in a row and is currently clearly in first place. An overall victory in Hvide Sande would earn her the World Championship title in FreeFly Slalom, having already bagged the World Championship title in Freestyle at the start of the event. French rider Kylie Belloeuvre opened her day with a win in the first race of the day and followed it up with four second places. This earned her second place in the overall standings behind Suardiaz and keeps her in the running for a podium finish. "It was a good day for me," said Belloeuvre. "It was crazy, intense, that's for sure. The wind was light, but I like the format. The pump track was super long and extremely exhausting."

Once again, the regatta organisers had come up with an exciting course. The 10-part course with a triangle and an almost one kilometre long (!) "pump track" put the athletes to the test, while moody offshore gusts made it even more difficult for the riders. French rider Titouan Galea is currently leading the men's classification after five elimination rounds. However, his path to the top has been characterised by ups and downs, but he remains on course to win the world title in the FreeFly slalom once again.

Frenchman Julien Rattotti, who is fully focussed on the FreeFly Slalom discipline, was one of the standout riders of the day, achieving a second place and three third places in the five elimination rounds. "This morning went well for me," said Rattotti, who recently became GWA Big Air World Champion in Pozo. "I'm happy about that and hope for more. I'm not really surprised because I've been training a lot with the team. My first race didn't go well, but after the little warm-up I was in the flow."

You can get an exciting insight into the action and the very technical course in the following highlight clip - take a look!

Let's hope that the wind picks up again on the last two days of the Wingfoil World Cup Hvide Sande and that more races will be possible. We'll keep you up to date!

Also interesting:

• Summary of the freestyle action
• The incredible storm action at the World Cup Pozo
• GWA Wingfoil World Cup - all results and rankings