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2016 HydroFoil Pro Tour : Nico Parlier grabbed the inaugural Hydrofoil Pro Tour crown

mercredi 30 novembre 2016Redaction SSS [Source RP]

FOR his rivals it was an ominous warning. France’s Nico Parlier grabbed the inaugural Hydrofoil Pro Tour crown winning every race of the climactic final stop at Rockingham, Western Australia, despite conditions that ranged from light airs to ballistic breezes at the close.

The 21-year-old’s perfect performance, in the face of intense competition, even bettered his stellar record Record #sailingrecord at the tour’s two earlier stops where he competed, and he is already looking forward to next year with relish.

“For sure it’s a great honour for me to win the first Hydrofoil Pro Tour,” he said. “During the whole year we saw that all the fastest riders were at the events. The Hydrofoil Pro Tour has been a really great series with great conditions. We’ve been to awesome venues specially-picked for the riders.”

His delight was matched by his San Francisco training partner, the US’s Daniela Moroz, just 15, who never put a foot wrong. She, too, won every one of her 17 races in the women’s division, in the process pushing many of the leading men racing in the same spectacular 56-strong fleet and also securing the overall Pro Tour crown.

“I’m very happy to win the first Hydrofoil Pro Tour title,” said a beaming Moroz. “It’s so exciting and I’m sure it’s going to be a great step for the tour next year. Hopefully, we’ll get more girls on the start line racing at some of the best venues in the world.”

The final day of four at the stop hosted by The Cruising Yacht Club of WA delivered memorable conditions at the close as the fabled Fremantle Doctor breeze kicked in early and hit gusts of 31kts blowing over Rockingham bay’s flat waters.

Parlier at one point between races clocked his speed at 41kts while testing his pace and angles on his 9m Ozone R1V2 kite and Mike’s Lab foil Foil #foil , a measure of the perfect combination of wind and flat turquoise water Rockingham habitually serves up.

But even with such scorching speed the Frenchman did not have it all his own way. Britain’s Olly Bridge, 19, who took the second podium place at the stop and overall, harried Parlier at every turn and again in the day’s four races thought he would finally get the better of him.

On the first 0.95 nautical miles upwind leg of the two-and-a-half lap course Bridge rounded the top mark in the lead in every race, only frustratingly to see the tables turned by the second leg’s leeward mark, and then have to watch helplessly as Parlier eased away.

Even an unusual crash by Parlier in the gusty conditions as he approached the final windward mark on the penultimate race failed to break the spell. Bridge, riding a Levitaz Bionic foil Foil #foil and 9m Ozone R1V2 kite, was too far behind, and Parlier gathered his board and still squeezed over the line comfortably ahead.

“It was really good racing today, though the last race was a bit crazy in the gusty winds,” said Bridge. “I was ahead in every race at the top mark, but going down wind Parlier was just locked in and gone. In the end I’m pretty happy with the second spot.”

Italian-Colombian Riccardo Leccese pushed the leading pair hard — so hard exploded spectacularly on one downwind leg — but recovered to finish and maintain his high-placed finishes to cement the tour stop’s third podium spot. Leccese has been a fervent supporter of the tour, but suffered an injury at the San Francisco stop and withdrew, missing the Mauritius leg shortly after, despite a promising start in La Ventana, Mexico, at the beginning of the year.

Frenchwoman, Alexia Fancelli, brought her Pro Tour year to a close with a similarly successful outing, pushing up the order to take the women’s second podium spot, ahead of Russia’s Elena Kalinina. It was an order that was reversed in the year’s overall rankings.


Voir en ligne : Press info Hydrofoil Pro Tour


FINAL 2016 HYDROFOIL PRO TOUR

MENS OVERALL

  • 1st Nico Parlier
  • 2nd Olly Bridge
  • 3rd Nico Landauer

WOMENS OVERALL

  • 1st Daniela Moroz
  • 2nd Elena Kalinina
  • 3rd ALEXIA FANCELLI

MASTERS

  • 1st Nico Landauer
  • 2nd Marvin Baumeister Schoenian
  • 3rd Benjamin Petit

GRAND MASTERS

  • 1st Matt Taggart
  • 2nd Chip Wasson
  • 3rd Philip Rowlands

GREAT GRAND MASTERS

  • 1st Richard Bates
  • 2ndRémi Delahaye
  • 3rd JEAN-YVES FIEVET

YOUTH

  • 1st OLIVER BRIDGE
  • 2nd KIERAN LE BORGN
  • 3rd Theo Lhostis

JUNIOR

  • 1st Toni Vodisek
  • 2nd DANIELA MOROZ
  • 3rd Mani Bisschops

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