Hydrofoil Big Air and Freestyle disciplines ready to light up Gulf skies with back-to-back World Cup action
GKA Freestyle World Cup Abu Dhabi
GKA Hydrofoil Big Air World Cup Abu Dhabi
25-30 October, 2025 | Fahid Island
Back-to-back World Cups in the Hydrofoil Big Air and Freestyle disciplines are set to take off when the GKA Kite World Tour makes its debut on the pristine waters of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
The high-flying Hydrofoil Big Air season reaches its thrilling climax at the purpose-built facility at Fahid Island, Abu Dhabi, in late October, when the world champion will be crowned.
At the same time, the GKA Freestyle World Cup Abu Dhabi will open the season in the discipline, when the world’s best kiteboarders will be eager to stake their claims to the men’s and women’s world titles.
A new watersports’ centre at Fahid Island is the venue for six days of kiteboarding action that will take centre stage during the nine-day event, sponsored by Aldar. The watersports’ expo will also encompass the last stop of the sister GWA Wingfoil World Tour, which is to crown the FreeFly-Slalom world champions.
The new SFT Surf Foil World Tour joins the watersports’ jamboree, getting in on the action when it chooses world champions in E-Foil and Wake Foil at the culmination of a thrilling first season.
Abu Dhabi is keen to develop the area as a watersports’ hub for the wider UAE community and international enthusiasts who, it hopes, will flock to the Gulf’s warm waters and steady breezes.
Staging the high-profile season-finale in Hydrofoil Big Air and the first stop in Freestyle—where the world’s best kite athletes will perform jaw-dropping tricks for the fans—will underline Abu Dhabi’s ideal conditions for watersports.
The GKA Kite World Cups in Abu Dhabi will see the kiteboarders battle for €60,000 of prize money, from a total of €110,000 split between the GWA and SFT world champions.
In Hydrofoil Big Air, the battle for the world title is a close-run thing. New Zealand’s Hugo Wigglesworth, 18, heads the rankings after he burst on to the scene and dominated the opening stop of the season in Sylt, Germany, in August.
But Finn Flügel, of Germany, who sits second overall, vowed that he would be back in Abu Dhabi, gunning for the title in what are likely to be similar, lighter breezes of the Gulf.
The remarkable Casati brothers, GKA Big Air Twin-tip World Champion, Lorenzo, and younger sibling, Leonardo, are ranked third and fourth and cannot be ruled out to shake-up the order in Abu Dhabi. It is not clear if reigning and six-time world champion, France’s Charles Brodel, will be back from injury in time.
The Freestyle discipline will see reigning world champions Switzerland’s Maxime Chabloz and Bruna Kajiya, of Brazil, open the defence of their titles in Abu Dhabi. Chabloz landed his first Freestyle crown last year, while Kajiya got a historic fifth title.
But in Abu Dhabi Chabloz will have to be at the top of his game with Finn Flügel likely to be chasing down the Swiss. Flügel, just 16, won his first World Cup in the lighter airs of Qatar last year.
Kajiya will be back in Abu Dhabi hoping to open her account for a sixth title with a bang. But Spain’s Rita Arnaus and Claudia León, returning from injury, may have other ideas. Germany’s Kaya Lehmann is another young athlete on the up.
words: Ian MacKinnon
images: Lukas K Stiller / Samuel Cárdenas
Spot Info: Fahid Island, Abu Dhabi
Wind
Fahid Island is being developed as a purpose-built watersports’ facility and sits next to Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island Marina, home of the Formula 1 circuit. The breezes in late October tend to be light-to-moderate, building to between 12 and 18 knots as the day goes on. The wind blows mainly cross-onshore from the north, with the seas remaining mostly flat in the bay sheltered by islands.
Weather
Sea temperatures in October and November are still warm, ranging from 28°C to 31°C, so board shorts and a rashie are all that is necessary on the water. The air temperature ranges from a low of 28°C overnight, to a high of 35°C in the day. Sunrise is at about 06.00 with sunset at about 18.40.
Event information
- Location: Fahid Island, Abu Dhabi
- Dates: 25-30 October
- All event information here.
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