Veterans and new faces get ready for action

Twenty-four men and nine women await their chance to thrill the judges in Dunkerque

GKA Freestyle Kite World Cup France
28 August—01 September, 2024 | Dunkerque

In what felt like the height of summer in sunny historic Dunkerque, athletes from around the world came together to register for the first Freestyle event of 2024.

Seasoned competitors reunited with their tour peers in the hope of defending their titles, while new faces promised to challenge them with their fresh talents.

Arnaus’ injury comeback

Making a big competition comeback is Rita Arnaus (ESP), a well-known athlete in the freestyle discipline, having been crowned twice as vice-world champion. Arnaus suffered an injury in 2023 which prevented her from competing, but her rehabilitation promises her a fresh start on tour, backed by her experience to go far.

“A year and a half ago I had a knee injury where I landed with my leg straight and broke my ACL”, said Arnaus. “After surgery, I went on a mental journey which included a lot of improvement in my self-care where I realised the key was to accept my situation. I was back on the water seven months later and I realised how much I needed it. Now I love kiting even more and I’m thrilled to be competing again.”

Together with a star-studded list of athletes, world tour newcomer Kaya Lehmann (GER) joins the scene and will face the current world champion, Bruna Kajiya (BRA) in her first heat. “I’m excited, but also a bit nervous”, said Lehmann. “I competed in the Youth World Championship last year and won the freestyle category, so I’m hoping to perform and land my tricks. Bruna is a four-time world champion and the rider who inspires me most. She understands all the competition format and everything like that, but I already looked at the elimination ladder and kind of figured out what I need to do.”

‘Evolving like crazy’ 

On the men’s side, the top five ranked rider list now includes Finn Flugel (GER) at just 15 years-old. Head Judge, Alvaro Onieva said: “It’s crazy to see how he’s evolving since two years ago. Finn was in the top 15 riders and now he’s in the top five. At such a young age we still see him evolving one event after the other.”

Race Director Rui Meira believes the judging format lends itself to progression in the sport. “From a practical side, freestyle competitions are very clear to judge as the riders take turns one at a time,” said Meira. “This format means there’s full attention from the judges on the trick they’re performing, and since we started doing this it has progressed the technical difficulty of the tricks a step forward. The riders can really focus on very high demanding tricks with technical difficulty and a very high level of execution, compared to in the past when it was a fixed time limit. Now it’s substantially more about the quality rather than the number of tricks you can do.”

The week ahead

With a forecast that shows promising conditions and an action packed weekend, the best of the best will be going head to head competing in the first of the three-stop world title. 

In parallel, the debut GKA ProAm Challenge and GKA Test Event 2024 is also set to take place this week in Dunkerque. Find out more, and stay tuned for more event news with a great outlook ahead. 

​​words: Caroline Morris
images: Lukas K Stiller

Spot Info: Dunkerque

Dunkerque boasts almost 15kms of wide, sandy beaches that are a kiteboarding paradise on the North Sea. It is suitable for all levels of kiteboarders, who can find spots to launch and land easily, depending on their skill level.

Weather
The average maximum daytime temperature in Dunkerque in August is around 22.9°C (73.22°F). Usually, it is the warmest month of the year. The average minimum temperature goes down to around 13.6°C.

Wind
North-east or south-west winds are the most prevalent in Dunkerque. At the event site, those equate to a cross-onshore for the north-easterlies, and cross-shore in the south-westerlies. You can expect some kickers. The average winds range from 13-18 knots, with some days pushing to more than 25 knots.

Event Information

• Event: GKA Freestyle Kite World Cup France
• Spot: Place du Centenaire, Dunkerque
• Dates: 28 August—01 September, 2024
• Follow the whole event here

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Liveticker will be updated throughout the day. Event highlight video will be published immediately after the close of the event. Written reports will be posted to the website at the end of the competition day.