Germany hosts big finish in Kite-Surf and Hyrdrofoil
by Ian MacKinnon 25 Aug 13:36 BST
25-30 August 2026
GKA Kite World Cup Sylt 2025 © Lukas K Stiller
World titles will be decided in two disciplines at the GKA Kite World Cup Sylt, with the season's final Kite-Surf showdown taking place alongside a one-off Hydrofoil Big Air World Championship.
The Kite-Surf title race arrives in Sylt after an inconclusive opening stop in Cape Verde, where conditions prevented the men's final rounds from being completed and ruled out any women's competition.
As a result, Cape Verde finalist, Australia's James Carew, heads the men's field as top seed, while reigning world champion Pedro Matos and fellow Brazilian Sebastian Ribeiro will be absent.
France's Capucine Delannoy is the women's top seed, with Brazil's Kesiane Rodrigues and Serena Luz seeded second and third. With no points from Cape Verde available to the women and the men's opening event unable to produce a full result, everything is effectively riding on what happens in Sylt.
The conditions could have a major bearing on who emerges with the titles. If the wind dictates a Strapless Freestyle format, Italy's Lorenzo and Leonardo Casati will be among the riders with the biggest advantage.
Lorenzo Casati has already established himself as one of the discipline's leading specialists, while Leonardo Casati has just become GKA Big Air World Champion in twintip.
France's Théo Demanez will also return to the scene of his victory last year, when Sylt was contested in the Strapless Freestyle format. Multiple world champion Airton Cozzolino is ranked joint-fifth after Cape Verde and can mix it up in either pure surfing or Strapless Freestyle formats.
The women's field also contains riders with proven Strapless Freestyle credentials, including Switzerland's Camille Losserand and Italy's Sofia Monti, who could come strongly into contention should the format switch away from wave.
Alongside the Kite-Surf world title, Sylt will crown the one-off GKA Hydrofoil Big Air world champions, bringing together a field drawn from both established hydrofoil specialists and riders who have made the transition from traditional Big Air disciplines.
New Zealand's Hugo Wigglesworth, the reigning GKA Hydrofoil Big Air World Champion, is the men's number-one seed, with Germany's Finn Flügel seeded second. The local rider will be one of the focal points of the competition, while Italy's Leonardo and Lorenzo Casati bring their Strapless Freestyle expertise to another aerial discipline.
The field also includes several riders better known for their exploits on twintip boards. Germany's Martin Koblischke and Bulgaria's Aya Kasabova are both established Big Air riders who are crossing over into Hydrofoil Big Air, adding another dimension to a discipline that demands a very different approach to generating height and controlling a foil beneath the board.
The women's Hydrofoil Big Air field is headed by Switzerland's Andrea Zust, with France's Christelle Divry and Britain's Annie Branton seeded second and third. Brazil's Kesiane Rodrigues, already among the leading contenders in the Kite-Surf competition, will also double up in Hydrofoil Big Air.
With two world titles at stake, the Sylt event brings together different strands of modern kiteboarding: the power and precision of Kite-Surf, the technical demands of Strapless Freestyle and the rapidly developing aerial discipline of Hydrofoil Big Air.
Sylt's notoriously changeable conditions could ultimately determine which riders are best equipped to adapt. With the Kite-Surf champions to be crowned after the season's only completed opportunity for the women, and a one-off Hydrofoil Big Air championship creating a new title opportunity for an eclectic field, the island is set for another decisive GKA showdown.