Kiteboarding Australia Freestyle Nationals - Day 3 Wrap Up

Day 3 of the Freestyle Nationals in Semaphore, ended with a photo finish and we’re sure you can see why. With a solid 6 hours of competition, we managed to get through all Open Men & Women’s heats and complete the men’s final in the dying hours of the evening. We saw great conditions throughout the whole afternoon and had a picture perfect sunset to finish the day. It doesn’t get much better than this!

After speculation whether the afternoon seabreeze was going to come in at all, with some luck the wind was getting stronger as the day went on and a call was made at 1pm to head down to the beach for a first possible start at 2:30pm. With the decision to start with the Women’s heats and then begin the Men’s, all riders geared up and prepared for competition.

A total of 6 women entered the competition, with a late sign up from Val Rytova, who said “I’m just going to go out and have a go. Hopefully show other girls that having a go and pushing the sport is what it’s all about”. Very inspiring from Val, who landed a big S-bend, bs 180 and pulled off some crypts in the women’s heats yesterday.

In the beginning of round 1 of the women’s competition, the wind was a bit fickle, leading to a half an hour hold due to the light wind. Once it picked back up, the women were on fire. Katie Potter was a stand out, landing some impressive Back Mobes & S-to blinds. Sam Chapman from the Sunshine Coast was also throwing some great tricks, riding with speed and power.

Kicking straight into the men’s heats soon after, we saw two heats run through 8 trick attempts each. Heat 1 standout Ewan Jaspen was charging through his attempts showing everyone why he’s one of the best in the business, landing a Slim 7 & Front Mobe amongst other technical tricks. He, and local Ben Winding took the win and advanced to the final.

Heat 2 was a close one, all riders giving the audience a great show. 17 year old Leo Verrecchia from Brisbane, who also competed in the Juniors, advanced to the final with his unique style. Alex Djuric made 4 out of 8 trick attempts, but his big KGB saw him through to the final.

A repechage of the remaining 7 men freestylers meant a fight for the final 2 spots in the final. Freestyle veteran Dan Sweeny was a standout for the entirety of the competition, with powerful riding. Sweeny pulled some technical handle passes, and with cheers from the beach, advanced to the final alongside fellow Melbournian Aaron Kenny.

Coming into the dying hours of sunlight, the decision was made to run the Men’s final. The picture perfect back drop meant that Adam Snow (SnowFOTO) was able to capture some stunning moments displayed in the event recap clips. The wind was steady and strong, so the 6 men headed into the water to battle it out one last time.

All riders stepped up their game during the final, as all beachgoers, judges and fellow competitors were wowed by the talent. Each of the six men were absolutely throwing down, and we could not have had a better final to judge and spectate.