IFCA Slalom World Championships 2007 Report

After five days the 23rd IFCA Slalom World Championships 2007 in Hyeres ended today. Despite not so promising forecasts it was possible to have spectacular windsurfing competition on all but the last days. Dan Ellis (GBR-52, Fanatic, Naish Sails) from Great Britain and Valerie Ghibaudo (FRA-444, Tabou, Loft Sails) from France are the Slalom World Champions 2007.

The level of the top racers of the IFCA Slalom World Championships was very balanced which is confirmed by five different winners in the five slalom eliminations. So in the end the stability was a key factor to win the title. Dan Ellis had a disappointing start into the regatta but then improved from race to race to win the final elimination and jump on the top. But he had to share this position with Bora Kozanoglu (TUR-11, Starboard, Neil Pryde). The Turkish Slalom Champion presented an excellent performance over the whole regatta. So in the end both riders ended up with even 6,7 points in the final result. So the tie break had to decide who the Slalom World Champion 2007 is. To solve the tie the discards are taken into account and there the British slalom expert wins against Kozanoglu with a seventh place against a ninth. So perhaps Bora Kozanoglu can be proud of being one of the closest Vice World Champions in the 23 year long history of the IFCA Class.

Hubert Mokrzyki (POL-25, Tabou, Gaastra) presented an excellent performance and was leading the event after the second day but then he pushed a little bit too much and was caught twice being over early. This cost him the title. Nonetheless he defends the third place with a total of 11,0 points. The Italian Slalom Champion Andrea Cucchi (ITA-1, Starboard, POINT-7) presented himself again in excellent form and is only one point behind Mokrzyki with 12,0 points. The Italian hotshot Alberto Menegatti (ITA-456, F2, North Sails) accumulates 15,7 points and completes the top-5.

In the womens fleet Valerie Ghibaudo from France was the dominating force of the World Championships in her home waters. She won ten out of twelve slalom eliminations and rightly deserved the title „IFCA Slalom World Champion 2007“. Verena Fauster (ITA-31, F2, Gaastra) from Italy was satisfyied with her second place but disappointed about the results in the individual slaloms. In the end she easily defends the second place. The third place on the podium was won by Marion Raisi (FRA-213, Exocet, Gaastra) who was the most solid competitor of the other girls in the fleet. 39,2 points ensure a slight lead in front of the local youngster Fanny Aubet (FRA-808, Fanatic, Neil Pryde)  and the current Formula Windsurfing European Champion Agnieszka Pietrasik (POL-19, Starboard, Naish Sails).

The IFCA Class can be proud about its 23rd Slalom World Championship. With over 70 competitors from 14 different countries it was a major event for the windsurfing. In the top-6 of the men six different board brands and five different sail manufacturers are present. Almost the same variety can by found in the womens fleet. This shows that the IFCA Slalom World Championships are also an attractive platform for the windsurfing industry.

The next IFCA Slalom World Championships will be staged in September 2008 in Portugal.

Report by Choppy Water Euro-Cup