Copa Kitley GWA Wingfoil World Cup Brazil 2023 - Brilliant Bowien shines bright
by Liam Dredge 24 Nov 2023 00:46 PST
21-24 November 2023
Copa Kitley GWA Wingfoil World Cup Brazil 2023 © Svetlana Romantsova
Having focused attention on the men for the first two days, the 12 women registered to compete were amped for their competition to get under way.
There was a question mark raised whether the competition would take place in the sea or, in the lagoon, however, Surf-Freestyle is a discipline that in these seaside conditions thrives.
Having the element of both freestyle and waves counting towards the overall score allows riders to really showcase the broadness of this sport and, that's exactly what we've seen today from the women's fleet.
Bowien shines bright
When the grand finale arrived it was both Nia Suardiaz (ESP) taking on Bowien Van Der Linden (NLD), a match we've seen a handful of times over the course of this year. With two wave scores counting alongside two freestyle tricks, Bowien knew that this event was a great chance to take victory.
Nia opened up the final with two solid back-to-back freestyle tricks, one of which included a backflip that scored 7.53. Backflips are relatively new to the women's fleet and suardiaz is one of the only women who comfortably lands these consistently.
Bowien didn't score above a 5 for her freestyle tricks, however, it was in the waves where she delivered. Her opening wave scored a big 7.0 which included an ariel pop into the pocket. Her second wave of a 6.70 created the backup needed to counteract the lower freestyle scores.
Nia, who struggled to pick and choose the right waves was unable to find the groove which ultimately handed Bowien the title here in Cauipe.
"Oh this is amazing, I really had no idea what was going on during the heat, I was just doing my own thing out there. There were super good waves and I'm so happy with my performance". The smile spoke a thousand words as Bowien took her second Surf-Freestyle event of the year.
Suardiaz on top of the world
Despite a second-place finish here in Cauipe, 2023 has been a year to remember for Nia Suardiaz (ESP). "The waves were really tricky and I found reading the ocean almost impossible. I didn't catch many good waves but I did the best I could with them", claimed Suardiaz after her heat.
The Spaniard has however displayed dominance all year round taking victory at five out of a possible seven Surf-Freestyle events with her World Title clinched back in September during Denmarks event.
Along with the Surf-Freestyle championship she also claimed the Free-Fly Slalom World Championship earlier in the year. During 2022 Suardiaz came so close in both disciplines narrowly missing out on Paula Novotna (CZE) and Flora Artzner (FRA) so her 2023 results reflect her powering performances which we're sure to see come back even stronger for 2024.
A podium for Marchetti
Sofia Marchetti (ITA) received a third-place finish for her performance in Brazil. The athlete residing in Italy has shown vast improvements throughout 2023, so a podium here is well-earned. Although the mini-final didn't go ahead due to an injury from Orane Ceris (FRA), Sofia will take this result into the off-season where training will continue to finish higher next season.
The year ended with an injury
For Orane Ceris (FRA), her year ended with an unfortunate knee injury picked up in the semi-finals. During her heat against Bowien Van Der Linden (NLD). The French rider, coming out of New Caledonia was already rocking a knee brace coming into this event but, a harsh landing following a freestyle trick brought Ceris back to the beach before the heat was over.
Orane was one of the first females to land the backflip in competition and having continuously pushed the women's division and always having tight battles with Nia Suardiaz, we wish her a speedy recovery in time for the 2024 calendar.
Copa Kitley GWA Wingfoil World Cup Brazil Women's Surf-Freestyle Results:
1 Bowien Van Der Linden (NLD)
2 Nia Suardiaz (ESP)
3 Sofia Marchetti (ITA)
4 Orane Ceris (FRA)