FAST GIRLS

With so many of the youth-level riders competing at the very top of Olympic level racing, it’s going to take a world-class performance to win the Youth Europeans. Exactly a year ago Nina Arcisz (POL) sailed out of her skin to win the Kitefoiling Youth World Championships on these very same waters, which must give the Polish rider a boost going into this year’s competition.

However, she’s going to have to beat some world-class talents including her Polish teammate Julia Damasiewicz, the 2021 Youth World Champion who also beat all the senior fleet at last summer’s Kitefoil World Series Traunsee in Austria. Magda Woyciechowska (POL) has only just finished her exams in maths and physics, so the 18-year-old is feeling a bit rusty. “I hope I can get my head back into the racing soon,” she said. “I won the last Polish Nationals so that gives me some confidence that I can do well if I can get my head back into competition quickly.”

Others to watch in the girls’ fleet include Héloïse Pégourié (FRA), Maddalena Spanu (ITA) and Gal Boker (ISR), while among the furthest travelled include Catalina Turienzo from Argentina and Suofeiya Li from China.

BATTLE OF THE BOYS

In the boys’ fleet there are also some world-class performers at senior level including local hero Riccardo Pianosi (ITA) as well as riders from further afield like Qibin Huang from China. Among a strong French squad, Ulysse Dereeper’s name stands out. Swiss fans will be cheering for Cedric Baker and Karl Maeder as well as Gian Andrea Stragiotti who won the Youth Foil U17 class in Torregrande a year ago but is now coming to terms with the faster, more powerful equipment in Formula Kite. Derin Baba (TUR) is proud to be representing Turkey at the event. “This is my third time racing in Torregrande and I’m really looking forward to it. Last year I was 20th [at the Youth Worlds]