Spain and Germany play for the title in the Pozo Izquierdo World Cup
windsurfing
The Canarian Philip Köster, who competes for the Germans, and the Andalusian Víctor Fernández, reach the grand final after sweeping their sleeves
Pozo Izquierdo is waiting for the grand final that will be played this Saturday between the Canarian
Philip Koster (competing for Germany) and the Andalusian
Victor Fernandez, after overcoming both the sleeves played in the quarterfinals and the semifinals. Likewise, Liam Dunkerbeck from Gran Canaria leads the sub'20 category.
During the quarterfinals, Philip Köster from the Canary Islands (competing for Germany), swept all his heats, although he did not have it so easy in the quarterfinals against the Catalan, Marc Paré,
"the prince of the waves". One of the highlights was when Köster attempted a pushloop, while Paré watched all her moves behind him, to which she countered with a huge double jump forward.
"It has to be the highest jump we have seen so far, valued at 9.77 points," the judges commented during the sleeve. However, both windsurfers have been very even in jumps, obtaining Köster 15.73 points in total, after the sum of his two best jumps, while Paré managed to add 15.77, so the waves (surfed) have been the that have given Köster the advantage, beating the Catalan in his specialty.
Likewise, Köster also left the French sailor out of the game,
Thomas Traverse, in the semifinal, which he surpassed by far in jumps, but not in surfing. "The heat has gone very well, some waves have been missing, but I am very happy and eager to go to the next one," said the five-time world champion.
The other surprising performance was that of the Andalusian, Víctor Fernández, who defeated
Brazilian Ricardo Campello (competing for Venezuela) in the last wave of the last minute of the heat, thanks to a well-achieved frontside that gave him the points he needed at the last moment, giving him the pass to the final against Köster.
«I don't believe it, the level is incredible this year, anyone could win the finals, I have focused on the waves, since it is being a bit difficult to find them», confessed the three-time world champion, who is willing «concentrated and willing to give everything in the final”, although he acknowledges that it will be “a very difficult and even final”.
Fernández, who has already triumphed six times in Pozo Izquierdo, also beat Gran Canaria,
Liam Dunkerbeck (Gran Canaria), in the quarterfinals. “The truth is that I am very happy after winning the sub20 class, I was also fifth in the absolute category, the conditions were not easy in the morning (today), but they were improving, although in the end the fatigue was more noticeable,” said Dunkerbeck.
For Campello, the conditions weren't the best either, in fact, it was "very difficult" for him to get a second jump due to the low wave. "I reached the semifinal, but unfortunately I didn't have a good second jump, but now I will fight for third place, the second round is also pending, so I hope to climb higher," said Campello, three-time world champion.
In the sub'20 class, Liam Dunkerbeck has not only swept all the sleeves, but has also shown that he is up to the veterans. In fact, the competition served to warm him up before facing the best in the world, even reaching the quarterfinals. According to the judge of judges, Luis Escribano.
In addition to Dunkerbeck, another Gran Canaria,
alexia kiefer, dominates the female under-20 class, while her brother, Carlos Kiefer, sits third among the under-17s (both competing for Germany). In the female sub'17, María Morales is from Tenerife and heads the podium. Among the youngest, the rider from Tarifa, Javier Escribano, got a third place in sub15, a category currently led by the German Peter Gobisch.