The decision to race Slalom-X was more than justified, as yesterday offered the toughest conditions of the event so far. The first two days of racing were relatively moderate for Fuerteventura, but today the wind and swell took it up a notch. You could say that it would have been difficult for ordinary windsurfers to ride in a straight line in these conditions, while the pros were travelling at up to 70km/h across the course, jibing at full speed and even having to jump over a chicane built into the course. A day full of action!
Sarah-Quita already with one hand on the trophy, 14-year-old de Jong jumps through the centre
Sarah-Quita Offringa was simply in a class of her own on the first day of Slalom X. The 33-year-old woman from Aruba, who won her 23rd world title earlier in the week by winning the freestyle, already has one hand on the next trophy after winning all five eliminations today. Even after starting well behind in the final elimination of the day, Offringa managed to catch Justine Lemeteyer at the third neck buoy to round off a perfect day.
Lemeteyer was the only rider to put Offringa under serious pressure, but even after a perfectly timed start in elimination five, she couldn't quite hold Offringa off as the Aruban gradually caught up with her with her incredible speed. Lemeteyer, however, enjoyed a solid day after recovering from a crash in race one to take three second places and a third. This puts her in second place in the current standings, while she is also in the conversation for runner-up as she is currently tied with Marion Mortefon and Jenna Gibson in the overall standings with 19,900 points.
Mortefon is only two points behind Lemeteyer after a second and three third places, while she is one place behind in elimination four.
14-year-old Bobbi-Lynn de Jong deserves huge praise after finishing fifth and sixth in the five races she completed in such treacherous conditions. She also pulled off a breathtaking jump at the chicane when most of the fleet crashed and de Jong jumped straight through the middle. Here is the clip of the jump:
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Pierre Mortefon shines in rough conditions, Frans and Iachino within striking distance
Pierre Mortefon leads the rankings at the end of the first Slalom X day after taking victory in the last race of the day. He had started with a second and a fourth place. When the conditions got really tough in Elimination 3, the Frenchman shone, just like in Pozo, and he is still well on his way to securing his first ever Slalom X World Championship title.
But Mortefon will not have it easy, because Taty Frans from Bonaire, who had a great day with a second and two third places in the first three races, is only 1.3 points behind Mortefon. Taty decided against the foil and in favour of the fin a long time ago, and proved today that he is still one of the best fin racers in the world.
Matteo Iachino, meanwhile, recovered brilliantly from his semi-final exit in the first elimination and finished the day in third place. The Italian was in the lead after the first jibe in the first semi-final, but then crashed, ending his chances of qualifying. However, Iachino then took a safe victory in the next race before celebrating a great comeback in elimination three. The 34-year-old got off to a poor start, but still managed to fight his way up to second place, which could be of great significance not only for the race for the event title, but also for the race for the world title, as he poses the biggest threat to Mortefon.
The forecast for today still looks solidly windy, so we're likely to see another day of Slalom X as Saturday looks a little weaker. The first possible start is at 12:00.
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