The dramatic finale of the 2019 Kite Foil World Series took place off the coast of Poetto Beach, in stunning Sardinia over the course of four days (2-6 October)
With all eyes set on team rider Toni Vodisek winning the title having exploded to the top of the rankings by winning the first three stops, an unfortunate accident on day 1 and injury on day 2 saw him wiped from the runnings. Having had a fantastic season racing on the R1s and training so hard to be able to deliver incredible power this was a real stroke of bad luck. It meant however that the title was back on the table for the rest of the pack. Fellow Ozone team rider Axel Mazella had been consistently strong throughout the tour, reaching the podium in Italy’s Gizzeria in July and in China last month meant he was next in line to pick up the title albeit having to put up a strong fight and not make any mistakes. Luck and skill were on his side and he scooped up the championship.
"After winning the title in 2017, I'm bringing the cup home again! With an unbeatable Toni Vodisek who wins every event, I needed a miracle! along these 4 stops and it paid off! After my title of European Champion last week, I could not finish better this season! What a feeling to come back to the top, with the Ozone Kites team and Tarifa Foil Boards the best gear ever!" – Axel
(Axel was our race specific kite, the R1 V3 )
In the women's division, defending series champion Kirstyn O’Brien fought hard throughout this year's tour but couldn't quite defeat Daniela Moroz's solid power hold and came in a respectable overall 3rd.
Extract from the IKA official press release:MAZELLA CLINCHES SECOND KITEFOIL WORLD TITLE WITH A FLOURISH AT SERIES FINALE IN ITALY
France’s Axel Mazella punched the air with joy and relief as he flew across the line in the season-ending last race of the KiteFoil World Series final on the Italian resort island of Sardinia, lifting the crown for the second time.
As the offshore Mistral winds built to more than 30kts blowing over the Gulf of Angels track off Cagliari’s Poetto Beach, Mazella took few risks on the event’s final fourth day, keenly aware he had done enough earlier and over the tour’s first three stops to land the International Kiteboarding Association (IKA) 2019 KiteFoil World Title.“I really can’t believe that I’ve won the world title,” said Mazella, seconds after landing his 11m kite. “It’s a super feeling being back on the top, especially after changing my gear to join the Ozone team. I’m super-happy about this. It feels good. I was a little worried at the start of the day, of course. So there was relief , for sure, to get it done.”
Nico Parlier, took the Sardinia Grand Slam’s second podium step that earned him the first runner-up position for the 2019 world series. Parlier was delighted to take the second podium step after slightly poor performances at the tour’s consecutive China stops where he was ill. But he also echoed the other athletes, graciously remembering Slovenia’s Toni Vodisek, odds-on world title favourite with three tour-stop wins until he crashed out of the reckoning injured on day two at Cagliari.“It was a fight all the way to the end here in Cagliari, so I’m glad it finished like this—it’s a really good feeling,” said Parlier. “I’m happy because in China I didn’t have great events as I was ill. But I’m sad for Toni Vodisek. He had an awesome season and he deserved the title. I’m sure he’d have won it if he’d still been here.”
2019 KiteFoil World Series Champion (Overall) Ozone R1 V3 – Ozone R1 V3 2019 KiteFoil World Series Champion (Women) – Ozone R1 V3 2019 KiteFoil World Series Final Cagliari (Men) – Ozone R1 V3 2019 KiteFoil World Series Final Cagliari (Women) – Ozone R1 V3 – Ozone R1 V3 kitefoilworldseries.com kitefoilworldseries.com/rankings
