Boot, inizio… bombastic!
Gli highlights gli avete già visti sulla nostra pagina FB, il report completo dell’evento lo troverete sul prossimo numero di febbraio/marzo di Wind News, ma… il boot Düsseldorf 2020 è iniziato sabato scorso con grande successo e ha aperto le sue porte per la 51esima volta per tutti gli appassionati di sport acquatici.
Nel primo c’è già stata moltissima action con il Tow-In Windsurf Contest, i Wave Masters dei surfisti e la consegna del premio “Rookie of the Year” ai giovani surfisti.
Era presente anche Leon Glatzer, il candidato tedesco più accreditato per la partecipazione alla premiere olimpica dei surfisti da onda a Tokyo 2020 che ha mostrato manovre impressionanti su THE WAVE di fronte a un pubblico entusiasta.
On the wave of success in Surf Hall 8a: Brilliant opening fort he board sport summit of “boot Düsseldorf”
“It’s been a bombastic first day”, boot Duesseldorf’s Director Petros Michelidakis had been able to say smilingly at the 51st boot Düsseldorf on the evening of day one. This so very positive first interim balance also applies to the surf sport booming in Surf Hall 8a: A full house, a world premiere, the new Surf Academy, many stars and exciting international competitions have ensured a brilliant start to the nine-day fair on the Rhine.
Winter hotspot for surfers? boot Düsseldorf!
Not only the convincing line-up of 93 exhibitors from 17 countries in the trade’s hall of 1001 boards shows that the sport means a world to its fans. On a journey of discovery through the joyful hall, it quickly becomes clear: Surfing is so trendy with its diverse range and modern technologies. The flow of visitors from the North entrance to Hall 8a proved right away that surf sports are extremely popular at the beginning of the new decade. “The fascination of windsurfing is unbroken, “says Florian Brunner, CEO and partner of APM Marketing, “of course it is the final boat show’s balance that will count but we had very satisfied exhibitors on the first day and that is an important sign.” Brunner represents the surf industry in the boot Düsseldorf’s advisory council since 2019. He sees surfing on the upswing again, above all because of its modern diversity. Windsurfing, SUP pleasure in all variations, surfing any many other board sports attract water sports enthusiasts on various levels. More than 300 guests attended the world premiere of the spectacular surf movie “Riders of the Liquid Plains” featuring Kai Lenny and other fascinating characters of the surf world on Saturday evening at the trendy party location “Seifenfabrik Dr. Thomsons”. Said Florian Brunner, “That’s been a beautiful evening amongst friends, a great success for the surfing community with a high fun factor.”
Windsurfing’s Wonderkids: “Rookies of the Year” honored
At least three generations are interested in the wide range surfing offer at boot Düsseldorf. In close cooperation with the magazine Surf and the Association of the German Water Sports Schools (VDWS), the world’s biggest boat show established a new Surf Academy for surfers who already gained first experiences and have a surfing license in their pockets. The response to this tailor-made training offer in Düsseldorf has been very positive. What was also striking were the many teenagers who flocked to Surf Hall 8a with their parents on the first weekend of the fair to admire their role models, emulate them and explore the latest boards. Besides stars such as Olympic candidate Leon Glatzer or 42-time windsurfing world champion Björn Dunkerbeck, it was the German youngsters who drew everyone’s attention. The magazine Surf and the boot Düsseldorf honored two 17-year-old shooting stars at the start of the fair. The windsurfers Mats von Holten (Hamburg, Germany) and Maria Behrens (Lübeck, Germany) were rewarded and inspired with the trophy and 2020 Euros each, a reflection of the respective year in which the relevant boot Düsseldorf is held. Both talents will put the money into participating in additional competitions to propel their careers. “This trophy means a lot to me”, Mats von Holten said, “the money really helps, and the award will hopefully even move more people to be interested in our sport.” Gunnar Asmussen from Flensburg in Germany also regularly attracts plenty of attention. The powerful athlete was yet again chosen windsurfing speedking at the boot Düsseldorf, following another of his famous rides through the speed channel of Lüderitz, Namibia. There he almost reached the magical 100 km/h to be kept at an average over 500 meters. Asmussen bettered the German record in November 2019 to 52,26 knots (96,785 km/h).
Olympic ambitions: Leon Glatzer on the wave
As the hottest candidate amongst the surfers, Leon Glatzer set course for Surf Hall 8a at boot Düsseldorf 2020. The 22-year-old son of parents from Kassel who discovered his passion for surfing in Pavones in Costa Rica and successfully made it his life, is Germany’s top candidate for participation in the Olympic premiere of the wave riders in Tokyo 2020. The likeable young man, who had signed his first professional contract at an age of 15 and has since consistently advanced in the World Qualifying Series (rank 32 at the end of 2019), has narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Olympics in his first attempt. He plans to make better use of his second chance in May to keep his Olympic dream alive. At the boot Düsseldorf, Leon Glatzer enjoyed spectacular appearances on THE WAVE by citywave®. And so did his enthusiastic spectators. On his visit of the boot Düsseldorf, Leon Glatzer said: “I am here to support our wonderful sport, surf the wave and meet friends. After all, everyone is at the boot Düsseldorf this week.”
The second weekend in sight: the boot Düsseldorf remains in a surf mood
As the first international competition, the Tow-in Windsurf Contest in the 65 meter long flatwater pool ended with radiant winners in front of an enthusiastic audience. While the starters at the Wave Masters for men and women were still fighting it out in their quarterfinals, the party on stage at the flatwater pool had already started. The Tow-in windsurfing competition was won by Niclas Nebelung from Kiel. Jannes Thomsen (Kiel) and Valentin Böckler (Grande) completed the podium. While they celebrated, the youngest fair visitors enjoyed their rides on the skimboard track just around the corner.
On Sunday afternoon, the final decisions at the boot Düsseldorf Wave Masters 2020 for men and women ensured full ranks and enthusiasm for THE WAVE made by citywave®. The 20-year-old from Munich Simon Bitterlich acted confidently in the standing wave he helped to build and relegated Sven Heller (Lucerne) and Sebastian Steinbeck (Starnberg) to second and third place. In the women’s final, 28-year-old Valeska Schneider (Munich) narrowly prevailed against Rosina Neuerer (Munich) and the Swiss Annik Bollag. The awards for the best wave riders were presented on Sunday afternoon at the pool edge of THE Wave by citywave® by the Director of the boot Düsseldorf: Petros Michelidakis experienced the rousing enthusiasm of the more than 23,000 spectators on this first weekend for the crowd-puller surfing. Petros Michelidakis said: “It’s like a nice party here: everything has been well prepared, cool guests have been invited and then the best expectations are exceeded. We will definitely continue to do this for a few more years.”
