Doha: World champion Florian Gruber of Germany and Stephanie Bridge of United Kingdom will be some of the top sailors who will be vying for the top honours at the inaugural 2014 Formula Kite Course Racing Asian Championship, it was revealed here yesterday.
The championship, which will be held for the first time in the GCC region, is organised by Qatar Sailing and Rowing Federation (QRSF) and will take place at Qanat Quartier Beach Area of Pearl-Qatar from November 10 to 15.
Addressing a press conference yesterday Sarah Lord, Techinical Adviser for kitesurfing at QRSF said: “ We are quite excited about hosting the championship and add kiteboarding to the extensive list of events which Qatar Sailing and Rowing Federation is hosting. Kiteboarding is one of the fastest growing sports in the world and this trend is reflected here on the shorelines of The State of Qatar.”
She informed that some current champions and former champions will be taking part.
“Sixty three sailors from 26 countries have confirmed their participation in the championship. The largest contingent is from Italy. World champion Florian Gruber of Germany and Stephanie Bridge of United Kingdom are some of the big names who will be in Qatar.”
Bridge is one of the 16 women competitors in the championship.
Although the championship is an Asian one, it an open championship, clarified the QSRF official.
“All the competitors will compete together and we will pick up the Asian champion, Open winner, Open women champion and age category winner, based on the timings,” explained Lord.
The winner of the race can collect 100 points from the race, she said.
Tracing the growth of the sport, Lord said there at 2.5 million kite surfers worldwide and people from the age of 10 years to 60 years have been competing in the sport.
“Earlier it was classified as extreme sports, but with the improvement in equipment, it has changed and it is now a safe sport. It is a spectacular sport from the spectators point. A race will last from 10-15 minutes and sailors in perfect weather conditions can reach 30 knots per hour,” Lord said.
“The sports demands elite fitness level and strong, quick tactical decision which adds up to the high level of excitement,” she added.
“Pearl-Qatar is a perfect location for the championship,” Lord said.
Tracing the growth of the sport in Qatar the QRSF official disclosed that Kite surfing made its presence here two years back.”
“We are happy to inform that with the support from the Qatar Sailing and Rowing Federation we have been able to receive high level training in Kiteboarding. It is with great pride that we can inform you that we will have five Qatari nationals in the competition, who have been training hard to learn the tricky discipline of Kiteboard Racing over the last year. We wish them every success in the championship, and are so happy that they have this fantastic opportunity to compete against the best Kiteboard racers in the world.”
Qatar challenge will be led by Khalifa Al Misnad, Omar Al Hammadi, Bader Al Madani, Khalid Festook, and Alaa Festook
QSRF now have 18 Qatari nationals registered in their Kiteboarding programme. Most recently, a training site has been established on the beach of Fuwairit.
The Championship will start on November 10, with registration for all competitors and practice races starting from 1pm. For the next five days, the Championship will run from 9am – 4.30pm daily leading to the grand final on November 15.THE PENINSULA
