Gran Canaria Gloria Windsurf World Cup

Even as a young gun it was clear to see the potential in Marino Gil (JP / NeilPryde / MFC). As a 16-year-old in 2019, Gil would go on to dominate the U20 Boy’s division in Gran Canaria, while finishing joint 17th in the main event. However, then Covid-19 happened, which ultimately meant there wouldn't be another World Cup in Gran Canaria until 2022 - during that enforced break - Gil took his sailing to another level adding huge stalled double forwards and pushloop forwards to his repertoire. That led to the now 22-year-old pushing Marcilio Browne (Goya Windsurfing / MFC) all the way in 2023 - only losing out in a Super Final - but buoyed by his local fans, Gil went one place better to earn his first victory on the World Tour. Now the question is can he defend his crown? Before the start of the event, which begins on July 5th, we managed to catchup with Gil for a quick interview:

Hey Marino, how are things with you? 

“Hello, everything is going good, really chill sailing and enjoying as much as possible on the water.”  
 
The 2025 Gran Canaria Windsurf World Cup is now only a few days away… how are you feeling ahead of the event and does it feel any different from previous years now that you are the defending champion? 
 
“I'm feeling really good, I'm excited to compete again back home, it’s a really special event for me and now that I'm defending last year's win, I'm even more motivated to compete.”  
 
Last year you had the best year of your career so far - third overall - what are you expectations for this season? 
 
“Last year was a really good season for myself, and this year I hope I can do similar, the level of all the riders is really high, so I will try my best to reach as far as possible during the season.”   
 
Having won here last year and come second the year before does that put extra pressure on you?  
 
“Not really, I’ll just go out and enjoy sailing my home spot, Pozo is the place where everything started for me so I will give it my all to just stay on the top spots for as many years as possible.”
 
How much do you love competing at home? Especially when the local crowd get behind you? 
 
“Competing at home is something special. I have my friends and family around me during the whole event and that makes it easy to enjoy and be motivated. It’s nice to have a town on your back, I know pretty much everyone from Pozo and it’s great how they show their support at the event.”    
 
Have you been sailing a lot? And how are you generally feeling about your sailing before the event? 
 
"Yes, hahaha, I've been sailing a lot! And I feel really good this year, I can't wait for the event to start and see how far I can reach this year!”

Thanks, Marino, all the best for the event.