After Thoughts
With the dust now settling from an action packed 10 days in Sylt for the 2017 Sylt PWA Super Grand Slam, which saw results gained in every discipline, here’s some thoughts from the winners’ of one of the most successful Sylt’s in recent history.
Philip Köster (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) completes a miraculous come back in the best way possible: “It feels amazing to win the title again after such a long break from sailing due to my injury and all the pain I went through with the recovery. It took me a while to get back on the board, but after a lot of work it felt great. It’s also pretty special to win it in Sylt, but it’s a shame about Hawaii as I’d have liked to compete there also, but overall to win it in front of a German crowd is pretty good even though there has been a lot of media work, but I guess that’s part and parcel of it. 100% worth it in the end.”
Victor Fernandez (Fanatic / NorthSails / Shamal Sunglasses) fired up for next year after victory in final event of the year: “I’m really happy to be on the podium again because it’s so difficult to achieve it each year. It’s been a tough year. I felt like I started really well in the Canaries, but didn’t win with some close battles with Philip [Köster] and then here I gave it my all. To beat Brawzhi in starboard tack conditions definitely wasn’t easy, so that was a great way for me to sign off for the year as it gives me a lot of confidence and even more motivation to train really hard for next year.”
Marcilio Browne (Goya Windsurfing) on completes the podium for the second year in succession: “I’m definitely happy with my second place here. The conditions were really tough and a lot of the heats in the single elimination the wind was very variable, so there was quite a bit of luck involved. I’m just happy that I was able to sail the best I could and I’m happy with the result.
The conditions were tough being bolt onshore, but you get used to that. The thing that made it really tough was the wind and conditions wouldn’t stop changing with the winds and the tides. The toughest thing is that you have to have everything from 3.6m up to 5.7m all on the beach at the same time because the conditions were so variable and you had to choose your setup when the red flag went up pretty much. For sure I’m really happy to be on the podium again as it’s extremely difficult to make it into the top 3.”
Iballa Moreno (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) wins her 4th world title in a row and a 27th for the Moreno twins: ”I'm super happy to win another year. 4 years in a row… it's incredible and with the level of the girls increasing every season it makes it even harder. Congrats to Daida also for becoming second overall despite her injury in Tenerife! Adding already a total of 27 World titles to our history! Thanks to our sponsors ANFI, Starboard, Severne Sails, Volkswagen Canarias, and Maui Ultra fins for believing and supporting us during our career! Next year more. Sylt was a successful event and for 20 years we have been coming here and this has been the windiest event ever! Completing all disciplines and competing almost everyday - it has been amazing to see.”
The taste of victory is still settling in for Marco Lang (Fanatic / NorthSails): “I’m feeling pretty amazing. I still cannot believe it and hopefully over the next few weeks it settles in. One of the best things ever is with me and Vincent [Langer] being No.1 and 2 here as he’s one of my best friends and we’ve spent a lot of time training together. It’s also a great result for your team.”
Vincent Langer (Fanatic / NorthSails) on earning his first podium: “For me it’s unbelievable to finish second here. This is my first podium on the world tour and it’s also my first event of the year, so it couldn’t have gone much better. Being up there with Marco [Lang] is a dream come true as I’ve spent a lot of time training on the water with him. I’ve known he’s very fast and it’s very special to share the podium with him.”
Ross Williams (Tabou / GA Sails / Mystic / Shamal Sunglasses) was as humble as ever about his result: “I’m stoked with my result. I’m really happy as its a better result than I could’ve hoped for really, you know with just the two counting rounds and its worked out well for me with the guys around me kind of messing up, which puts me in the game for possibly catching up Matteo [Iachino] and it gives me a bit of breathing room ahead of Pierre [Mortefon]. It now all goes down to New Caledonia, but stoked.”
Gollito Estredo (Fanatic / NorthSails) on capturing an incredible 8th world title: “For sure I’m really happy to win my 8th world title. It still comes as a big surprise to me because I never dreamed of winning this many, so when I think about what I’ve achieved it’s absolutely amazing. Every year the level keeps increasing and Amado [Vrieswijk] is getting closer and closer to winning his first world title. I think the whole fleet is sailing amazingly well, so you can’t afford any mistakes anymore.”