With the Freestyle contest being wrapped up with a day to spare, Day 5 of the 2026 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam saw a lay day for the competitors after four day of action packed competition. At 12pm the official prize giving was held as Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) was crowned Freestyle world champion for the 17th time, while Lennart Neubauer (Starboard / Severne Sails / Maui Ultra Fins) was crowned the Men’s event champion meaning the 22-year-old will lead the tour heading into Sylt, Germany, in September.
After an amazing four days of Freestyle, attention now shifts to racing as the Men’s and Women’s Slalom X fleets prepare to battle it out for each respective world title. With what looks like a very promising forecast there should be plenty of epic racing ahead, so before we get underway, here’s a recap of the names to look out for over the coming five days:
Slalom X Preview (22nd-26th July)
Women’s
Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) has won the racing in Fuerteventura for the last three years, but the 28-time world champion will unfortunately be absent from the start line on this occasion as she prioritises a bit more rest ahead of the next wave event in Tenerife. Offringa’s absence really opens up the door for a whole host of sailors, who will be waiting in the wings to fight for the event and world title.
With Offringa out of the equation this year, it’s Justine Lemeteyer (PATRIK / PATRIK Sails) who will assume the role of top seed given that she was Offringa’s closest challenger here in 2024 and 2025. Lemeteyer is the reigning Foil Slalom world champion and will be eyeing up a third world title come the end of the week here. However, Lemeteyer is going to have to bring her A game to achieve just that as there are plenty of other contenders who will also be relishing the opportunity of securing a maiden world title, while others will be hoping to add to their previous successes.
Firstly, Femke van der Veen (Starboard / Severne Sails) will be a major threat as the 26-year-old continues to improve. Last year van der Veen completed the prestigious overall podium for the first time in her career and rattled off two bullets to finish just 0.7 of a point behind Lemeteyer and there could be another colossal fight on our hands.
Jenna Gibson (Duotone Windsurfing) will be hoping to have something to say about that though with the Brit, who is currently the fastest woman in the world, more than capable of challenging for top honours here. Last year Gibson used her blistering pace to consistently power to the front of the pack, but her gybing in Fuerteventura’s treacherous waters proved to be her Achilles heel. If the 28-year-old can negotiate the corners then she’ll be incredibly hard to stop as there’s no denying that she’s the fastest sailor in the fleet.
Meanwhile, 2022 Slalom world champion, Marion Mortefon (PATRIK / PATRIK Sails) returns to the fleet having missed much of last season after becoming a mother for the first time. Mortefon remains one of the top racers in the world and she’ll be hoping to keep her name in the world title race conversation as we head into the business end of the event.
Besides Lemeteyer and Mortefon, Blanca Alabau (WeOne / Severne Sails) is the only other sailor in the fleet who will be able to call upon her experience of winning a world title before, which could prove pivotal when the pressure rises. Alabau will be keen to bounce back from a slightly disappointing result here last year - sixth.
Elsewhere, 16-year-old Bobbi-Lynn De Jong (Starboard / NeilPryde) continues to progress at an alarming rate and having finished fifth here last season, the Bonairean will be eager to push on again, while France’s Mae Davico (PATRIK / PATRIK Sails) and Charlotte Philip (Challenger Sails) will be hoping to challenge for the top five and beyond.
Men’s
Reigning Slalom X World Champion Pierre Mortefon (FMX Racing / North Sails) will start the week looking to defend his event title here, which if he is successful in doing, would earn him a fifth world title overall. The Frenchman thrives in Fuerte’s nuclear winds and tricky, choppy waters, and could prove to be the man that everyone else has to stop. Last year, Mortefon’s preparations were marred by equipment difficulties through no fault of his own, so he’ll be much more settled and prepared this time around after joining North Sails in the winter while continuing his fruitful relationship with FMX. In 2025, Mortefon won four of the last five eliminations to power away from the rest of the fleet, and if he’s in a similar vein of form, the Frenchman could prove unstoppable.
However, Mortefon’s long-term rival Matteo Iachino (Starboard / NeilPryde / Z Fins), who also loves Fuerteventura’s wild conditions, will be hoping to reverse the standings as he looks to regain the Fuerteventura World Cup having relinquished it last year. Iachino and Mortefon have enjoyed some epic battles over the years, and as two of the most consistent sailors on the planet, you can expect to see them both battling it out for top honours come the end of the event.
Jordy Vonk (Duotone Windsurfing) hit the form of his life here last year as the Flying Dutchman secured back-to-back bullets for the first time in his career to put himself in genuine contention for the event title. However, when just one point off the lead, Vonk suffered a serious wipeout on Day 4, which left him briefly unconscious and concussed in the water, ultimately preventing him from sailing on the final day. If Vonk is able to replicate the form he showed here last year then he’s definitely a top contender for the title and he has the added motivation of having some serious unfinished business to resolve.
2022 World Champion Maciek Rutkowski (JP / NeilPryde) is another sailor who will be hoping to challenge for top honours this week. The Pole led the event on Days 2 and 3 here last year before fading slightly, but still completed the podium. If all the pieces fall into place, the 34-year-old is more than capable of challenging for the event victory.
The strength in depth of the Slalom X fleet means that there are plenty of other potential names who will be hoping to challenge for the podium and beyond…
Last year’s World No.5, Amado Vrieswijk (Future Fly / North Sails / Z Fins) has made a flying start in other racing events this year, while he finished second in Tenerife last year to show that he’s now transferring his foiling prowess onto the fin and will be a serious one to watch.
Nico Prien (JP / NeilPryde) comes into Fuerteventura having won the prestigious Défi Wind in France in May earlier this year, and the German will be hoping to convert that form onto the Slalom X course.
Meanwhile, the likes of Bonaire’s Taty Frans (Future Fly / Point-7), Italy’s Bruno Martini (WeOne / S2Maui / Z Fins), the Netherlands’ Ingmar Daldorf (Tabou / GA Sails) and France’s Cedric Bordes (Severne Windsurfing), who recently set a new world record after averaging 44.42 knots over a nautical mile, all possess the out and out speed to put their names into podium contention.
Elsewhere you can expect to see French contingent of Jimmy Thieme (FMX Racing / Point-7), Lohan Jules (AV Boards / Challenge Sails / Black Project Fins), Sacha Fortune (Duotone Windsurfing), Pierre Macquaert (JP / NeilPryde), Alexis Mathis (Tabou / GA Sails), Benoit Merceur (Starboard / Severne Sails), William Huppert (PATRIK / PATRIK Sails) and Titouan Gernolle (PATRIK / PATRIK Sails), plus the UK’s Scotty Stallman (Tabou / GA Sails) all vying for a place in the top sixteen and beyond, while former overall top ten racer Tristan Algret (AB Boards / S2Maui) returns to the fleet for the first time since 2019. 
The Slalom X fleets will finish registering between 9-10am (GMT+1), while the racers will have their opening skippers’ meeting of the week at 11am with the racing commencing from 12pm onwards.
Waterspeed - Global Windsurfer Quest
From June until December, every kilometre you log on the Waterspeed app adds to your position on one global leaderboard — the Global Windsurfer Quest has been developed between Waterspeed and the PWA to bring the entire windsurfing community together. Sign up via the app now HERE and record one session before the Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam for your chance to win a signed lycra from the winners.
You can stay up to date with all the latest developments from Fuerteventura— including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply by clicking HERE and scrolling to the bottom of the page.
Result 2026 PWA World Tour - Women’s Freestyle
1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (ARU | Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins)
2nd Maaike Huvermann (NED | Severne Windsurfing / Maui Ultra Fins)
3rd Lisa Kloster (GER | Starboard)
4th Sandra Schill (GER)
5th Helena Lale (GER | Severne Windsurfing)
Result 2026 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam - Women’s Freestyle
1st Sarah-Quita Offringa (ARU | Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins)
2nd Maaike Huvermann (NED | Severne Windsurfing / Maui Ultra Fins)
3rd Lisa Kloster (GER | Starboard)
4th Sandra Schill (GER)
5th Helena Lale (GER | Severne Windsurfing)
Result 2026 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam - Men’s Freestyle
1st Lennart Neubauer (GRE | Starboard / Severne Sails / Maui Ultra Fins)
2nd Yentel Caers (BEL | JP / NeilPryde)
3rd Balz Müller (SUI | Severne Windsurfing)
4th Jacopo Testa (ITA | WeOne / GUNSAILS / AL360)
5th Takumi Moriya (JPN | Severne Windsurfing)
6th Sam Esteve (FRA | JP / NeilPryde)
7th Steven Van Broeckhoven (BEL | WeOne / GUNSAILS)
7th Dieter Van der Eyken (BEL | Severne Windsurfing)
9th Bodhi Kempen (NED | Duotone Windsurfing)
9th Takuma Sugi (JPN | Tabou / GA Sails)
9th Nicolas Akgazciyan (FRA | Goya Windsurfing)
9th George Grisley (UK | Duotone Windsurfing)