GERMANY'S 🇩🇪 MARIA BEHRENS LEADS THE WORLD WAVE RANKINGS AT MID SEASON
At the halfway point of the season, Maria Behrens (Duotone Windsurfing / Maui Ultra Fins) sits at the top of the World Wave Rankings after an outstanding first half of the year.
A runner-up finish at the Maui Pro-Am in the spring, followed by a fifth place in the completely different port tack jumping conditions of Gran Canaria, have placed her in the perfect position heading into the second half of the season.
Over the last three seasons, Behrens has claimed seven top five finishes, including a runner-up finish in Sylt. Her versatility is one of her greatest strengths. Whether it’s down-the-line wave riding, challenging onshore conditions, big waves or smaller surf, she always finds a way to perform. Her wave selection is exceptional, her jumps continue to get higher, and every season she adds new moves to her repertoire.
With seven major events still to come, including four 5-star events, Behrens is in a fantastic position to achieve the best overall ranking of her career. Even more encouraging, two of those major stops are Sylt and the Aloha Classic, venues where she has already proven she can fight at the front with a runner-up finish in Germany, a podium finish in Maui and another final appearance there.
The battle for the world title, however, is far from decided. Frances Marine Hunter (Quatro / Goya Windsurfing) is right on Behrens’s heels after winning the opening 5-star event of the season in Maui, a venue where she has already claimed previous victories. Although Hunter finished ninth in Gran Canaria, four more 5-star events remain, including Sylt and the Aloha Classic, two spots where she has already won in the past.
Adding even more excitement to the title race, Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins) arrives with momentum after finishing second in Pozo in her first appearance of the season, and returns to Tenerife starting this weekend as the defending event champion.
With the Tenerife World Cup about to begin, the fight for the top of the rankings is only getting more exciting!
BERND ROEDIGER 🇺🇸 LEADS THE MEN'S WORLD WAVE RANKINGS AT MID SEASON
The Maui rider has made the perfect start to the season, winning every event he has entered so far. Victory at the Puerto Rico 3-STAR, followed by wins at the Maui Pro 5-STAR and the Fiji 4-STAR, have placed Bernd Roediger (Flikka / Hot Sails Maui / Black Project Fins) at the top of the World Wave Rankings at the halfway point of the season.
Throughout the season, Roediger has showcased the style that has made him one of the most exciting wave sailors on the planet. Creative, powerful and progressive, his surfing continues to push the limits with explosive lip hits and impossible lines, whether in classic starboard tack conditions at Hawaii's Ho'okipa or on massive port tack waves at Fiji's Cloudbreak.
At the halfway point of the season, and just before the Tenerife World Cup, HAWAII'S Roediger leads the rankings, but the title race is already heating up. Brazil’s Marcilio Browne (Goya Windsurfing / MFC) is right behind after a superb start to the season with two podium finishes, while reigning World Champion, Spain’s Marc Paré (Simmer / Simmer Sails / MFC) is also closing the gap after his runner-up finish in Gran Canaria. With four 5-star events and several 4-star events still to come, everything remains wide open.
At this stage, Roediger's ranking is built on victories at the Maui Pro 5-STAR and the Fiji 4-STAR. At the end of the season, each rider counts their best four results, making every event crucial.
A 5-STAR victory is worth 10,000 points, while a 4-STAR victory earns between 5,000 TO 6,000 points depending on the Quality of Field (QF) and the Depth off Field (DF), maximum points is roughly the equivalent of a sixth-place finish at a 5-STAR event. That is why the 4-STAR competitions should never be underestimated.
They feature world-class riders, epic conditions and enough points to make a decisive difference in the overall rankings. Strong performances and victories at these events can easily become counting results for the world's top riders.
With the way he has started the year, Roediger is in an outstanding position to achieve the best overall ranking of his career. His ranking is likely to drop from first position as the tour moves through his weaker events on the European leg of the tour that runs from June to September with Gran Canaria, Tenerife and Sylt all 5-star majors in cross-onshore jump and rider conditions.
However, he is expected to finish strongly with the Aloha Classic in October where he has won twice on his home break riding big down the line right handers, and with the Chile Grand Final in November where he has never made a final riding down the line left handers, but after his Fiji Surf Pro victory - which is a left hand down the line wave - he may yet surprise us all and be a serious World Title contender to take the title at the Grand Final.
It will all come down those final two blockbuster events of the year. TUNE IN!