Fresh from his storming victory at the Olympic Games, Valentin Bontus’s triumphant return home continues with his participation at KiteFoil World Series Austria. Taking place from 4 to 8 September on stunning Lake Traunsee, Bontus will line up against his friends and rivals for the first event of the new Olympic cycle leading up to Los Angeles 2028.
There is added significance and anticipation for this event, as it’s an opportunity for the whole fleet to start racing with the new set of equipment that has been registered as eligible for Formula Kite racing on the Olympic circuit. Maximum kite size limits have been introduced, so in the men’s the largest kite permitted is now 21 square metres, while for the women the maximum size is limited to 19 square metres.
Following the dominance of the Flysurfer brand through the latter stages of the recent Olympic cycle, there’s a new buzz in the air with a number of rival brands looking to challenge for the attention of the world’s best kitefoiling athletes.
There’s always a trade-off between top-end speed and ease of use, and finding the sweet spot between these two factors is one of the key goals for kite designers and the riders. What works for one rider won’t necessarily work for another, depending on their size, experience and riding styles.
© IKA media/ Robert Hajduk: Valentin Bontus will be on 'home waters' on the lake.
The same is also true of the foils that provide the lift beneath the surface. The last Olympic cycle was primarily a battle between the Chubanga and Levitaz brands, although we may well see other players come in to challenge the duopoly for the coming cycle.
At KiteFoil World Series there is no equipment registration. The riders can use these events to test as much gear as they like and that’s what will make this contest in Traunsee so fascinating.
The medal series format for the kitefoiling at the recent Olympic Regatta was well received by the media and the public, delivering some final day drama without subjecting the riders to too much of a last-gasp lottery. However, Traunsee will be a first opportunity to trial a new format for the medal series, and it goes like this:
© IKA media/ Robert Hajduk
All sailors will be racing in a single fleet for the first three days of the event.
On the final day, the top nine sailors qualify to the medal series. The 10th sailor of the medal series comes from a fleet race where all (except the first nine) are sailing.
Regardless of previous results, 1st man and 1st woman earn a ‘golden ticket’ and qualify to the repechage phase of the medal series.
The medal series comprises of a repechage, a quarter final, a semi final and the grand final.
Repechage: Sailors ranked 7th, 8th, 9th and the golden ticket winner, sail a short race, with the first two across the finish progressing to the next round (Quarter Final).
Quarter Final: The top two from the repechage sail with sailors ranked 5th and 6th, with the first two across the finish progressing to the next round (Semi Final).
Semi Final: The top two from quarter final sail with sailors ranked 3rd and 4th, with the first two across the finish progressing to the next round (Final).
Final: The top two from the semi final sail with sailors ranked 1st and 2nd.. First to three wins, wins the event. Sailor ranked 1st starts with two wins, while the 2nd starts with one win. The two coming from the semi final start without wins.
© IKA media/ Robert Hajduk
With this new format, the Final format stays the same as in the past season, but the single-race format for the knockout rounds will make it easier to create a predictable schedule of competition for TV and media, while still rewarding the best-performing riders with a progression through different stages of the competition.
Racing commences at Lake Traunsee on Thursday 5 September. The races on the weekend 7 and 8 September will be livestreamed.
