Overview
“Today is a big step in the right direction. It’s not over yet, there’s some more comps to go, but I’m stoked. It’s good to start the year, first event, get a first. I’ve been fighting hard, I’ve been training a lot, and it’s a big relief. It feels good to be on top.”
Held from August 17 to 22, 2021, on Germany’s northernmost island of Sylt, the 2021 GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Sylt served as the opening stop of the 2021 GKA Kite-Surf season—marking the discipline’s return after a year-and-a-half hiatus following the February 2020 Cabo Verde event. Gathering 26 men and 10 women in the frigid waters of the North Sea, the contest delivered a historic shake-up that revealed how dramatically the hierarchy had shifted during the lockdown period.
Location and Conditions
The event took place at Brandenburger Strand in Westerland, Sylt—a legendary mecca for German water sports that has hosted Windsurfing World Cups since the 1980s.
Despite taking place in August, a North Sea storm brought harsh, wintry conditions. Cold 25-to-30-knot winds howled across the beach, accompanied by choppy, unpredictable onshore waves. Compounding the physical challenge was the emotional anticipation of returning to competition after a 1.5-year hiatus.
“It’s been a long time coming, a lot of emotions building up and I’m ready. It’s going to be nice.”
— James Carew
Format and Title Race Strategy
A critical factor shaping the 2021 title race was the tour’s unique carryover ranking rule. Because the 2020 season had been halted after just one stop in Cabo Verde, the GKA ruled that results from the 2020 Cabo Verde event would carry directly into the 2021 World Championship standings. With the best three out of four events counting toward the title (2020 Cabo Verde, 2021 Sylt, Denmark, and Morocco), riders who had missed or exited early in Cabo Verde faced immediate pressure, whereas Cabo Verde winner James Carew arrived in Sylt holding a massive strategic advantage.
Contested under a dingle elimination format, heats were judged on a 50:50 hybrid split combining a rider’s “best two waves and best two strapless freestyle tricks” for a maximum of 40 points. No matter how high a rider boosted in the air, victory required piecing together two solid wave scores in the tricky North Sea shorebreak.
Heat Ladder Drama and Highlights
Early Round Clashes and James Carew’s 35.28-Point Masterclass
Charging through the brackets in strong winds on Day 1, 16-year-old Keanu Merten knocked out German local Alex Middeler in the early men’s rounds with a massive backroll tic-tac and kiteloop board-off. In the women’s draw, Lübeck local Sonja Bunte defeated 2019 Sylt podium finisher Susanne Schwarztrauber in an all-German battle to reach the quarterfinals. Three-time twin-tip Freestyle World Champion Karolina Winkowska also crossed over into the strapless fleet and thrilled the crowd with a backroll board-off, only for 15-year-old Capucine Delannoy to immediately answer with an even higher frontroll board-off in the same heat.
The undeniable performance of the opening day belonged to Australia’s James Carew in Men’s Round 4. Opening with an 8.33-point “Kiteloop Frontroll,” he brushed off a couple of crashes to launch a massive “Frontside 360” off a wave lip for the highest single score of the event—a 9.67—posting a staggering 35.28 out of 40 points.
Semifinal Shockwave: Pedro Matos Upsets Reigning King Airton Cozzolino
When Finals Day kicked off early on the second morning, the first men’s semifinal produced the biggest upset of the tournament as reigning World Champion Airton Cozzolino clashed with young Brazilian charger Pedro Matos. Using the 25-to-30-knot winds, both riders went sky-high with nearly identical repertoires of technical strapless aerials, deadlocking the freestyle portion of the scorecard.
The decisive difference came down to the wave-riding half of the format. Reading the chaotic North Sea shorebreak with pure Brazilian surf instincts, Pedro Matos picked off a crucial set wave in the dying moments of the heat to edge out “Cozzolino Airlines” by a razor-thin margin and advance to the final.
In the second semifinal, Canadian veteran Reece Myerscough put together a well-rounded heat of waves and airs, but James Carew once again broke the 30-point barrier to book his spot in the title match.
Women’s Final: Pure Wave Strategy vs. The First Women’s Double Front Roll
After France’s Charlotte Carpentier defeated Sweden’s Johanna-Catharina Edin in the small final to claim 3rd place, the Women’s Final pitted 15-year-old French prodigy Capucine Delannoy against Australia’s Peri Roberts.
The final showcased a fascinating clash of strategies. Peri Roberts focused almost entirely on pure wave riding, hunting down clean sets out the back to throw spray, but the small onshore waves lacked the scoring potential to match Capucine Delannoy’s aerial firepower.
During the heat, Capucine Delannoy stomped her signature “Double Front Roll,” becoming the first woman in GKA competition history to land the maneuver in a heat. Riding that momentum to a 25.8-point total, she claimed her maiden GKA World Tour victory.
“Well, I’m so happy, I’m so stoked. I’ve been training since more than a year every day in freestyle, and yeah, winning the event, it’s quite so cool.”
— Capucine Delannoy
Despite finishing as the runner-up, Peri Roberts also walked away with a massive prize: combined with her carryover points from 2020 Cabo Verde, her 2nd-place finish propelled her to World No. 1 in the overall rankings for the first time in her career.
Show Detailed Competition Results (Spoiler Alert)
In the men’s small final, Airton Cozzolino bounced back from his semifinal heartbreak to defeat Reece Myerscough for 3rd place. The Men’s Grand Final then brought together giant-killer Pedro Matos and Australian powerhouse James Carew.
Leaving nothing to chance against the surging Brazilian, James Carew delivered another clinic of massive airs and powerful wave hacks, becoming the only rider to score over 30 points in every single heat of the competition. Claiming his second consecutive tour victory following 2020 Cabo Verde, James Carew established a commanding lead in the 2021 World Title race.
[Men’s Division]
1st: James Carew (Australia)
2nd: Pedro Matos (Brazil)
3rd: Airton Cozzolino (Italy / Cape Verde)
4th: Reece Myerscough (Canada)
[Women’s Division]
1st: Capucine Delannoy (France)
2nd: Peri Roberts (Australia)
3rd: Charlotte Carpentier (France)
4th: Johanna-Catharina Edin (Sweden)
🔗 Related Link: GKA Kite-Surf World Cup Sylt 2021 | THE AFTERMATH – GKA Kite World Tour
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