“Very, very good to be honest, it’s the same conditions as my place in Cabarete. For me, Cabarete is the same as Colombia, the same as Brazil—we are brothers, Colombia, Brazil, Dominican Republic.”
Overview
Held from March 1 to 5, 2023, in Salinas del Rey on Colombia’s Caribbean coast, the 2023 GKA Freestyle-Kite World Cup Salinas del Rey served as the second stop of the five-event 2023 Qatar Airways GKA Freestyle World Tour, returning to Colombia for a second consecutive year. Bringing together 35 athletes (27 men and 8 women) from 16 nations, the event tested the newly introduced “Variety Score” in pumping trade winds and natural wave kickers.
Location and Conditions: Strong Trade Winds, Kickers, and the Variety Score
Located near the fishing village of Santa Verónica, Playa Salinas del Rey features a semi-enclosed point-break setup where rolling swells form steep outside kickers alongside choppy-to-flat inside sections.
In just one year since the GKA’s 2022 Colombian debut, local interest in kiteboarding had exploded, drawing hundreds of passionate spectators to the beach.
While the knee-high chop and 25-to-30+ knot north-northeasterly winds (putting riders on 7-to-10-meter kites) made for physically demanding conditions, the 2023 season’s new “7-point Variety Score” transformed the tactical approach. Rather than forcing low-kite double handle-passes in heavy chop, riders were rewarded for launching off the wave ramps with toeside takeoffs, rewinds, grabs, and wave-to-wave combinations.
Format and Competitors
Each heat counted a rider’s best four out of seven tricks (up to 40 points) plus up to 7 bonus points for hitting four distinct trick families (for a maximum heat score of 47 points).
The men’s fleet was led by Qatar season-opener winner and reigning World Champion Gianmaria Coccoluto (competing despite a nagging neck injury), four-time World Champion Carlos Mario (who spent a full month training in Colombia after finishing a close 2nd in Qatar), defending Colombia event winner Manoel Soares, Swiss dual-sport star Maxime Chabloz (making his 2023 kite debut after skipping Qatar for the Freeride World Tour on skis), and Colombian home heroes Valentin Rodríguez and Juan Rodriguez. Joining them on a wildcard was Canadian standout Jack Rieder—who, alongside fellow Canadian wake-style/park riders like Lucas Arsenault, had long advocated for a judging overhaul and was personally invited by Head Judge Alvaro Onieva to showcase the new format.
The eight-woman field featured Qatar winner Bruna Kajiya, five-time World Champion Mikaili Sol, Sweden’s Nathalie Lambrecht, Spain’s Claudia León and Alexandra Torres, Denmark’s Therese Taabbel, Brazil’s Estefania Rosa, and France’s Matilda Roux.
Highlights and Epic Battles
1. Women’s Day 1 & Men’s Day 2: Jack Rieder’s Wildcard Statement and Posito Martinez’s 9.00-Point Boost
Day 1 saw the women battle through Round 1 and the quarterfinals: Nathalie Lambrecht defeated Alexandra Torres in Round 1, Estefania Rosa overtook Therese Taabbel in the quarterfinals, and Alexandra Torres landed an “S-Bend to Blind” to eliminate Matilda Roux, while Mikaili Sol dropped the highest score of the day—an 8.00-point “Hinterberger 5.”
On Day 2, the men completed three full rounds. Taking full advantage of the rule changes he had lobbied for, Canadian wildcard Jack Rieder opened his campaign with a booming 8.00-point “Slim Chance to Blind” (rewind) followed by a “Toeside Back 5” and passes on both tacks to charge into the quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, Dominican powerhouse Posito Martinez used an outside kicker to launch a massive 9.00-point “Frontside 319″—the highest score of the day—and Carlos Mario stomped a standout “Dum-Dum 5 (Tootsie Roll 5).”
2. Men’s Round 4 & Quarterfinals (Day 3): 13-Year-Old Finn Flügel Reaches the Top 8, a 9.40 Slim 9, and the “Heat of Death”
Day 3 opened on 10-meter kites in Men’s Round 4, highlighted by Valentin Garat’s 8.87-point “317” and Valentin Rodríguez’s 8.50-point “319.”
The quarterfinals produced three major storylines:
First, 13-year-old German prodigy Finn Flügel pulled off a major upset by eliminating 2019 World Champion Valentin Rodríguez on home waters to reach his first career GKA semifinal.
Second, Dominican charger Luis Alberto Cruz launched off an outside ramp for a sky-high “Slim Chance 9,” earning 9.40 points for the highest single trick score of the day.
Third, a stacked “Heat of Death” pitted Gianmaria Coccoluto, Carlos Mario, local hero Juan Rodriguez, and high-flying Canadian wildcard Jack Rieder against each other. While Juan Rodriguez opened with a “Back Mobe 5” and traded identical combo maneuvers with Gianmaria Coccoluto down the stretch, Carlos Mario linked a “Double Heart Attack,” “Crow Mobe 5,” and a “Tootsie Roll into Double Hinterberger 5” combo to advance alongside Gianmaria Coccoluto—ending the runs of both Jack Rieder and the last remaining Colombian contender, Juan Rodriguez.
3. Semifinals (Day 4): Variety Points Prove Decisive as the Finals Are Set
In Women’s Semifinal 1 on Finals Day, Bruna Kajiya went four-for-four without a single crash—linking a “Slim Chance,” an inverted “Front Roll to Blind,” and the only toeside “Crow Mobe” of the heat to advance in 1st ahead of Spain’s Claudia León (who landed a “315,” “Hinterberger 3,” and “Slim Chance” for her second straight final).
In Semifinal 2, Mikaili Sol dominated from the opening exchanges, while Nathalie Lambrecht recovered from early crashes with a clutch “Hinterberger 3” and a high “Crow Mobe” to secure 2nd—setting up an exact rematch of the Qatar final four.
In Men’s Semifinal 1 (Carlos Mario, Manoel Soares, Luis Alberto Cruz, and Arthur Guillebert), Luis Alberto Cruz thrilled the crowd with another gigantic “Frontside 319,” but his lack of trick-family variety cost him dearly under the new format, allowing Carlos Mario (who landed a ramp-assisted “Crow Mobe 5” and a combo) and Manoel Soares to advance.
In Semifinal 2 (Maxime Chabloz, Gianmaria Coccoluto, Louka Pitot, and Finn Flügel), Maxime Chabloz stomped a double-grabbed “Back Mobe 5” and an 8.73-point nose-grabbed “Slim Chance 7” to take 1st, while Gianmaria Coccoluto linked a “Backside 317” and a “Crow Mobe 5 into Pete Rose 5” combo to claim 2nd ahead of Louka Pitot and 13-year-old Finn Flügel.
“I started off really with the goal of building a heat, because it’s really tough conditions and it’s not easy to actually land four tricks with the new format and everything. So yeah, pretty stoked with it and ready for the final.”
— Maxime Chabloz
Show Detailed Competition Results (Spoiler Alert)
“I’m so stoked to be back on top. Honestly, conditions are really tough, but I managed to pull through and yeah, I took the win here, and definitely feeling a little—I don’t know what the word is—like a redemption almost, you know, from Qatar getting second to getting first here.”
— Mikaili Sol
■ Women’s Grand Final: Mikaili Sol Masters the Kickers for Redemption in Colombia
In front of more than 500 cheering spectators on the beach, 18-year-old reigning champion Mikaili Sol avenged her Qatar runner-up finish in commanding fashion.
Using the steep wave ramps to boost significantly higher than the field in the punchy conditions, Mikaili Sol posted a 23.90-point total to claim victory ahead of Spain’s Claudia León in 2nd, Sweden’s Nathalie Lambrecht in 3rd, and Brazil’s Bruna Kajiya in 4th.
■ Men’s Grand Final: Carlos Mario’s Month-Long Colombian Training Camp Pays Off with a 31.23-Point Victory
The Men’s Grand Final (Carlos Mario, Maxime Chabloz, Gianmaria Coccoluto, and Manoel Soares) delivered an explosive climax.
While 2022 Colombia winner Manoel Soares opened strong in front of the crowd and tour leader Gianmaria Coccoluto battled through his neck injury to take 3rd, the battle for gold came down to Carlos Mario and Maxime Chabloz.
Despite arriving straight from the ski slopes, Maxime Chabloz threw down a massive 8.23-point “Back Mobe 7” to secure 2nd place.
However, 25-year-old four-time World Champion Carlos Mario—who had spent a full month dialing in the Salinas del Rey ramps—was unstoppable, going move-for-move with full variety to post 31.23 points for his first victory of the 2023 season and the overall tour lead.
“It’s beyond words to win the competition here in Colombia. I remember being in Qatar and thinking it was a matter of time until I was back on top. So I went back to Brazil and focused 100% on giving my best in Colombia. The final heat was spectacular. Manoel, Coccoluto and Maxime are all riding so well, so luckily I managed to beat them and get the victory.”
— Carlos Mario
[Men’s Division Final Results]
1st: Carlos Mario (Brazil) — 31.23 pts
2nd: Maxime Chabloz (Switzerland)
3rd: Gianmaria Coccoluto (Italy)
4th: Manoel Soares (Brazil)
[Women’s Division Final Results]
1st: Mikaili Sol (Brazil / USA) — 23.90 pts
2nd: Claudia León (Spain)
3rd: Nathalie Lambrecht (Sweden)
4th: Bruna Kajiya (Brazil)
Search Aliases: 2023 GKA Freestyle-Kite World Cup Colombia, 2023GKAFreestyle-KiteWorldCupColombia