Three Severne riders in the women’s final, Philip Köster in the men’s final
The news coming out of the recent Chile World Cup for the Severne team is plentiful. Not only did Lina enter her first-ever final, but she also won top honors in a truly impressive performance in the pumping surf. Equally impressive was fourteen-year-old Sol Degrieck with fearless riding on any size wave she’d find. This landed her an incredible third place overall in a very stacked lineup of world-class windsurfers. In fourth was Pauline Katz who just came out of injury, making a strong comeback.
On the men’s side, Philip Köster fought his way through to the finals where he went on to finish fourth. It looks as if he now has shaken off his recent injury quite well.
Photos by Fishbowl diaries.
The conditions on offer on finals day were epic; clean mast high down-the-line waves with multiple sections to work, providing insane action for those following from home.
The International Windsurfing Tour and PWA truly stepped up the level for this event by providing a live stream of all of the action throughout the whole contest. Mixed with the epic action, it was one of the most exciting events to follow in recent wavesailing history.
LINA ERPENSTEIN – FIRST EVER WORLD CUP WIN
In a very tight battle with her fellow teammates Sol Degrieck and Pauline Katz, as well as youngster Alexia Kiefer Quintana, Lina’s experience on tour and wave selection played to her advantage. All of the winters in Western Australia plus her recent haul of high-quality wave sailing in the south of Spain undoubtedly boosted Lina’s confidence level when charging the big sets.
It wasn’t until the last minute of the heat when the German jumped from second into first, but connecting a few turns with an aerial at the end section was enough for the judges to give Lina her well deserved points, and the win.
Lina said:
“I’m over the moon happy. I’ve dreamt about this for so long, but the level was so high and the bombs were rolling in and I was just in survival mode. I’m very happy with the tactics in the heat. I positioned well and read the waves well. It feels unreal to win. Just this whole trip has been a trip of a lifetime”
Lina rode her S-1 4.8 and Stone 84 throughout the whole day. She is also an avid Air harness user.
Three Severne riders in the women’s final – Sol Degrieck takes third
Severne’s long-time commitment to supporting more women in the sport was on full display on finals day in Chile. No less than three full Severne riders made it to the final in one of the most competitive fleets in recent history.
Sol Degrieck, 14 years old, and riding a Redback and Pyro combo was one of the main standouts of the contest. The young grom showed no hesitation dropping into some of the biggest bombs rolling in, not only riding them casually but going big in bottom turns, cutbacks, and aerials. We’re sure to see much more of Sol soon.
Finishing fourth, Pauline Katz just came out of injury, and that didn’t look to be setting her back at all. Also riding Redback, but using Nano boards, Pauline was super stylish and linked high scoring rides through to the finals. Residing in Pozo, Pauline has her fair share of experience in port tack sailing, but the line conditions on offer weren’t quite the conditions she sails daily, making this result that much more impressive. Pauline also uses the Air harness.
PHILIP KÖSTER – BACK TO THE FINALS
Philip Köster is back and more motivated than ever after last year’s injury, and this year he put all his effort and dedication into the season’s preparation. All told, he seems to have shaken off his injury nicely.
After the last event in Japan, Philip has been on forecast strike missions to Chile and Maui, and the preparation he had put in was evident.
Riding his new Pyro and BladePro combo, Philip was definitely among the spectator favorites. On finals day, he threw down big airs, goiters, and air takas, but also huge gouging turns on the biggest set waves he could find. Philip also rides his signature PK1 harness.
Churning his way through the elimination, it was clear that Philip was on a comeback mission, and his eyes were set on the finals. Once in the finals, he had to settle for fourth place within arms reach of the podium. Nevertheless, the five-time World Champion sure looked stoked to be sailing another World Cup final, and getting to ride these epic conditions.
THE WRAP-UP
A huge congrats go to the remainder of the Severne team who followed closely behind our final contestants. Among others, Jane Seman finished fifth, and Liam Dunkerbeck and Federico Morisio both finished 13th.
Dieter Van der Eyken had to settle with a redemption round exit despite displaying some world-class waveriding before the event. During his heats, the conditions didn’t materialise for him to be able to show off his full repertoire. His next objective, in his coaching partnership with Lina, was to support her in reaching the finals, and with Linas victory, the partnership was a resounding success.
After an intense week of sailing and plenty of world-class action, the Pro fleet will now focus on what’s coming during the rest of the season. Pozo Izquierdo is next on the agenda, with Peru, Fiji, and Hawaii following after.
CHILE WOMEN RESULTS:
1. Lina Erpenstein
2. Alexia Kiefer Quintana
3. Sol Degrieck
4. Pauline Katz
5. Jane Seman
CHILE MEN RESULTS:
1. Camille Juban
2. Morgan Noireaux
3. Victor Fernández
4. Philip Köster
13. Liam Dunkerbeck
13 Federico Morisio
29. Dieter van der Eyken
29. Ryu Noguchi
Check out the full results including all individual heat results by clicking here.
THE SEVERNE GEAR THAT MADE THE FINALS
BLADE PRO
S-1
REDBACK
PYRO
STONE
NANO
PK1 HARNESS
AIR HARNESS
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