Kiteboarding or kitesurfing is a sport that involves using wind power with a large power kite to pull a rider across a water, land, snow, sand, or other surface. It combines the aspects of paragliding, surfing, windsurfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, and wakeboarding. Kiteboarding is among the less expensive and more convenient sailing sports.
A power kite or traction kite is a large kite designed to provide significant pull to the user.
Francis Joyon is a French professional sailboat racer and yachtsman. Joyon and his crew currently hold the Jules Verne Trophy for circumnavigation, on IDEC SPORT, nearly five days less than the previous reference time. He held the record for the fastest single-handed sailing circumnavigation from 2008 to 2016.
Speed sailing is the art of sailing a craft as fast as possible over a predetermined route, and having its overall or peak speed recorded and accredited by a regulatory body. The term usually refers to sailing on water, even though sailing on land and ice is progressively faster because of the lower friction involved. The World Sailing Speed Record Council is the body authorized by the World Sailing to confirm speed records of sailing craft on water.
Robert Staunton Naish is an American athlete and entrepreneur who has won 24 World Championship Windsurfing titles. He is also considered a pioneer of kiteboarding and standup paddleboarding.
Michael William "Gebi" Gebhardt is a former professional and Olympic windsurfer from the United States, who competed in five consecutive Summer Olympics, in the Olympic sailing discipline/event of windsurfing. He was born in Columbus, Ohio.
Kirsty Jones is a Welsh professional kitesurfer and pioneer in the sport of kitesurfing. She is a three-time British Kitesurf Champion, three-time Kitesurf World Wave Champion, and two-time Master of the Ocean Champion, and holds world records in long distance and solo kitesurf crossings.
Kristin Boese is a German female kite surfer. In 2009, she was shortlisted by the International Sailing Federation for the ISAF World Sailor of the Year Awards.
The sport of sailing involves a variety of competitive sailing formats that are sanctioned through various sailing federations and yacht clubs. Racing disciplines include matches within a fleet of sailing craft, between a pair thereof or among teams. Additionally, there are specialized competitions that include setting speed records. Racing formats include both closed courses and point-to-point contests; they may be in sheltered waters, coast-wise or on the open ocean. Most competitions are held within defined classes or ratings that either entail one type of sailing craft to ensure a contest primarily of skill or rating the sailing craft to create classifications or handicaps.
The International Kiteboarding Association (IKA), is the only kiteboarding class inside the International Sailing Federation (ISAF). The IKA class rules fall in the category of a development class.
Robert "Rob" Douglas is an American professional sailor known for using a kiteboard in speed sailing records attempts. In 2008 Douglas broke the world speed sailing record on a kiteboard, hitting a top speed of 49.84 knots. Douglas again became the holder of the speed record in October 2010 when he was clocked at 55.65 knots. In 2019 while competing in La Palme France Rob set another world record in kitesurfing by sailing an average speed of 39.04 kts over 1 nautical mile.
Bruno Sroka is a French kitesurfer. Born in Clamart, Sroka began windsurfing when he was two years old. In 1998, Sroka arrived in Brest and took up kitesurfing, intrigued by the new sport. He had a successful career and went on to achieve many titles, becoming a three-time World Cup champion. Sroka also broke several milestones in the sport: he became the first to kitesurf the Cape Horn in 2008 and from France to Ireland in 2013.
Jesse Richman is a big-wave kitesurfer and a big-air kiteboarder. He is a two-time world champion and the first kitesurfer to get barreled at Jaws. He is also known for his world record 790-foot tow-up and 170-foot jump over land.
Gisela Pulido Borrell is a Spanish kitesurfer. In 2004, she became the sport's youngest world champion, at age 10. She has subsequently won multiple world titles.
Mikaili Sol is an American-Brazilian professional kiteboarder. She has held the title of Global Kitesports Association (GKA) Freestyle World Championship four times: 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 and the GKA Big Air World Champion three times: 2018, 2022 and 2023. She is a seven time World Champion at 18 years old.
Poema Newland is a French sailor and kitefoiler. She was the European Formula Kite champion in 2021.
Stephanie "Steph" Bridge is a British kitesurfer who became the World Formula Kite champion five times between 2009 and 2016. She is the leading figure in the "Team Bridge" family.
Alina Kornelli is a German and Austrian Formula Kite competitor. She has been a sailor and a snowboarder.
Mariana Lobato is a Portuguese paramedic and competitive sailor. She competed at the 2012 Olympics and she was a member of Támara Echegoyen's winning crew in the 2013 ISAF Women's Match Racing World Championship. She has competed in transatlantic sailing races.
Huang Qibin is a Chinese Formula Kite professional sailing athlete. He became the Asian & Oceania champion In 2023.
