 | |
| Abbreviation | IKA |
|---|---|
| Formation | 2008 |
| Type | Sports federation |
Region served | International |
Chairman | Richard Gowers |
Main organ | Executive committee |
Parent organization | International Sailing Federation |
| Website | www |
The International Kiteboarding Association (IKA), [1] is the only kiteboarding class inside the International Sailing Federation (ISAF). [2] The IKA class rules fall in the category of a development class.
The International Kiteboarding Association was founded in April 2008 by Guillaume Fournier (two-time kiteboarding world champion), after the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) had included the principle of surfers being propelled by a kite in the 'ISAF Equipment Rules of Sailing'. [3] Kiteboarding was adopted in November 2008 as an ISAF international sailing class. An Executive Committee is re-appointed by the class AGM. The duties of the Executive Committee are to take care of the day-to-day business of the association, and to coordinate submissions from the sub-committees.
The Executive Committee is:
Head of Communications and Public Affairs: Diego Massimiliano De Giorgi (ITA).
There are five disciplines with individual world rankings and world championships. [4]
The IKA is responsible for the management of the following World Sailing kiteboarding classes: [5]
Around 30 national kite class associations are affiliated to the International Kiteboarding Association and active fleets exist in more than 65 countries. [7]
Class Championships are run as 'one-off' competitions in the racing disciplines course racing, kite cross and speed, and as series of events for the expression disciplines freestyle and wave riding.
Professional Tour Operators exist that organize series of sanctioned events. These are:
French kiteboarder Sebastien Cattelan became the first sailor to break the 50 knots barrier by reaching 50.26 knots on 3 October 2008 at the Lüderitz Speed Challenge in Namibia. [22] Earlier in the event, on 19 September, American Rob Douglas reached 49.84 knots (92.30 km/h), [23] becoming the first kitesurfer to establish an outright world record in speed sailing. Previously the record was held only by sailboats or windsurfers.
The outright sailing speed record has since been claimed by the French trimaran Hydroptère which, on 4 September 2009, reached a speed of 51.36 knots over 500 meters and 50.17 over a nautical mile in open ocean and only 25 to 30 knots of wind. [24]
In October 2010, Rob Douglas became the outright speed world record holder on water powered by the wind with 55.65 knots, exceeding the previous record by more than four knots. [25]
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.
World Sailing (WS) is the world governing body for the sport of sailing recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).
A foilboard, also known as a hydrofoil board or foil surfboard, is a type of board used in water sports; it is distinct from surfboards in that it has a hydrofoil rather than fins mounted underneath. This hydrofoil design allows the surfboard and its rider to rise above the water’s surface, allowing for fast speeds and increased maneuverability in a wide range of surf conditions. Foilboards are becoming increasingly popular across many water sports, including surfing, kiteboarding, windsurfing, and wakeboarding. Foilboards have also been used in competitions, with riders reaching speeds of up to 30 km/h while performing acrobatic maneuvers such as flips and twists.
Aaron Hadlow is a professional kiteboarder who has won the Pro Kiteboard Riders' Association (PKRA) World Championships five times.
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.
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.
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.
Maxime Nocher is a French professional kite surfer.
Bruno De Wannemaeker is a Belgian sports administrator.
Francisco Lufinha, achieved several world records, namely the Fastest Atlantic Kiteboat Crossing (solo) in 2021 and the Longest Journey Kitesurfing in 2015. He is a completely passioned by nautical sportsman. Taken aboard a boat by his parents only 15 days after he was born, he was never able nor wanted to let go of the sea again.
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.
Sofia Tomasoni is an Italian kitesurfer and winner of the women's Youth Olympic title in Twin Tip Racing in 2018.
Pippa Van Iersel is an Dutchwoman female kite surfer. She is a presence in the GKA World Tour kiteboarding contests and Big Air Kite League (BAKL) and she has been the Kitesurf Dutch Champion since 2016. Van Iersel is sponsored by Duotone and O'Neill.
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.
Wing foiling or wing surfing or winging is a wind propelled water sport that developed from kitesurfing, windsurfing and surfing. The sailor, standing on a board, holds directly onto a wing. It generates both upward force and sideways propulsion and thus moves the board across the water. The recent development of foilboards, which plane very early on a hydrofoil fin and thereby lift off the water producing low friction, represent the ideal complementary hydrodynamic platform for wings.
Formula Kite is the kitesurfing class chosen by World Sailing for the 2024 Summer Olympics. The class features a foil kite and a board with a hydrofoil. The equipment is not one-design, but instead competitors use their choice of approved production equipment. The International Kiteboarding Association (IKA) manages the class. The class is for men and women.
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.
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.
Elena Kalinina is a Russian World champion at Formula Kite where competitors use kites to propel small hydrofoils. Kalinina first became a World Champion in 2014 when she was seventeen.
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