Unique Kiteboarding format for Youth Olympic Games

The Sailing competition at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games will witness a unique format when racing gets underway in Argentina. While the Techno 293+ and Nacra 15 sailors expect to see traditional buoy courses, the Kiteboarding events will showcase a new discipline: Slalom / Boardercross.

The format is following the ideas of the Winter Olympic Games disciplines of ski and snowboard boardercross, where riders follow a set track with obstacles they need to jump over. The whole competition is held in multiple elimination series, where only the best riders advance from round to round until the final.

The International Kiteboarding Association (IKA) and the World Sailing Youth Olympic Games working party have been working on the final details of the format since the confirmation of the discipline in 2016 to provide riders, coaches, national associations and event organisers will all necessary information.

The IKA TwinTip:Racing website (www.twintipracing.com) has been updated with all information, including

• The Format
• The Courses
• The Start
• Scoring
• Penalty System / Direct Refereeing
• Equipment
• Qualification

More content and the final qualification event dates will be added as soon as it becomes available.

The final rulebook, including on-water refereeing, will be published shortly, and well before the next major event, the 2017 TT:R Slalom European Championships in Gizzeria, Italy.

The event is open to competitors from all over the world. Riders will compete in separate age disciplines (open men, open women, Boys U19, Girls U19).

Registration, Notice of Race and travel information can be found here:
http://internationalkiteboarding.org/events/upcoming-events/ttr/79-2017-european-tt-r-championships

To allow riders ideal preparation for the event, a coaching clinic will be held by multiple Kiteracing World Champion Steph Bridge at the same venue from 8 to 11 July 2017.

Interested riders and national teams please contact vaninahlb@gmail.com