Vodisk, Olympic kitesurfing world champion

“It was great, I started quickly in the first leg, but I wasn’t sure if I started too early, but they told me everything was fine. I’m glad I won my second regatta for the final today. But then I almost flew to Moon, I was very happy. In this toilet I only managed a first or second place, with two incomplete regattas. The winds were between 7 and 30 knots in this toilet, I was good in all conditions. But for me, it was from The important thing is to do as many runs as possible and to be calm until the end. I have problems with my knees, but since I can walk, it may not be more difficult. The Olympic dream remains until the end and I am really looking forward to OI.” Vodisk announced from Sardinia.

“It was a pleasure to compete in Sardinia. I was not disappointed. Maider put in an exceptional performance, despite his young age, he cannot be underestimated. Two weeks ago I became European champion, I held back my feelings until the end of the last regatta today. I am very happy that I I also managed to win the title of world champion.” Vodicek, who crossed the finish line, literally flew into the air with a parachute after untying his windsurfing, immediately after the match said in a statement to the tournament organizers.

The 22-year-old Vodišek has been on the podium in previous years as well, and in 2019 he won the silver medal in the members’ EP. On October 14, 2018, he won a silver medal at the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires.

In recent years he has been the world leader in Formula Kite all the time and has also been at the top of the member rankings for a long time, overcoming long-standing health issues and in the last six months he collected his best achievements to date.

In Navaktos, Greece, he already won the Old Continent Champion title on 2 October this year and continued his outstanding performance at WC in Sardinia. After the penultimate day of the World Cup, he remained single in the lead on Saturday and already took two points in today’s Grand Final. So he only needed one more title victory. 16-year-old Maximilian Maider, who finished second in 14 regattas before the Grand Final, reached the final of the top four and scored one point for the final.

The two remaining contestants were known for today’s semi-final duels, with the remaining contenders vying for two places up to 10th place with four arterial travelers in a semi-final. France’s Axel Mazzella and Theo de Ramecourt also reached the finals.

In the final, Vodicek faced Maider again. The Singaporean won the European Open two weeks ago in France, reaching the final with two wins, and Vodisk with one. This time it was the other way around and Vodichick had the advantage.

The first regatta to the final was not a success for Copran. In the battle, there was almost a connection between his parachute and the Singaporean parachute. Mander had an advantage in the lead in the second leg, and later on, Vodicek also fell and was looking for a new opportunity in the second leg.

Theo de Ramecourt started really fast in his second final regatta, so there were only three in the competition. Vodišek reached the first buoy with an advantage over Maeder, who later fell, and then Koprčan continued to push for the title. Unaware of the error, Theo de Ramecourt stayed in contention and threatened most of Koprčan’s win, but remained consistent enough for ultimate success.

Vodisk did not reach the finish line in the final race on Friday for the second time in this competition. This did not affect the final result, because the three worst counting races, and the third result that was not taken into account, were already in second place. In addition to his two unfinished regattas, he racked up eight wins and four second places in the remaining regattas and was more than convincingly in first place in 14 races. He was twelve points ahead of Meander and again ahead of the next stalker.

Only the last 14th course of the regular segment caused him some problems, when he hit the « chip » and sprained his right knee. That is why he did not finish the performance and quickly went to the beach and put snow on his leg, and then, when he was already feeling better, went to the icy water.

Last year he was 11th in the restroom ahead of Torigrande in Sardinia. In August 2018, at the World Championships in Aarhus, he became the Junior World Champion for the third year in a row.

In 2019, he won the European silver for his first major member in a major competition, won three more World Cups and was fifth in the WC on Lake Garda in Italy. This was followed by a shoulder injury and surgery last year, and at the beginning of this year he had a much more serious course of Covid-19 disease.

Vodišek also aims to take first places in the OI in the French capital, where his specialty will be in the Olympic program for the first time. « I’m not going to the Olympics to be second. My goals are clear and I take care of them. My business is matches and training, the rest is taken care of by my parents and other team members. If you also focus too much on other things, you can’t succeed in the sport to be on top.Confirmed in March at the 2022 Central Event of the Sailing Association of Slovenia.