To Surf Or Kite

To Surf Or Kite

‘That Is The Question’

As the 2012 Olympics wind down, there are mixed feelings about the decision to replace windsurfing with kiteboarding at the 2016 Rio Games. Windsurfers, not wanting Weymouth to be their last regatta, are hoping for a “fair wind” as authorities face a legal challenge over the decision.

The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) announced in May that both women’s and men’s kiteboarding would replace windsurfing at the 2016 Olympics, but a November vote could see a reversal of that decision. The ISAF also faces a legal challenge by windsurfing chiefs to the vote; it could force an about-turn.

Some reports say that after news of the decision broke, Israel's sailing chief Yehuda Maayan told Reuters that the ISAF decision to prefer kite boarding came about as a result of a voting error by the Spanish delegate at the ISAF conference. The Spanish Sailing Federation subsequently admitted its mistake, saying its representative had wrongly voted in favor of kiteboarding.

Some say that if kitesurfing/kiteboarding does replace windsurfing in Rio, most of the competitors currently on surfboards will also dominate the new discipline.