Casper Steinfath wins in Italy and is crowned European Champion (Day 2)

Press release : Waterman League

Casper Steinfath (Naish), the Viking, looked ready for battle this morning, focused not only on the event win after his win in the sprints yesterday, but also the prestigious European Championship Title after a 5 event Series that has tested the best of the best.

With 20knt winds and a 10km, 4 lap ‘M’ course providing extremely challenging, but yet rewarding conditions for the athletes with a mixture of downwind and upwind legs, Casper put his head down and put every last shred of energy into taking the win here in Rome.

The lead changed multiple times throughout the course of this dramatic long distance race, with the buoy turns and transitioning from upwind to downwind allowing athletes to either take advantage of, or fall victim to even the smallest of errors.

After a long hard battle, Casper took the lead at one point in the race, but consistently held second position and was able to finish there to secure a well deserved event win at this all important Final event of the European Cup.

This win secured the European Title for Casper, but also 2nd place in the overall European Cup behind the winner, Zane Schweitzer (Starboard) from Hawaii. AN impressive performance from the Great Dane and clearly a show of things to come here for this talented young racer as he will now prepare for the second half of the Season on the 2014 Stand Up World Series.

Dylan Frick puts on a performance to remember in the long distance race

Dylan Frick (Starboard) put on a performance to remember today on the final day of action here in Rome on the 2014 European Cup presented by Starboard. Dylan started strong and stuck with the leading pack, making his move on the 2nd lap to take the lead, and then maintain and increase it through to the finish to take a well deserved win in the long distance today at Santa Severa Beach.

Clearly revelling in the windy conditions that resembled his home in Cape Town, Dylan was able to capitalize on the downwind stretches and maintain upwind to take the victory.

WIth this win, combined with his 7th place in the sprints, Dylan ended up in an impressive 3rd overall for the event, boosting him to 6th place overall in the European Cup – a great performance from this young South African athlete who clearly has a bright future ahead of him.

Jake Jensen posts another 3rd place in the long distance, giving him 2nd overall

Jake Jensen (Fanatic) was the man to beat this weekend, as the Top seed coming into this event and looking strong after a 3rd place finish in the World Series stop number 3 in Fehmarn, Germany last week.

However, a stumble in the sprint course yesterday and a challenging course for the long distance today saw Jake finish 3rd on both days to secure 2nd place overall. This also means that he secured 3rd place overall in the 2014 European Cup, presented by Starboard, behind Casper Steinfath (Naish) and Zane Schweitzer (Starboard).

While this is still an impressive result, there is no doubt that Jake had his sights on the Top spot here in Rome and is only more motivated now to head home and train for the second half of the World Series starting in Huntington Beach, California in September.

Watch out for Jake through the second half of the year, as going off last year’s late surge through these events, Jake will be one to watch out for as we come to the backend of the season.

Local hero Leonard Nika falls short of the event podium but finishes 2nd European

Leonard Nika (Starboard) from right here in Rome, put on a valiant performance this weekend at home in Italy, with a strong 2nd place finish in the sprints on Day 1, but then a 6th place finish today in the long distance putting him in 4th overall for the event. An impressive performance nontheless from the Italian Stallion, as this solid result puts him in 2nd overall in the European Championship Standings and 4th overall in the 2014 European Cup, presented by Starboard.

Leonard will now finally take a break for a few weeks before heading out to the Shonan Chigasaki Pro in Japan next month, as he will be looking to improve on his current 6th place overall on the World Series at this midway point in the season.

Eric Terrien finishes in 6th in Rome, but 3rd overall in the European Championships

Eric Terrien (Bic SUP) put on another powerful performance this weekend at the final stop of the European Cup presented by Starboard, posting a 6th place overall, with a 6th place in the sprint racing and a 4th place in the long distance.

Eric enjoys a challenging race, and today in Santa Severa, it was just that, as Eric put his head down and battled with Australia’s Jake Jensen (Fanatic) to the bitter end for 3rd place, just falling short on the last leg to settle for 4th in the long distance – a great result nonethless.

This 6th place finish puts him in 3rd overall in the European Championships behind Leonard Nika (Starboard) and Casper Steinfath (Naish) and 5th overall for the European Cup presented by Starboard. A great performance from the Frenchman, further affirming his position as one of Europe’s finest Stand Up Paddlers.

Zane Schweitzer wins the European Cup, with a dominant performance

Zane Schweitzer (Starboard) put on a stellar performance throughout the European Cup presented by Starboard, winning an unprecedented 3 events out of 5, and putting on a solid performance at Stop 3 of the 2014 Stand up World Series in Fehmarn Germany to finish 4th overall.

With an athlete’s 3 best results from the European Cup counting towards the European Cup Title, Zane had already secured the European Cup TItle after Finland back in early July, winning the maximum of 3 events. Despite having secured the Title already, Zane still wanted to head south to the Final event of the Series in Rome, but a prior commitment to the Molokai to Oahu crossing meant that he had to miss it.

So a phenomenal performance from this well rounded talent from Maui as he wins the first ever European Cup, presented by Starboard and makes history in this young sport of Stand up Paddling, as his Father and Grandfather did in the sport of windsurfing.

Beyond his accolades on the water, Zane continues to be one of Stand up Paddling’s most colorful ambassadors, and long may that continue. Watch out for Zane as we progress to the second half of the season on the Stand up World Series as he now sits in 3rd place overall, and then on the World SUrfing Tour, where he is currently in 5th place.

Laura Quetglas dominates here at stop 5 of the European Cup presented by Starboard

Laura Quetglas put on a dominant performance this weekend at the 5th stop of the European Cup, presented by Starboard, winning the Sprint racing yesterday and then the long distance today, to take the overall win.

Laura broke away from the rest of the girls in both categories, clearly showcasing herself to be one of Europe’s fastest paddlers and making a statement here at the final stop at Santa Severa Beach in Rome. She joins a proud Spanish contingent here in Italy (Roman Frejo – Starboard, and Susak Molinero), all posting top 5 results at this prestigious final stop.

This win here in Italy boosts Laura into 2nd place overall in the European Cup Ratings, a strong performance from this Spanish talent.

Watch out for Laura as we head to the backend of the 2014 Stand up World Series picking back up again in California in September at Huntington Beach.

Susak Molinero put on an impressive performance here in Rome finishing in 2nd

Susak Molinero made her country proud today finishing second behind fellow Spaniard, Laura Quetglas in the long distance, which combined with her second place in the sprint racing puts her in second overall for the event.

A strong first outing for Susak here on the Stand Up World Challenger Series and this groundbreaking European Cup presented by Starboard. We look forward to seeing much more of Susak over the coming months as we head over the Atlantic to the US for the next stop on the 2014 Stand Up World Series.

Make sure to stay tuned to www.watermanleague.com for highlights, news and much more from the Stand Up World Series

Noelani Sach finishes 3rd in the event, but takes victory at the 2014 European Cup

Noelani Sach (Naish) put on a strong performance here at Stop 5 of the 2014 European Cup to finish in 3rd place overall for the event, with a 3rd in both the sprints and the long distance, enough to earn her the Title of 2014 European Cup Champion, a prestigious Title in itself.

Noelani Sach is Germany’s leading light for Stand Up Paddling and clearly has huge potential on the global scene, winning the European Cup Title, as she now prepares for the second half of the 2014 season on the Stand Up World Series. Watch this space.

Italia Surf Expo proves to be an epic Grand Finale to the 2014 European Cup

Santa Severa Beach, just 25 minutes from Rome proved to be the ideal venue for the Finals for the 2014 European Cup presented by Starboard, as the Italia Surf Expo presented by Jeep opened its arms to the World’s elite Stand up paddlers for an unforgettable event for both athletes and spectators alike.

Europe in the summer time is always an amazing place to be, but Italy in particular posseses an unmatched buzz, as the beach lifestyle is brought to life at this unique festival, celebrating the wonderful world of ocean sports at its very best.

A big thank you goes out to Jeep, Postepay Italiano, 4SUP and of course all the organization for the Italia Surf Expo led by Alessandro Marciano for an unforgetable weekend of action and entertainment here at the 2014 World SUP Challenge in Rome, Italy, Stop 5 of the 2014 European Cup presented by Starboard.

We can’t wait to come back in 2015 and in the meantime, stay tuned for highlights, full results and much more at www.Waterman League.com

Press release : Waterman League

Casper Steinfath charges to victory in the Sprint Races on Day 1 of the World Sup Challenge in Rome

The viking from Denmark stormed to victory in the sprint races here at Severa Beach in Rome, Italy, on the final stop of the European Cup presented by Starboard. After some great racing in the heats, Casper Steinfath (Naish) dominated the final. Charging from the horn the Dane got off to a great start and hit the first buoy out in front of the chasing pack and didn’t look back. Catching some nice little bumps on the runs into the beach Steinfath took the win comfortably.

After the start was delayed due to rain and the threat of lightening The World SUP Challenge presented by Jeep got underway mid-afternoon in glorious sunshine. Coming off the back of a 6th place overall in Fehmarn, Germany, Steinfath is fighting to be crowned top European with local Italian Leonard Nika (Starboard) & Frenchman Eric Terrien (BIC SUP).

Italian Leonard Nika takes second in his home city of Rome

Local Italian favourite Leonard Nika (Starboard) who lives just an hour away from Severa Beach, took second. After reaching the final along with his brother Claudio Nika (Starboard) It was older brother Leonard who showed his mental toughness and ability to finish second in a strong line-up of international paddlers. With his eight place last week in Fehmarn, Leonard, cheered on by a huge local crowd wanted to put on a performance and he didn’t disappoint. After some close heats leading to the final the local favourite pulled off a confident final paddle to secure second place.

Make sure to stay tuned for live updates and highlights from Day 2 and the Long Distane race of this climactic Final European event at Stand Up World Series Facebook page and right here at www.watermanleague.com

Jake Jensen slips up in Final but recovers to make third place on podium

After cruising through his heats Jake Jensen (Fanatic) looked in great form and the favourite to take the win here on Day 1 in Rome. After some fine paddling and easily winning his heats the Australian was going to be hard to beat in the final. However a slip-up out of the blocks on the start line mean’t he didn’t get the break away he was looking for. He recovered superbly and battled back to finish in third place.  Still in with a shot of winning overall he’ll be certain to make up for his mistake in the Long Distance race tomorrow.

Roman Frejo (Starboard) finished in fourth position after some strong paddling saw him reach the final. Fifth place went to Claudio Nika (Starboard) from Italy and he looks to be following in his older brothers footsteps. Eric Terrien (BIC SUP) from France secured sixth place and is always a tough competitor to beat. With bags of experience, grit and determination in Sup racing Eric will be slightly disappointed with the result. He will be hoping for a better performance in the long distance race tomorrow to boost his chances of taking the title of top European paddler.

Laura Quetglas dominates the field in the women’s sprint racing

Laura Quetglas from Spain hit three bullet wins and storms to the top of the podium on Day 1 in Rome. A strong technical paddler Laura showed the rest of the field why she is a forced to be reckoned with. From the start of the day she was focused on the win and three comfortable wins from three means she leads going into tomorrow’s long distance race.

In second place was fellow Spaniard Susak Molinero. Born in Barcelona, Susak now lives and trains in Italy so is well at home with the conditions. Coming into the event off the back of a third place overall last year she showed some impressive buoy turns and intense paddle strokes to see her over the line in second place.

Current German Champion Noelani Sach (Naish) has set the European Cup alight this year and finished Day 1 in third here in Rome. After winning in Finland 2 stops back the talent youngster made another podium finish. After some powerful beach starts in each of the three rounds she will be looking for another podium finish tomorrow in the Long Distance.

So stayed tuned right here at www.watermanleague.com and stand up world series facebook page for all action, highlights and results from the Long Distance race tomorrow in Rome, Italy