News

Porto Cervo, 11 October 2024. Competition in the senior iQFOiL European Championship, an event organised by the Windsurfing Club Cagliari and FIV (Italian Sailing Federation), got underway on 6th October . A top-level fleet of 69 athletes gathered in Cagliari to compete in the qualifying series, with the top 10 classified athletes progressing to the medal races. Among the windsurfers taking part in the event was Federico Pilloni, an athlete from the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda’s Young Azzurra project, seizing the opportunity to compete against Olympic athletes, including Luuc Van Opzeeland, bronze medallist at the Paris Olympic Games.

Weather conditions in the Sardinian capital were not ideal, with a light breeze of 7-8 knots characterising the first two days. Five slalom races were nevertheless completed, putting the athletes' skills to the test, with a good start crucial to get to the front of the fleet in light winds in this type of race. The push for an optimal start led to several general recalls, with Freddy also recording two early starts. Despite discards coming into play, these two BFDs ultimately impacted his final result.

 Two days in which racing was not possible followed, as a storm front hit the entire island of Sardinia on 8th October with yellow alert warnings issued by the Civil Defence, followed by an almost total absence of wind in the Golfo degli Angeli the next day. Yesterday, 10th October, therefore provided the final opportunity to climb up the rankings, with five races scheduled. The fleet headed out onto the race course when the Mistral started to ease off at 2 p.m. Initially blowing at 18 knots, the wind soon intensified to 25 knots, creating conditions where the athletes' physical strength played a crucial role in their performance. Following a tough first race due to the shifty wind, Freddy recovered well to post the following scoreline: 14-13-7-26. At the conclusion of a total of 11 races completed, Freddy placed 19th overall.

"I’m very pleased to be in the top 20, I consider it a very good result. Above all, I’m happy with the progress of my performance in a very high level fleet, this is definitely an incentive for the coming years." commented Federico Pilloni.

The next event on Freddy's calendar will be the World Youth Championship in Palma de Mallorca, taking place from 25th October to 1st November.  

For further information please contact YCCS Press office at the following e-mail: pressoffice@yccs.it.