Windsurf MagazineDEFI CARIBBEAN, DUNKERBECK GPS SPEED & SOROBON MASTERS 2019

EVENT REPORT, RESULTS & GALLERY

Defiwind Caribbean, Sorobon Masters and Dunkerbeck GPS Speed Challenge took place this June 23-30, 2019 in Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean. The event was organized by the Defiwind founder Philippe Bru and windsurf legend Bjorn Dunkerbeck, with the help of Sorobon Beach Resort and Dunkerbeck Pro Center. The combined events had 36 competitors from 16 countries. Bonaire was triumphant in all categories! The overall winner of Defiwind Caribbean and Dunkerbeck GPS Speed Challenge was Taty Frans, who won a trip to Defiwind Miyako 2020 in Japan, fully covered by the Sorobon Masters Foundation & Defwind Organization, as well as a fully paid invitation to the Luderitz Speed Challenge with partial flight coverage. Similarly, the Woman category winner of Defiwind Caribbean, Alyssa Wijnand, is also invited to Defiwind Miyako 2020. Sorobon Masters saw an increased participation of youth and rookies from Bonaire, which was a celebrated moment, as the event strives to spark competitive passion for windsurfing.

Defiwind Caribbean 2019 was a small event with fantastic atmosphere, as everyone was enjoying the warm beautifully blue waters and strong steady winds that varied from 15 to 25 knots throughout the four days. In total there were 10 races, with two cancelled. Each day finished with fun happy hours and great dinners on-site or in Sorobon Beach Resort.

The locations for the starting points were Te Amo beach for the first day, Pink beach for the next two days and Sorobon lagoon for the last day. The first three days the riders were windsurfing in the open Bonaire waters, and the longest race was 35km from Pink Beach to No Name beach in Klein Bonaire. With the extra help from Stinapa Bonaire for Marine park conservation, the event was a successful 4th edition of the Defiwind Caribbean!
The overall winner of the event was Taty Frans (BON), who won 9 out of 10 races, with one disqualification. The second overall was Aron Etmon (CUR), and third place went to Twan Verseput (NED). The winner for the Women’s category was Alyssa Wijnand (BON), with Satomi Suzuki (JP) and Mathilde Zampieri (PF) taking second and third places respectively. Kids under 16 category winner was Patrick Son (BON), second was Luca Davidsson (BON) and third was Sjoerd de Koningh (CUR). First place prize for Men and Women was a trip to Defiwind Miyako 2020, fully covered by Sorobon Masters Foundation and the Defiwind Partners. Second places received accommodation and registration to either Defiwind Miyako 2020 or Defiwind Gruissan 2020, and the third-place prizes were registration covered for both Defiwind Miyako 2020 and Defiwind Gruissan.

The Dunkerbeck GPS Challenge was held in the Sorobon Lagoon 27-30 June in the evenings. During the Dunkerbeck GPS Speed Challenge, the competitors attempt to achieve the highest possible speed in the lagoon, tracked by GPS Speed tracking app. This speed is tracked online and challenged by other windsurfers worldwide. The winner of the on-location speed challenge was Taty Frans, who won a covered invitation to the Luderitz Speed Challenge and partially covered flight by Raffaello Gardelli and Sorobon Masters Foundation. Second place winner was the windsurf legend Bjorn Dunkerbeck (ESP), and third place went to Twan Verseput (NED). The Women Category winner was Monique Meijer (BON), and the Youth winner was Luca Davidsson (BON).

Sorobon Masters, a competition held for helping the youth of Bonaire become accustomed to competitive windsurfing and testing their skills, challenged the competitors in two categories: freestyle and slalom. It was held in the Sorobon Lagoon 27-30 June. Freestyle Man winner was Youp Schmit (BON), followed by Taty Frans (BON) and Aron Etmon (CUR). Freestyle Youth winner was Patrick Son (BON). In Slalom, Taty Frans (BON) was unbeatable, with Twan Verseput (NED) and Aron Etmon (CUR) behind him accordingly. Slalom Youth champion was this year’s surprise Patrick Son (BON), who usually competed only in the Freestyle category. The competition had a Rookies (Under 9) category with 5 great and eager participants.