ANTOINE ALBEAU
It was super radical because the last time we had wind and conditions like this was when we raced in Pozo! The first reach was pretty tough. That was in the worst part of the swell and we were going flat out. Going back out the reaches were shorter so you could concentrate more. I think it was one of the most radical slalom events we’ve ever had. In the Canaries we have had more wind, but the chop in Korea was different. Nobody was expecting this. A lot of guys did not even bring their small boards or less than 6.4m sails. I always bring all my gear with me, as I know Japan also can have big storms with low-pressure systems and 45 knots. It was fun, but the only problem was the debris in the water that you could not see, or at best, only at the very last minute! The seaweed you could see, but anything below the water, like plastic and wood, was pretty dangerous. You needed to concentrate on the chop, the people around you, the gusts and ten other things. You could be going along well and then suddenly break everything. I was super lucky in the first two rounds, I did not catch anything on my fin. On the last day I caught weed twice and in the first twenty seconds before the start I could not go full speed. Then at the gybe I hit a big black clump of weed and had to jump to try and shake it off. I was already last, so it made no difference! I didn’t want to complain because the first two days I was lucky. Second overall was ok in the end. I would have preferred to win but Matteo sailed very well. I am not sure if he is as fast as last year yet. He was very consistent and he raced well. He did not arrive first at the opening gybe in both finals he won! He managed to overtake the others, so we will see what happens this year!