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TENERIFE: SLALOM SCHOOL 

El Medano and the facilities offered by the TWS centre there have become the destination of choice for a large number of PWA racers every winter. Eva Deinzer from TWS gives us an insight into their renowned slalom training programme.

WORDS Eva Deinzer // PHOTOS Bartek Jankowski – 7pixels and Benjamin Boerez @photomedano

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El Médano in winter, in front of the TWS (Tenerife Windsurf Solution) windsurf centre there is a bench in the sun that invites you to rest after a good windsurf session. Just when you want to relax, a windsurfer in a wetsuit runs by, cursing loudly. It’s Enrico Marotti, the two-time IFCA world champion. Calmly, another windsurfer appears, talking in French to a woman. It’s Antoine Albeau, holder of so many world titles, it’s hard to remember the exact figure. Marion Mortefon, the foil world champion, is also there. This, or something like it, happens here several times a week during the winter months when the world’s slalom elite gather in El Médano to participate in the TWS pro slalom training sessions. Over the years this has grown and now has around 100 participants each year. People feel at home at the TWS in El Medano, the formerly small fishing village that has long been famous in the windsurfing world, not least because of its year-round sunshine and consistently good wind conditions.

Origins

Matteo Iachino, former PWA slalom world champion, Macieck Rutkowski, two-time vice world champion, Bruno Martini, professional windsurfer, Jordy Vonk, IFCA vice world champion and Guillermo Fernandez, TWS manager, are all sitting on a sofa in the TWS centre, chilling and swapping stories of how they all got involved with the TWS training. The mood is relaxed and they laugh. “Bruno is an animal. He already was back in the day when he helped me get the anchor in from the boat. Instead of doing it from the railing, he just stood in the middle of the boat and pulled the rope. The boat was moving toward the anchor, not the other way around!”, says Guillermo. At that time, when the pro slalom training of TWS was still young, Bruno Martini actually helped in the starting boat.

The story began eight years ago. Matteo, then still very new in the world cup, recognized the potential of El Medano, the former fishing village in the south of Tenerife, early on. “It was convenient to come here, the conditions were good and we were highly motivated. I can only speak for myself here, but I hadn’t trained windsurfing in the winter before.” he recalls. “Setting up the course every morning and taking it down again in the evening, and then straight to the gym was very tiring. By the end of the week, we were totally knocked out.”

Evolution

This is where Jordy came in. The current IFCA Vice World Champion was employed by TWS as an intern at the time. “I went to Harco Jan Folkerts, the owner of TWS, with the idea of running the training through TWS and Harco gave me the opportunity to try out the whole venture. At the first training session, I was in the boat and handled the launches. It was terrible as I get seasick very quickly. So it was clear that I could not do this job”. Fortunately, someone with a boating license was quickly found. Guillermo recalls, “The job as Race Director was pitched to me in a really appealing way. I would have my own boat and the opportunity to see the guys on the water. In the beginning though, it was a very different story than how it is now. Our boat was much smaller and I was also much more inexperienced. I had no idea about slalom races. Jordy then took the time to bring me up to speed.”

“I still remember Guillermo raising every flag with his hand. Every now and then I had to remind him.” laughs Dutch windsurfing champion Jordy. “Today I trust him. Guillermo’s eye has become very precise. He’s at the top of what he does.”

Changes

Not only Guillermo’s sight, but also the training itself has changed. As the number of participants increased, more and more world-class windsurfers were attracted.

“I came on board pretty late. I used to go to Maui because there was a lot of testing going on there. However, it is much cheaper to fly here. The training and organization on the water is excellent and it is close to Europe. Also the level of the other riders is very high.” says Antoine Albeau.

Not only Antoine Albeau, but also Pierre Mortefon and of course co-founder and also world champion Matteo Iachino are a constant part of the training.

“A lot has changed. The younger generation doesn’t even know how lucky they are. Training has become a service. All you have to do is rig your own sail.” comments Matteo.

Slalom training has also been affected by Covid, although only slightly. Robin Koeleman, the slalom training organizer for over four years remembers the Corona period. “The biggest change is actually that we no longer have the skippers meeting in front of the TWS centre. Everything is now done via WhatsApp. Of course, it was also problematic for the participants to come as every country had different restrictions. The social distancing is really the biggest change, but the WhatsApp system works well.”

Connection

The connection amongst the riders still remains though. “For me, it’s so nice to see how you guys are still a team. You look out for each other.” says Guillermo to Maciek, Matteo, Bruno Martini and Jordy.

When asked by the others what would make him still do the job of race director after so many years, he answers, “The job in the boat is hard. But it gives me satisfaction to see you grow and to be a part of your growth.”

Foiling

Foiling has also changed the training a lot. The pros can train in lighter winds and so are sure to train 4 days per week. And the foiling gear has got more technical and therefore the training has become even more of a testing ground for several setups. And then there is the safety aspect. In the beginning we had the rule that as soon as one foiler joined the training the riders all had to wear helmets. Now the rule is stricter and helmets are compulsory all the time.

During the 2020-2021 training we blended in the iQFOiL riders. This was not ideal and therefore we decided to establish a separate / second training ground for iQFOiL during the 2021-2022 season. For the future, we will continue with the TWS Pro Slalom Training like we have already for 8 years. The iQFOiL training is still to be evaluated as the iQFOiL riders are often supported by national sailing federations and the federations organise their own training. This makes it challenging for us to gather the world’s best iQFOiL sailors in Medano. They are not used yet to organising their own training like the PWA and IFCA sailors do.

Safety first

Every season we have some close calls, but knock on wood, we have never had any serious accidents in the 8 years we have been running the training. The foil brings more danger, but the riders respect that fact and all wear protection and helmets. Nevertheless, we tell them often that it is training and not a world cup final, so they should not go at 120% to protect themselves and the other riders.

Catapults, especially on the foil, are spectacular and dangerous. This season we had some really hard crashes with riders ending up in hospital for some checks and x-rays, but luckily without injuries or damage.

The rivalry is there, but the guys all respect each other and there are some gentleman’s agreements / do’s and don’ts which they all abide by. They keep the gear and the tech knowledge for themselves and often use prototype gear for testing that they cover up on the beach. Work hard, play hard is the mantra for the TWS Pro Slalom and Foil training. They fight on the training course, but after a training day they all meet up for dinner and some beers in town. It is a friendly and relaxed atmosphere and everybody wants to help out. World champions are advising and helping young talents and to us, it is more a group of friends instead of rivals.

Logistics

The training runs each year from January to April and the next edition starts on the second of January 2023. The package we offer is training per week, month or full season and we offer storage for the riders and their gear. At least 4 days per week we conduct the training from 11:00 a.m. to around 17:00 p.m. It’s physically tough, but that’s why so many riders improve so much during a training season.

We offer accommodation via www.apartmentsmedano.com and the riders themselves have their connections in town as well for renting accommodation and some riders offer a part of their accommodation for others as well. The Tenerife Windsurf Solution centre is unique in offering full on slalom racing gear (Fanatic Falcons and Duotone Warps) for hire and we offer a big selection of around 25 Z-fins and Finish fins which can be tried and tested for free during the training season.

As I write this, the athletes have left again and are on tour to chase the big and small trophies of the slalom world. A warm goodbye is said in El Médano with a “See you next year!” We are looking forward to it already!