The 2008 Ulsan PWA World Cup – Event Preview
The wait is almost over, as the 2008 slalom season embarks on its debut event in Ulsan, Korea from the 12th through to the 17th of May.
For the second year running, the slalom season prepares for its first stop on the world tour in Ulsan, southeast Korea. The action will take place on the beaches of JinHa, a thirty minute drive from Ulsan city. The area is renowned for its tropical waters and seasonal trade winds, which attract windsurfers from all over southern Korea, many of whom regard JinHa to be the top windsurfing location in the country.
This year’s event boasts a €45K prise purse, which has certainly helped to lure the top players to Korea’s shores. Currently confirmed from the men are; 2007 World Champion and World Speed Record holder, Antoine Albeau (Starboard, NeilPryde), last year’s event winner and 2007 runner up Kevin Pritchard (Starboard, Gaastra), windsurfing legend, Bjorn Dunkerbeck (T1, North Sails), super determined racers Micah Buzianis (JP, NeilPryde) and Finian Maynard (F2, NeilPryde), alongside a healthy contingent of Japanese and Korean competitors.
The women’s fleet features all the key players. In the line up are, Swiss legend and 2007 World Champion, Karin Jaggi (F2, North Sails) who will be doing battle with 2007 runner up Valerie Ghibaudo (Tabou, The Loft) and last year’s event runner up, Sarah Herbert (Starboard, Naish).
Although Ulsan is still in its infancy as PWA event, the impressive event infrastructure has been finely tuned with numerous regional and national competitions. Following the enormous success of the 2007 debut, organizers will be pulling all the stops out to once again showcase Ulsan’s windsurfing and tourism potential to the world at large.
You’ll be able to follow all the progress during the event at www.pwaworldtour.com with live updates, daily news summaries and more.
Or, for more information, please contact the PWA office at [email protected]
PWA / Andrew Buchanan
