The French double ‘A’ duo remain at the front of their fleets after a frustrating day waiting for wind on Jinha beach.

A sunny start to the day saw everyone rise early with high hopes of completing a few more rounds of competition. Right from the start the wind teased many of the world’s finest onto the beautiful Sea of Korea, but unfortunately it wasn’t consistent enough to hold any official heats.

With plenty of time for rest and recovery, and the sailors on standby for most of the day, we took the opportunity to talk to the young rising star from France, Alice Arutkin (Starboard, North), about her performance here and her plans for the future. At just 18 years old, she’s suddenly found form, and will surely be a future PWA champion before long.

PWA: How does it feel to be at the pinnacle of world tour slalom right now?

Alice Arutkin: “I’m really happy to be in 1st place at the moment, and also very surprised because I didn’t get the opportunity to train that much this winter as I broke my foot. I only really got back on my slalom gear a couple of weeks ago at the IFCA Youth Championships where I also surprised myself with a win!”

PWA: What were your goals for the event?

AA: “To finish in the top 3. I really hope that I can achieve this now.”

PWA: The 1,3,2,1 on your score sheet must have given you the confidence that you can do that surely?

AA: “Well, I’m not usually very confident about my racing, especially against people like Karin Jaggi (Patrik, Severne), Sarah Hebert (Naish), Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard, Gaastra), and Morane Demont (Starboard, Severne). They’re all such good sailors, but like I said, hopefully I’ll be able to stay in the top 3.”

PWA: What gear were you using in the races yesterday?

AA: “In the first few races I was on my North F10 9.0m and my Starboard Isonic 111, and then for the last race when it was a bit windier I changed down to my 8.0m and 101. That probably sounds like big gear, but I have to feel fully powered up when I’m racing, otherwise I’m not very comfortable.”

PWA: Will you be training hard back at home in France before Costa Brava?

AA: “No. I wish I could, but I have to go back to school and finish my exams, so I wont have any time on the water between the end of this event and going to Spain.”

PWA: Will you be competing on the wave tour again this year?

AA: “Yes, for sure. I really enjoy wave sailing and love going to the events because there’s no pressure on me to perform, which means I can learn more and have fun with inspirational people. It’ll be really tough for me to break into the top 5 there, but I’ll try my best.”

PWA: After finishing your exams, will you concentrate on windsurfing for the next few years or will you be heading off to university?

AA: “I would really like to carry on competing on the world tour, but I also want to go to university, so I’ll try to combine the two from September onwards.”

Looking Ahead

The forecast for tomorrow looks promising so we should see some more of Alice and the rest of the competitors on the water in the very near future.

Stay In The Groove

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Or for more information, please contact the PWA office via [email protected]

PWA / Paul Griffiths