Windsurfers Kiran Badloe and Luuc van Opzeeland failed to win a medal at the iQFoil World Championships in Aarhus, Denmark, on Friday. Badloe finished sixth, Van Opzeeland eighth.
Badloe qualified directly for the semi-final of the medal race in fourth place in the opening round. The Olympic champion from Tokyo started strongly, but chose a different course to his competitors. That backfired: he lost ground and finished fourth. Only the top two advanced to the final.
For Van Opzeeland, the tournament ended in the quarter-final. The 26-year-old windsurfer had qualified in sixth place and had a strong start. He took the lead and was on course for the next round halfway through the race. But in the final part, the wind decreased, causing him to lose speed. Three competitors passed him.
Van Opzeeland experienced a disappointing tournament. On the first day, he was hit in a collision, through no fault of his own. That blow resulted in a significant points deficit. “Sometimes you do everything right and get little in return,” he said afterwards. “But it’s part of this sport.”
Badloe and Van Opzeeland are established names in the international top of windsurfing. The thirty-year-old Badloe was previously world champion three times in the RS:X class and won Olympic gold in 2021.
Van Opzeeland finished on the podium at each of the previous four World Championships in this foil class. In 2023 he became world champion in The Hague and last summer he won bronze at the Games in Paris.
In the women’s competition, the Dutch participants did not progress beyond the opening round. Sarah Wennekes was the best Dutch participant in twentieth place.