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Kitesurfing now out of the Olympics


Hopes dashed.

Kitesurfers who have been heavily training for the olympics, and spending the hard earned on race gear now are out of the Olympics.

The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) has voted to reverse its decision to swap windsurfing for kitesurfing.

Sir Richard Branson, a long time kitesurfer, said it was a "sad day for one of the best entertainment sports in the world".

"It is a huge disappointment for all kitesurfers worldwide who have been training hard since it was announced it was going to be in the Rio Olympics.    What a shame, too, for all the windsurfers who spent the last year training to become kitesurfers."

Back in May, the ISAF talked of kitesurfing as as a "fantastic addition" to the Olympic schedule, but the pressure has been on from windsurfing federations who were grieved at being dropped, and without any real warning.

More from Olympics Australia:

The International Sailing Federation has done a complete 360 on its decision to scrap windsurfing at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

In May the ISAF council decided to ditch the discipline in favour of an edgier event- kiteboarding.


The decision was reaffirmed in a vote on Friday when the ISAF decided not to revisit the controversy. But by Saturday the ruling was overturned once and for all.


The ISAF General Assembly voted in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland in favour of reinstating windsurfing by a slim 51.6 per cent margin.


This means that windsurfing will be contested at its ninth straight summer Games for men, and sixth straight Games for women in 2016.


Australia has a formidable history in the event through Jessica Crisp who has competed in windsurfing at every Olympic Games since Sydney 2000. Crisp, who was 43 in London, also competed at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics as a 14-year-old when windsurfing was a demonstration event.