MEDIA RELEASE CHAMPIONS CROWNED IN FIRST NATIONAL KITEBOARDING SERIES
Monday 22 February, 2016; GOLD COAST, QLD: The Classic Holidays National Kiteboarding League (NKL) Grand Final came to a close on the Gold Coast yesterday following 4-days of kiteboarding action at The Spit, Main Beach. Favourable weather conditions saw the best of the best from Australia and New Zealand battle it out for the title of top male and female in both the Freestyle and Wave categories. At the close of competition, the Grand Finals winners were:
Wave
Men's 1st: Billy Hampton (WA) Women's 1st: Michel Blinkhorn (QLD)
Freestyle
Men's 1st: Ewan Jaspan (VIC) Women's 1st: Katie Potter (VIC)
The halftime interval display included some huge airs in the Cabrinha FX Big Air competition. The NKL Cabrinha FX Big Air Wave champion was James Carew (VIC) and the Big Air Freestyle title was taken out by an impressive Marc Jacobs (NZ).
Katie Potter, winner of the Female Freestyle category said it was great to see the sport build momentum. “There were some tough conditions out there but it was really nice to ride with all the girls and it was a really fun competition,” Ms Potter said. “It’s nice to have people that make the effort to make these events happen all around the country and to bring it together into a Grand Final at the end.” Chief Commercial Officer of Classic Holidays, Mark Stephenson said they were proud to come on board and support the new national series. “Kiteboarding is a fantastic sport, it’s exciting to watch and we want it to grow,” said Mr Stephenson. “As one of the Gold Coast’s largest employers, we think the event is great for the area by securing the Grand Final for the first three years. It also gives us the opportunity to promote active, healthy lifestyles to our members and the wider public.” A three year naming rights deal will see Classic Holidays as the major sponsor of the event continuing over the next two summers in 2016/17 and 2017/18. The Classic Holidays NKL is proudly presented by Classic Holidays and Kiteboarding Australia, and supported by Ozone, Cabrinha, Mystic, Axis, North, BWSurf, F-One and official timing partner, Bausele.
For more details on the Classic Holidays NKL, visit www.nklseries.com
L to R. Waves: Michel Blinkhorn Qld / Billy Hampton WA Freestylers: Katie Potter Vic and Ewan Jaspan Vic
2nd placegetters: Wave; Michelle Malmedal NSW / James Carew NSW and Freestyle: Sammy Pearce Qld and Marc Jacobs NZ
3rd: Jacqui Hockaday SA / Beau Pilgrim NSW and Freestyle: Marine Sudre NSW and Elliot Drury NSW
