Day 3 of the Wingfoil Racing World CEnsisries saw spectacular conditions. The local thermal wind, the Maloja, blew up the valley from Italy right on cue averaging 14 knots with gusts of 20. It gave us fast, powered-up racing with boards coming close and spectacular splashdowns into the icy alpine lake. Once again we saw three fleets, the women’s fleet and two men’s fleets and a total of eight races per fleet.
© IWSA media/Robert Hajbuk: Francesco Cappuzzo [ITA] coming through when it matters most
There were opportunities to be grabbed early on, thanks to tricky conditions on the start line. The riders able to adapt fastest to the shifty breeze scored an early advantage. One of them was Francesco Capuzzo whose consistency and speed saw him finish top five all day including a victory in the first race “I just kept pushing and pushing today and the results show that. The gold fleet tomorrow will be good. As you know I like the gold fleet!”, said the Italian, who makes a habit of coming through when it matters most.
© IWSA media/Robert Hajduk: Personal best for Freddie Strawson [GBR]
The biggest smile of the day belonged to Briton Freddie Strawson who is achieving the best results of his career here in Silvaplana. For the first time he’s sitting in the top ten of the World Cup Series. The 28-year-old from Lincolnshire bagged two second place finishes in the early session, “I’m more confident now in using my biggest wing and, you know, it’s also in my head”, he said as he came off the water “I’m beginning to believe there’s no reason why I can’t be up there with the others.” .
© IWSA media/Robert Hajduk: Manowiecki vs Ghio in the morning session
The old rivalry will return tomorrow in gold fleet between France’s Mathis Ghio and Kamil Manowiecki of Poland. Both riders, who sit top of the standings, had good results in their respective fleets today and fans can’t wait to see them face each other in what are expected to be tricky conditions.
© IWSA media/Robert Hajduk: Marta Monge [ITA] shines on the lake
Marta Monge had a great day in the Women’s competition that saw a shuffling of the chasing pack. Five second place finishes for the Italian saw her skip into second place overall behind compatriot Maddalena Spanu.
© IWSA media/Robert Hajduk: Vaina Picot [FRA] and Chris Rashley [GBR] in St Moritz' Olympic plaque
Kristyna Chalupnikova will be ruing missed opportunities today. The Czech rider managed only two podium finishes and dropped from second to fourth on the leaderboard. The 20-year-old will desperately need to re-find the consistency she showed earlier in the competition.
© IWSA media/Robert Hajduk
The Women’s competition continues tomorrow with 6 more races planned. The pressure is on for the 20 men competing in gold fleet tomorrow – only the top nine will make it through to Saturday’s Medal Series.
Fans can follow every moment of the Ensis ENGEDINWING 2025 WingFoil Racing World Cup Switzerland in real-time, as races are tracked live, with updates and insights shared across all official IWSA channels.
