Five riders made X-15 history in Ibiza on Sunday, becoming the class’s first world champions as late-afternoon racing brought the inaugural championship to a close.
Poland’s Kamil Manowiecki and Germany’s Jette Koep claimed the senior men’s and women’s titles. They were joined by Holland Vierling of the USA in the Under-19 men, China’s Yana Li in the Under-19 women and Brazil’s Benjamin Almeida in the Under-15 division.
Conditions prevented further racing for the senior fleets, leaving their opening-day results to decide the medals. For the juniors, the arrival of breeze late in the afternoon provided a final opportunity to compete, with the Under-19 and Under-15s taking to the race course.
Manowiecki secured the men’s world title ahead of France’s Romain Ghio and American Kai Mirel, preserving the podium positions established on the opening day.
“I’m really happy to achieve my goal, to win the world title,” said Manowiecki. “It’s a big step for me.”
With limited opportunities to race, the Polish rider said maintaining focus throughout the week had been essential. Drawing on his racing experience, he approached the championship with a determination to “find peace in chaos” and remain ready whenever the opportunity came.
Koep’s two opening-day victories secured the women’s title, with Poland’s Pola Wawrzyniak taking silver and compatriot Marcelina Korszon completing the podium.
“I think I’m pretty overwhelmed,” said Koep. “I haven’t really realised that I’m world champion already.”
For Koep, the championship was also an early step in understanding a new racing class, with riders still learning how to get the most from their equipment. Looking ahead, she concluded, “I look forward to the next one and to have more and more girls competing and on the starting line.”
In the Under-19 men, Vierling completed an unbeaten series, adding three victories on Sunday to his opening-day win. France’s Baptiste Loire finished second after placing runner-up in all three races, while Poland’s Antoni Lutomski retained third overall.
The result marked a significant breakthrough for Vierling, who was competing at his first international event.
“For me, this is my first international event, so to perform at this level is awesome,” he said. “It feels really great.”
“It was a long regatta with not a lot of races, but I think the race committee did a great job of trying to get us out there and get us races.”
The Under-19 women produced the biggest change at the top of the standings. Li entered the final day carrying a black-flag disqualification from the opening race, but won both remaining races to claim the world title. She finished ahead of France’s Anae Rio and Norway’s Ane Fiskvik Mjoen.
“I was really relieved that we had more races, because we only had one race this whole regatta,” said Li. “Having two more races was really nice.”
Competing in her first X-15 event, Li was delighted to leave Ibiza with a place in the class’s history, “I’m really happy to take this title, and it’s definitely one for the books.”
Almeida converted his opening-day Under-15 lead into the world title with two more victories on Sunday. Three wins from the first three races gave the Brazilian a perfect platform, with his eighth place in the final race discarded.
“I’m really happy and excited to have won this,” commented Almeida.
Behind him, American Harrison Doyle climbed from fourth in the opening-day standings to claim silver, winning the final race. Poland’s Kacper Hryniewicz took bronze, finishing level with Doyle on six points.
Alongside the five world titles, the week brought together a new international racing community, with experienced sailors and young wingfoilers sharing both the racecourse and their knowledge of the equipment.
For Vierling, that willingness to help one another was one of the defining features of the championship.
“Everyone’s talking to each other, interacting,” he said. “The cool thing about the X-15 is they’re sharing measurements so that you can figure out how to make the foil go faster.”
X-15 attention now turns to the X-15 Asian Cup this December out of Amara Watersports Club in Thailand, before an exciting calendar of events kicks off in January 2027.
