On the final day of the GWA Wingfoil World Cup in Fuerteventura, Kylie Belloeuvre captured her first FreeFly-Slalom world title. The French rider held off defending champion Nia Suardiaz of Spain in a tense Super Final at Sotavento, clinching both the event win and the championship in a single afternoon.
A duel decided by a single mistake
The championship came down to a head-to-head battle between Belloeuvre and Suardiaz. In the first race of the Super Final, Suardiaz took the early lead but crashed, allowing Belloeuvre to claim the win and level the score at one bullet each. With two bullets required for the title, everything rested on the second race.
The pair raced neck and neck across the water, trading the lead under strong trade winds. Right before the final gybe, Suardiaz went down again and Belloeuvre crossed the line alone to seal the victory.
From second in Gran Canaria to first in the world
The result marked Belloeuvre's first ever GWA event victory. It delivered a world title that had seemed unlikely when the season opened in Gran Canaria, where Suardiaz won and Belloeuvre finished second. To take the crown, she had to beat the dominant rider of the tour on the season’s final afternoon.
During the earlier elimination rounds in Fuerteventura, Suardiaz had won three of four heats, looking untouchable. The only rider to interrupt that run was Belloeuvre, who took elimination three and carried that momentum into the decisive Super Final.
A title built on persistence
The championship was described by the tour as the culmination of years of dedication and hard-fought campaigns. Belloeuvre had been a consistent presence near the podium, yet the top step had always eluded her before the waters of Sotavento delivered her breakthrough.
She leaves Fuerteventura not as a challenger, but as the rider who found one final surge when it mattered most.
