Hugo Wigglesworth has retained his Hydrofoil Big Air world title, holding off a determined German-Spanish challenge in brutal North Sea conditions at the GKA Kite World Tour's World Championship in Sylt, Germany.
The 19-year-old Aucklander entered the four-man final as defending champion, but Germany's Finn Flügel and Spain's Lorenzo Casati pushed him hard throughout, trading the lead back and forth in a contest that stayed tight to the wire.
When it counted, Wigglesworth found another gear. He landed two scores in the nines at the decisive moments to seal the win, finishing ahead of Flügel in second, Casati third, and Germany's Marten Koblischke fourth.
It's Wigglesworth's second world title in as many seasons on tour. He first made his mark last year by winning the opening Hydrofoil Big Air event in Sylt, then went on to claim his maiden world crown in Abu Dhabi during his rookie campaign.
The semi-final gave a hint of what was coming. Wigglesworth posted an outstanding 36.44 points there, riding with relentless height and clean execution to book his spot in the final four.
Casati set the early pace in the final itself, landing a string of big attempts that put pressure on the rest of the field. But nobody could find clear air. The margins between the four riders stayed tight right through to the closing stages, the lead changing hands more than once before Wigglesworth nailed the scores that mattered.
Weather played its part in Sylt too. Persistent offshore winds hampered the first two days and kept conditions marginal, before a shift on day three brought the full-power winds the event needed to get into its stride.
The Sylt event doubled as the one-off 2026 Hydrofoil Big Air World Championship and also hosted the final Kite-Surf event of the season, drawing a full international fleet to the German coast.
Attention now turns to Brazil, the final stop on the GKA Kite World Tour calendar for the season, where Wigglesworth will look to carry his form into the tour's closing chapter.
