WINDSURF MAGAZINE: NEWS BULLETINWINDSURF MAGAZINE: NEWS BULLETINTRANSFER WINDOWAs we roll into February the tour season is closing in fast and the heat is on to get all those deals signed. There have been a few late transfers updates in the market going down.Gran Canaria high-flyer, Alessio Stillrich is back on the water after his devasting ankle injury last season. Formerly with Simmer, Alessio has shifted his allegiance over to Bruch boards and sails for the 2025 season. Alessio announced I am super excited and thankful for this new chapter! From the very first moment I started talking with Dany, I could feel his passion for the brand and his motivation to have me on the team. I am sure this will be the perfect fitand my favourite option! Ive already tested the gear, and it felt like home immediately. I cant wait to start working closely with everyone involved and to create amazing things together, while hopefully helping the brand grow even more than it already has. Lets get started!On the race scene, we have seen the 2023 Youth Fin & Foil Slalom Champion; John Soukas, leave RRD in favour of Challenger sails. John commented I am incredibly excited to announce that Im going to be a part of the CHS windsurfing family for the next two seasons! Its such an amazing opportunity to join a brand thats all about innovation and performance. I cant wait to get out on the water, test out the gear, and push my limits with the support of such an awesome team. As they say, Dont limit your challenges, always challenge your limits.Cyril Evrard from Belgium also joins Challenger Sails for 2025. Cyril told the press: I really happy to be sailing for Challengers sails for the upcoming season , the sails are just amazing and I feel that I will be in better position and battling in front ! The spirit of Claudio and the CHS Family is exactly what I was looking to help me to grown and push to achieve my goal. Now it is time to go to full on training mode and be ready for Guadeloupe!Another young gun switching brands was the 2024IFCA Slalom Europeans Fin Slalom U21 Youth Men winner, Sacha Fortune who joined the Duotone Team!Sacha had this to say I am so happy to join such an exceptional team like Duotone! It is like a childhood dream come true! The gear is so fast and easy to use, I was surprised by its effectiveness during my first sessions. Everything is designed so that the gear performs well right out of the box, with plenty of markers that help you enjoy the ride from the very first use. I have literally fallen in love with my new gear, and I cant wait to show what its worth both on fin and foil! A huge thank to the Duotone team for their trust and warm welcome!CONTEST NEWSIWT / PWA MARGARET RIVER WAVE CLASSICJulian Salmonn kicked off his journey with Naish Sails in style with a second place at the Margaret River Classic with 5 times PWA world champion, Philip Kster kicking off the season with the victory.Philip stated, The first event of the year couldnt have started better for me. To have the Margaret River event as a 4 star was a great addition to the tour and we scored some amazing conditions. The level of the locals and pros has been as good as it gets, and every heat felt tricky. I am stoked to win this event; it has definitely been a huge challenge, and I cant wait to be back next year!.Jaeger Stone failed to make the final after losing narrowly to Aussie local Peter Kenyen from Geraldton, who landed a big aerial close to the end of a difficult heat. It sounds like the conditions were extremely tricky, thus a few upsets were on the cards!!Over in the womens division there was a surprise result, when local ripper Jane Seman came second to newcomer Maria Shalin.We asked Maria to tell us about here background and her roller coaster ride into the competition scene in Australia.MARIA SCHLINI used to work as an engineer in research and development, focusing on new processes and materials, while windsurfing was my full-on passion on the side. Last autumn, I made the big call to pause my career and fully dedicate myself to windsurfing. To chase my wave dreams (and dream waves!), my partner and I decided to sacrifice the European winter we are dedicated freeride skiers and mountain lovers and head to Western Australia.After a four-week stopover in Mauritius with some awesome down-the-line conditions, we converted a van into a camper to properly explore the WA coastline. Its my first time Down Under, and it has been fantastic! So far, weve been rewarded with solid training conditions and some amazing encounters. Originally, the Margaret River Wave Classic was announced as a 3-star event, which sounded like a great opportunity to dip my toes into competition.Later, it got upgraded to a four-star event. But I thought, why not give it a go anyway?We arrived in Margaret River about ten days before the contest, but a cyclone offshore disrupted the typical wind patterns. I managed to get in around six sessions at Main Break, and each one felt completely different because the weather system was still settling. During my first sessions, the waves were massive by my standards some set waves were up to double mast high and the wind was super light, making it extra tricky. Those were some seriously demanding days. But knowing I had to perform in all sorts of conditions during the contest really pushed me to expand my limits. Margaret River is definitely a challenging spot when you first sail there!Surprisingly, the contest conditions were the most manageable I had experienced since arriving. The waves were considered as small (which is about mast high), but we had float-and-ride conditions, with side-onshore wind during the womens heats. I actually felt quite comfortable at least I didnt have to worry about dodging giants eventually breaking on top of your head! That being said, it was still tricky. Positioning at the peak was key to catching waves. But with the onshore wind, there was barely any wind in front of the wave. Oh, and we even had a shark alarm during the heat! But the Aussies didnt seem too fussed about thatWell, I never expected to make it to the finals; thats definitely a no! In mid-January, I had entered the Wave Rally in Geraldton my first-ever windsurfing competition! It was an incredible weekend that ended even better I actually won! Fast forward two weeks, and I was wobbling out to the peak in my first-ever proper wave heat at Margaret River.So, what did I expect? Not much! Just managing the basics was enough to keep me on my toes making sure I had the right sail size, getting to the peak on time, sorting out my heat strategy, and balancing risk versus radicalness. These were all things I had never properly thought about before! The other women in the event were all experienced competitors, so winning a World Cup event was definitely a dream one that somehow became reality way quicker than I ever imagined!In my second heat, I landed an aerial on a smaller wave, but when I checked the scores, I realised I hadnt been awarded many points for it. Meanwhile, bigger waves were scoring significantly higher, even if they werent ridden as aggressively. So, for the final, I knew what I had to do focus on hunting down the biggest sets. And that strategy paid off!Mentally, sailing against Jane Seman was a challenge. You could really feel the energy on the beach the crowd wanted to see the Aussies take the win! But you just head out and sail the best you can in the conditions you get anyways. Of course, I knew Janes name well from following competitions over the years. Sharing a heat with her was already special but actually winning was mad! She knows this spot like the back of her hand, so being able to compete with her after just a few sessions at her home spot definitely makes me proud!Aside of the comp, she was very nice and gave me tips on how to survive big days at Main Break. Her sailing inspired me to do it on my own.I saw I had won on Live Heats before the results were announced, but I told myself I wouldnt believe it until I actually heard it! When it was confirmed, I was absolutely stoked unreal! I had entered this event just to see if I could keep up with the level. And now, suddenly, I had won a four-star World Cup event at the legendary Margaret River. So cool!Well, were living super simply in a van at the moment, so when we got back, we realised we didnt even have a beer in the fridge! So, we just ate our focaccia and went to sleep after this crazy day.We had to leave Australia right after the event to renew our visas. Right now, were already in Bali, and guess what? Its windy! Were on the hunt for some side offshore waves and getting some surf sessions in. In a week, well fly back to Perth for a few more weeks of windsurfing before heading to the Canary Islands via Switzerland to train for the next WorldCupevents.JANE SEMANJane Seman worked tirelessly to help organize and run the 2025 Margaret River Wave Classic. Her dual role as both organizer and competitor is a testament to her passion and commitment to the sport.Jane said: Its definitely quite stressful to run this event and then also add in competing and helping my son compete at the same time. But we had great conditions and a really fun vibe. It is rewarding to see the stoke on everyones faces. The visiting Europeans loved the wave and the locals really loved having top world tour competitors to sail againstA big thank you must also go out to the event sponsors, including Severne Windsurfing and the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River, whose support was instrumental in elevating the competition to a 4-star event. Their contributions, along with those of other partners and volunteers, were crucial in bringing this event to fruition.TRIPS AND MEGA SESSIONSDown in Cape Town it looks like they have been scoring some firing conditions and as usual Maleen Hoekstra has been busy chasing down the best sessions and scoring some epic photos!Those turquoise waves look epic!IRELAND MISSIONJC and Timo Mullen (AKA The Motley Crew) headed over to Ireland last Monday chasing down a monster swell combined with howling SSW winds at Magheroarty.Know for their hair brained schemes, The Motley Crew managed to work out an itinerary that involved just over twenty hours of travel, for a mere four hours actually at the beach. Are they mad? Well yes probablyyou can read about this ridiculous mission sometime soon, when JC has fully recovered!Poor JC had to sleep for two hours on the concrete outside the Southampton Red Funnel Ferry Terminal from 1am 3am (The waiting room was closed!) he was not a happy bunny!COMING UP!We have lots of new and interesting features in the pipeline! There are some more Board Talks with Victor Fernandez and Marc Pare coming soon as well as a speed special with no other than Antoine Albeau and Bjorn Dunkerbeck, who tell us about the 2024 season in Lderitz! There are some big galleries coming up from some of the latest storms in the UK as well as the much-anticipated return of the Big Fifty, with some very special guests who are busy filling out their answers as we speak!ADVERTISE!We just have one or two spots left on the website for any advertisers, so make sure you contact us ASAP! Please email: jc@windsurf.co.uk for ant details on our packages!The post WINDSURF MAGAZINE: NEWS BULLETIN appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.