Duotone Team Riders Boost to the Top in Red Bull King of the Air 2024

With Andrea Principi back on the water to defend his crown and the first-ever Women's Division being added to the event, the 2024 Red Bull King of the Air in Cape Town was one for the history books. A crowd of 7,000 lined the beach, with thousands more joining the livestream to watch the event unfold.

Day 1 brought light morning conditions, but that all changed in the afternoon. Epic wind ushered the competitors onto the water, where they displayed some incredible tricks. In a bid for a back-to-back win, Andrea Principi of Italy's performance was nothing short of amazing, with his first-ever competition handle pass.
"I feel good; I'm super stoked with my performance," Andrea shared. "I did all the tricks I had in my mind. The conditions were really good; I couldn't have asked for anything better. The day started slow—-I slept until 3 PM-—but then I got in the water and sent the trap!"

Another Duotone rider, Edgar Ulrich of France was also vying for the crown, but was a little disappointed in his performance for the first heat.
"I felt a little off on my first trick," Edgar admitted. "I missed the bar on my dangle pass and hit the sandbank pretty hard. It winded me, but I told myself I had to continue. I managed to get some good scores but came up one point short of first place. I'm focusing on staying positive and putting together a better performance in Round 2."

With so much to pack into a narrow window of time when conditions were good, both heats and breaks were shortened, which gave the event a sense of nonstop action and excitement. The second day of the event took advantage of the winds until it was almost too dark to see.

Edgar Ulrich's Round 2 heat went much better and he nabbed some high scores, but he was still edged out by a single point.
"I put together what in my mind was a strong heat, a lot of power and variety of tricks as the judges requested in the riders' meeting, so it was a big shock to go out in a heat I thought I had comfortably passed," he lamented.

Anrea Principi, on the other hand, dominated the sky and water with innovative tricks like a Contra Loop Back Tornado Board Off that scored 7.18, a stylish Doobie Loop Board Off earning 6.76 points and a technical Contra Loop Double Front Roll Rodeo for 6.47 points. This made him untouchable and assured that his reign as King of the Air would continue for another year.

His joy at taking home another title was clear as he said, "Winning King of the Air back-to-back feels amazing; I still can't believe it. It's been a dream come true since the day I started kiteboarding, with this event always being the ultimate goal. This year was a big fight with so many challenges along the way, so I'm beyond stoked to take the win and prove to myself that I have what it takes to stand on the top step of the most important event of the year! Once may be luck, but this feels incredible. To be honest, I'm not the real winner here - my family and my sponsors are the true champions. They make all of this possible, and I owe this victory to them."

The Women's Division was no less exciting. Duotone's Pippa van Iersel from The Netherlands won her heat on Day 1, securing a spot in the finals.
"I am super happy with the result, straight into the finals. I couldn't have asked for a better start!" Pippa said. "Those 13 minutes of competition were super intense. I gave my all and made it to the finals. The next day, the wind is nuking, we're on for the finals!"

On the second day, British kiteboarder Francesca Maini's top tricks included a Kite Loop Board Off and a big Boogieloop that was backed up with a cleanly executed Contra Loop Front Roll to take her impressive inaugural victory.

Pippa van Iersel still had a solid showing to earn 3rd place and a spot on the podium. Fellow Dutch rider Zara Hoogenraad took second.
"I feel super good standing on the podium at the first-ever women's division event," said van Iersel. "It's really amazing to have the women on the same stage as the guys. This was such an insane event! But I also want to aim even higher, so I'm going to train as hard as I can to go even further next year. Competing in front of these crowds is something I've never experienced before. I've been watching King of the Air for 10 years in a row, and now, standing here by myself, performing in front of this crowd— it's just surreal."

Cheers to the Duotone team on their wins! We know how important good gear is, but ultimately it's what the rider can do with that gear that matters.

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