Teen Riders Represent F-One in GWA World Tour Stops

Two of F-One's youngest riders made an impressive showing at a recent GWA Wing Foil Events in Dakhla, Morocco and Ibiraquera, Brazil. Leon Schiel from the UK is only 14 but placed 3rd in the Wave category in Dakhla, and 17-year-old Liam Coralle advanced to the quarterfinals in his first-ever GWA event.

Dakhla sits at the edge of the Sahara Desert and has a shallow, flatwater lagoon. The side-offshore wind is just right with consistent speeds of 20 to 30 knots. Air temps in the fall rise to around 75F/24C, with the water about 68F/20C. But it wasn't all about the waves and water. The competitors also got a chance to explore the desert using the local mode of transportation.

Leon Schiel got his start surfing, where he learned to read the waves. Pretty soon he was windsurfing and windsurf-foiling, and by the time he was 11 he discovered his discipline with wing foiling and spends every moment he can in the water. He was selected to join the F-One team after attending the F-One Next Generation wing foil camp and began to compete in the GWA Youth World Cup.

Leon was the youngest competitor but rode with a maturity beyond his age. He lost to Otis Buckingham in the semi-final, but in the mini-final he got a big waves score early on to beat out Brazil's Martins and take 3rd in the Wave category.

Liam Coralle is from Maui, so it was only natural for him to head into the water. He began his wingfoil career in 2020 when he was only 13 and began shredding right away.

Although this was Liam's first GWA event, he made a remarkable showing, defeating Malo Guenole from France to advance to the quarterfinals. There his impressive run barely ended, just .05 points behind Otis Buckingham.

Ibiraquera has some amazing and unique conditions. There's a sandy beach break that behaves like a point break and an island that shapes the seabed. These set up incredible waves that break about 650 feet/200 meters offshore. This provides big faces of 3-8 feet/1-2.5 meters. The bottom is sandy and free of obstacles. Temps are perfect for just a shorty or boardshorts, and the October winds are usually 22-25 knots. Both teens advanced to Round 3 in Ibiraquera.

Leon and Liam both share a love of F-One's Strike wing and Rocket Wing and Rocket Wing-S Carbon boards. This setup served them well in the competition.

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