RS:X Windsurfing Worlds - Olympic Qualifier

There's a good report on the Windsurfing Magazine website about the RS:X World Championships in Takapuna, New Zealand. RS:X is the model of windsurfer used for Olympic competition, and this regatta was the final shakedown for RS:X riders before the actual games. It was particularly intense for the American women; Nancy Rios, Farrah Hall, and Denise Parris, because unless one of them scored big in Takapuna, the US wouldn't qualify to send a woman to the games.



Fortunately, both Nancy and Farrah sailed well and made the cut. Nice going, ladies. The overall women's winner was the incredible Italian Alessandra Sensini, shown below getting air.



The men's winner was Tom Ashley from New Zealand. The only difference between the men's RS:X and the women's RS:X is that men use 9.5 meter squared sails, which are usually yellow, and women use 8.5 meter squared sails, which are usually red.