You are still the reigning Slalom World Champion – after over a year without PWA World Cup Races. In what way could you sample the pleasure of the world title unexpectedly long?

Yes, for sure it is a pleasure to have the title for 2 years. Even if it is not 2 true titles, I am still the reigning World Champion and that is good. But that was not my plan, last year I trained really hard since the beginning of the year. Then we were working hard on the equipment and I was fully ready when in March everything stopped and the whole situation changed. During the year, I was checking a lot and hoping a lot for the return of normal in the world. So, I tried to stay fit and ready in case we race. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen, but I will be ready for this year.

When you think of the final heat at Noumea, how would you describe your emotions during the race? And on the finish line?

The last race was a great moment. The most important thing was to qualify for the final, because after the long week of racing we’d had, this was not so easy. Often at the end of the day the conditions were becoming more difficult and gustier with the sun fully in your face. When I managed to get my spot for the final, I planned to repeat my race strategy from the whole week, starting in the middle of the line without taking too much risk. I knew that I was fast. Just before the first jibe I saw that I was arriving at the same time as Matteo. I also knew that he had to be in front of me for 3rd place. We touched each other at the first mark. There I managed to start planing earlier and from this moment I just concentrated on myself, trying to avoid the other guys and sailing as simple as possible to finish in front of him.

For sure the moment I crossed the finish line I will remember for the rest of my life. I guess I started crying on the middle of last reach after I finished my jibe. And from there I just shot down to the line! When I passed the finish, it was really special - I had so many different emotions. I cannot really describe it, but it will stay in my mind forever.

What has changed in your life since that moment in November 2019, when made your dream come true?

Actually, there is not so much which has changed. First of all, I would say that personally I achieve one of my biggest dream. It was a life goal so now I am more relaxed! I am also really happy to offer this title to all the people who support me, to my whole family, my wife, all my partners and the others. In the windsurf world and in general, now there are more people who recognize me, who come to me for a photo or just to discuss, this is really nice! But there is also more attention coming from outside the windsurfing world since more people know me now and that is pretty cool.

What experience was it for you to have no World Cup events on the schedule? Which promotions or projects did you pursue during this “additional” time?

It is true that it was pretty special to have a year without competition. Normally the summer is a really important time for us as we have one of our biggest events in Fuerteventura - together with some other events of course. You really need to sail, be prepared, stay focus because it is an important part of the year. At the end, we were lucky to have a foil event in Switzerland, which was a World Championship. I was really happy to be back in competition mode, to train and prepare to this event. 3 weeks before I was back on track, finding back my routine, training and working on the equipment to be ready, it was just nice to participate in an event. At the same time, it was cool to spend a part of the summer at home because it is the nicest time of the year. I enjoyed more time with my family and we also launched our center with my sister Marion, Mortefon Watersports. It took us a while, but it was the best timing and the best option to save the summer and the year.

Are there any new activities, places or passions you have discovered?

Yes, for sure I discovered some news activities. The main one was being a father, playing with my son. We had some good time together with my wife. At least it was cool to be home for such a long time compared to normally.

How much do you miss competing at PWA world cups and how do you deal with the uncertainty about when your defeat of the title can be continued?

For sure I was missing the competition, being on the tour for more than 10 years now. It is my rhythm and my routine to always travel and be on the road. But then it was the first time I could spend my birthday at home and share this moment with my family - and that was cool. On the other hand, it was not easy to deal with the events, which were postponed and finally cancelled. Then I did not know if I will fight for the title or not. And at the middle of year, when we learnt that maybe the last event will happen, it was stressful to get back on track and ready. Of course, you do not want to train for ‘nothing’ so that was definitely not an easy time.

How do you keep yourself in shape, motivated and ready, when the World Cup will continue?

I just kept on training all the year even during the lockdown I was in close contact with my coach, we kept working. And I also sailed a lot, with new project like long distance sailing crossing from France to Spain. That was pretty cool to keep on going and try to stay fit for the next event, the next season that we will normally start in April.

You were training on Tenerife for three weeks. How do you perceive the different atmosphere with the whole racing elite chasing you?

I had some fun and I produced lot of content on Guadeloupe. Afterwards it was perfect to come back to Tenerife for training. With TWS it is the perfect set up there, we had 15 races a day and straight from the first start I had some guys in my back pushing. But it’s pretty cool since after one year without competition we all need reference, and we all want to see if we lose or not. Even for me this is super important! I could find my rhythm and now I have just returned from a training camp with the French slalom team in the South of France. Lots of training and motivation - I was missing it! After the hard 2020 it was the perfect start, and I cannot wait to compete again.

Together with your teammates from Duotone like Jordy Vonk you are known as the WarpBoyZ. How do you support each other and how do you benefit from Duotone’s Chief tester Marco Lang being with you?

We are spending lot of time together around the World - in Tenerife or even here in the South of France working on the gear. With Jordy, Marco and all the rest we can share and while sailing they are pushing even more than the others because we want to progress. With Marco for example, we always share the good points and the bad points, what we like and don’t like, and this is perfect to do it in race conditions. We are a great team with Marco, Jordy and Vincent. This summarizes the Warp Boyz.  

Is the new Warp_Fin 20.21 the racing machine you need to collect further PWA titles? In what way did you adapt your set up to the new rules with slalom fin and foiling in one competition?

I think the Warp is the best weapon to keep the title. That was the deal with the Team. I won the title and one month after we were working on the new sail. I think the new one is fitting pretty well with the new World Cup system and it will be good.

Even, if it is difficult to say, what are your goals and plans for the upcoming season?

The plan is easy, be back on tour and fight for the title.

Where do you want to be in 5 years?

So, in 5 years, my plan is to be able to continue what I am doing now and do what I love the most. If I could share it a bit more with my family that would be nice, but my plan is to keep working on this. 

You are well prepared for a second career with a Master of Economy degree. What is your dream job after your career as a professional windsurfer?

Yes, it’s great to have this business degree and I hope it will help me in the future. But honestly, I don’t really know what I want to do. Keep working in the windsurf industry could be nice.

Any further motto or statement you want to share with us?

Never forget to keep an eye on the prize.

Picture Credits: Robin Christol, Carter / PWA