3 questions to William Huppert

05/05/2023

Frenchman William Huppert joined the Phantom Foiling team in the winter and won the Prince of Speed - ISWC in La Palme in the south of France in the foil category. At the same time he became the first speed world champion in this discipline. In an interview with Windsurfjournal.com, he talks about this great achievement and the future of foiling...

Windsurfjournal.com: You have written the "young" history of foiling by becoming the first ever Speed World Champion at the Prince of Speed - ISWC. Apart from the victory, is the symbolism important to you?
William Huppert: Yes, it's true, it's a great title and a great satisfaction for me. It is symbolic because when I look at the choices I have made and the commitment I have put into this discipline, I realise that it is not insignificant. There was a lot of work and a lot of groundwork behind it! I loved windfoil from the start, I enjoyed developing and progressing with the discipline. I then made the decision to concentrate on foiling and changed my equipment partner after a very long relationship to give myself every chance of success with equipment and values that were important to me. I am proud to have won this first Speed World Champion title.

WJ: Amado Vrieswijk made life difficult for you by winning 2 of the 4 races... Were you afraid of the other competitors and how did the 4 races go overall?
WH: Amado, yes, I knew he was very fast. Last year he was one of the fastest in a straight line with Nicolas Goyard. I sail regularly with Pierre Mortefon and I knew he was also very fast, as well as Matteo Iachino. During the 4 races we had very good conditions for foiling, fortunately the wind was not too strong! This allowed us to set good clean times without too many crashes. I only crashed once, in the last heat when the wind picked up. During the one-hour heats, we did a series of runs, monitoring our speeds with the GPS, the gusts, the evolution of the water, the trajectories over the 500 metres and the opponents. I like this format, it's fun, and it's a change from the classic slalom with 4 jibes. I enjoy creating my strategies!

WJ: The practice of foiling is still very much in the news... How do you see it developing in general, on the PWA tour but also in speed like this event?
WH: Yes, foiling is a subject of debate between the fin conservatives and the flight junkies! Today, many will say that the foil does not go faster than the fin in this type of event. It's true! We are 10 knots slower! But at 38 knots with a foil it's the same feeling as at 55 knots with a fin! As far as pure speed is concerned, we are constantly improving our equipment to gain a little knot every year. If you look at 5/6 years ago, at 25 knots we were close to death! To gain 10 knots, we would need a major breakthrough in innovation. If anyone here is passionate about the project and wants to give us the means to achieve it, I am 200% for it! Generally speaking, the foil has brought more to the sport than it has disappointed. It allows us to innovate, to get more people back on the water, to be less dependent on weather conditions, to optimise our time, and it is in line with today's society. As far as PWA is concerned, the foil has a big advantage for several reasons, especially the race format, the jibes, the location of the spots, etc. Even the best PWA fin racers will tell you that it is becoming more and more inevitable that the foils will be ahead in the race.