Mia Ashkenazi Wins Bronze at Sardinia Grand Slam
Translated & summarized from N12 by baba
Israeli kite foil surfer Mia Ashkenazi won a bronze medal at the Sardinia Grand Slam in Italy. This is her first senior career medal and was achieved in challenging windy conditions. She secured her spot in the final by winning her semi-final race and battled for second place in the final race. The men's competition saw Zohar Haruvi finish in seventh place overall.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Mia Ashkenazi won a bronze medal at the Sardinia Grand Slam in Italy.
- This is the first senior career medal for kite foil surfer Mia Ashkenazi.
- Strong winds of 17 to 25 knots characterized the competition.
- Lauriane Nolot won the gold medal, and Lisa Quell took silver.
- Zohar Haruvi finished in seventh place in the men's competition.
- The event serves as a qualifier for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
Israeli kite foil surfer Mia Ashkenazi secured a bronze medal at the Sardinia Grand Slam competition in Italy on Sunday. This marks Ashkenazi's first medal in a senior competition, achieved amidst strong winds of 17 to 25 knots, which made every maneuver critical. In the semi-finals, Ashkenazi faced off against Lily Young, the 2023 World Championships bronze medalist, and Elena Langwiler, whom she had previously beaten in the preliminaries. Ashkenazi won the semi-final race, advancing to the final.
In the final race, Ashkenazi competed against French surfers Lauriane Nolot, the former world champion and Olympic silver medalist, and Lisa Quell. Both Nolot and Quell had advanced directly to the final based on their strong preliminary performances, each earning a bonus win. Ashkenazi continued her strong showing, battling Quell for second place throughout the race. Although Ashkenazi finished ahead of Quell in the final race, Quell secured the silver medal due to her bonus win from the preliminaries, while Ashkenazi claimed the bronze.
In the men's competition, Zohar Haruvi finished the preliminaries in ninth place, qualifying for the quarterfinals. Despite a fall during his quarterfinal race, Haruvi recovered and won, advancing to the semi-finals. He ultimately finished fifth in his semi-final, securing seventh place overall in the competition. Riccardo Pianosi of Italy, the 2025 World Champion, won the men's event. Dor Zarka finished 11th and Carmel Avishar placed 13th.
The medal comes five months after Ashkenazi's 14th-place finish at the World Championships in Portugal and approximately three months before the 2027 World Championships in Brazil, where the first Olympic qualification spots for the Los Angeles 2028 Games will be awarded. Notably, Israeli representatives have not participated in European Championships in this discipline for the past two years due to security considerations.
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