Jacopo has just come off his first win of the season on the EFPT tour with their first event in Cape town. Let’s catch up with him and see how he feels at the start of the season.
Hi Jacopo, you just did your first event of the year at the EFPT in Cape town. You managed to win the event. How was the event for you and how does it feel to start of the year with a win?
Jacopo: Great start, happy about the result! At the the lake conditions where excellent, 30 knots more or less, it offers a perfect playground for a big variety of moves. I mange to take the win of the single elimination by being consistent in all my heats with solid moves.
We run the double in Paternoster, conditions were on the edge but the action was sick for the light wind. Riders were using the wave in switch stance to get crazy speed for their power moves.
Cause I was standing in fist place was a long day of waiting for me and when I enter the water for the final the wind dropped and shifted more side off, tried to run it twice but with no chance to fill all the score so the result for me stayed the same of the lake.
From this event I understood that I have to work harder on the water, the level of everybody once again rised. Expectially Lennart and Niclas performed some combos that usually we do during training or see in videos
Winning the single elimination and waiting for your turn to defend the top spot at the very end of the double can be mentally challenging. How do you handle this kind of pressure in competition?
Jacopo: For sure there is a bit of pressure, let’s say that the riders I will face has nothing to loose compare to me. If I loose twice than I become second but im sure that if I took the victory of the single im able to defend it also during the double.
Normally I study the conditions, the moves of the riders competing and I get a warm up on the water to see the conditions and try to respect the list of moves I have or see if is needed an adjustment regarding the level of the opponement or the conditions.
During this double elimination the wind died just before the final.
We saw some pictures of you, where you suffered a wound and were bleeding during the heat. What happened?
Jacopo: Yes, at the lake on starboard tack the wind angle allowed the board to go super fast and there are always some extra gusts coming. I came in full speed, the plan was to go for a Spock combination but during the Spock I rail catch the water and the mast hit my head and face.
Short black out, Felix my opponent is capable to do big heats so without losing any time I jumped back on the board to continue the heat. I was feeling the whole face and head very worm, pulsing and after a couple of second started to see something in front of the left eye disturbing the view, thought that a piece of skin was flying. But no, was just blood coming out from a cut in the head.
Adam Sims and the others took good care of me with a bandage around to be able to continue, at night got three stitches.
You were using the brand new 2024 SLASH sail for the first time in competition. What was your feeling of the new sails and what do you specifically like about them?
Jacopo: I mainly competed with the 2023 sails, used the 2024 4.8 only during the two finals canceled of the double elimination.
I already sailed the new 4.8 during trainings and felt amazing. More stiffness, power which makes the moves higher and early planning improved as well.
What are for you the most important things you are looking for in a good Freestyle sail?
Power, stiffness, fast in terms of speed while planning, maneuverability I mean that as to be effortless during quick movement.
After finishing the 2022 season on a career high with a 2nd place on the PWA Freestyle rankings and winning the EFPT tour, the 2023 season didn’t go quite your way, finishing 5th in PWA. What are your goals for this season?
Jacopo: We´ll see, I’m training and aiming to improve skills and results.
Thank you Jacopo for taking the time and we wish you best of luck for the season!
