2020 was a special year for kitesurfing in Egypt as the Egyptian Sailing & Waterski Federation (ESWF), the governing body for kitesurfing in Egypt recognized by and affiliated with World Sailing (WS) and the Global Kitesports Association (GKA), started preparing for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

After the great success of the First Egyptian Kitesurfing National Competition that took place in April 2019 at Makani Beach Club in El Gouna, the ESWF started 2020 by planning a GKA international judges’ course to attract local talent and put them on the right track to become international judges and to support local kitesurfing events in Egypt. In addition to that and to make this year different from the rest, the ESWF approved a local freestyle kite tour consisting of three stops in different locations in Egypt: El Gouna in April, Ras Sedr in August, and Hamata in October. The tour is offering a large cash prize and is under the spotlight of both local and international media promoting the tour for international exposure.

The ESWF is also working together with the Egyptian Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Egyptian Olympic Committee on creating and supporting an Egyptian national kite racing team for the 2022 Youth Olympics in Senegal and the 2024 Olympics in Paris starting with the Kite Racing National Competition.

The first quarter of 2020 was very exciting for all of the riders training and pushing their limits for the National Tour, changing their game plans and technique to align with the GKA international event setup and judging criteria.

In early April, the Egyptian government halted all sports activities, which has led to the temporary closure of all kitesurfing stations and the postponement of the ESWF events. With kitesurfing stations closed, the national team as well as other kitesurfers can no longer train at the facilities and have instead been focusing on physical fitness, working out either indoors or outdoors where permitted to do so.

Compared to other types of sports, kitesurfing is largely an individual sport, with athletes competing in the vast open sea. Kitesurfers do not come in contact in the water or share the same equipment. Kitesurfing officials have been working during this time to ensure that competitors are able to continue training while remaining healthy and safe.

Amr Abou El-Saoud, ESWF chairman, has stated that at the last ESWF board meeting held in April via video conference the board agreed to work with both the Egyptian Olympic Committee and the Ministry of Youth and Sports to determine the possibility of partially reopening the private kitesurfing stations for athletes to begin training again while following health guidelines. Although the decision of the shutdown was issued by the Egyptian cabinet, the ESWF will be working with its government partners to set the guidelines for reopening.

Christopher Lambrecht, owner of Makani Beach Club, the local kite club in El Gouna, has stated, “It was a pleasure to host the 2019 Nationals at Makani Beach Club, and we are very happy with the kitesurfing scene and how it’s evolving into a viral sport. We hope that everyone is staying safe and soon enough we will be open for kitesurfers to start training again. We hope to host the Egyptian Kite Tour once again in 2020.”

Karim Soliman, ESWF executive board member, has said, “Kitesurfing is the evolution of all watersports. The number of kitesurfers are dramatically increasing on a yearly basis, and we already have local riders that are competing internationally in the world tour and hold top ranks in the junior category. We hope as a federation to set the right platform for the sport here in Egypt. Our main focus in the coming period after the Covid-19 pandemic is to enhance our local judges’ level and put them on the international track and also to promote our National Kitesurfing Tour to showcase our kitesurfing locations internationally. We are also focusing on supporting our national team for international participation in both freestyle and racing categories.”