Santa Pola, Alicante, Spain — The European SUP League officially opened its 2026 season with the World SUP Festival in Santa Pola, confirming its status as one of the leading international Stand Up Paddle (SUP) events.
More than 200 athletes from 22 countries competed in this year’s edition, which combined elite-level racing, challenging weather conditions, and strong organisational execution.
Extreme Weather Tests Organisation and Safety
The event faced difficult conditions from the outset. Winds intensified throughout the week, peaking on Thursday with gusts of nearly 40 knots, creating significant logistical challenges and delaying parts of the setup.
Despite this, organisers successfully delivered the full competition schedule. Careful coordination with safety teams, local authorities, and partner organisations ensured that high standards were maintained throughout the event.
Elite SUP Racing Across Multiple Disciplines
Friday’s programme began with a demanding sprint race, where strong winds created a fast-paced and unpredictable competition.
The action continued with a 10-kilometre Downwind Foil race. With winds of around 25 knots and waves up to 1.5 metres, the conditions provided an ideal but technically challenging environment for competitors.
On Saturday, athletes competed in the 5.5-kilometre middle-distance race, open to both Open and U16 categories, as well as SUP Foil and prone disciplines.
Later in the day, attention turned to the festival’s main event — the 15-kilometre long-distance race around Tabarca Island. With moderate winds and a ground swell, the race delivered both scenic appeal and high-level competition.
A GPS tracking system allowed real-time monitoring of athletes, enabling rapid response to incidents through SOS alerts. Rescue teams, support boats, and the Red Cross were on hand to ensure safety throughout.
Sunday concluded the event with a technical race. Increasing easterly winds of 12–13 knots created a complex course, leading to frequent position changes, falls, and intense racing.
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Community, Culture, and Inclusive Sport
Beyond competition, the World SUP Festival highlighted strong community engagement. Activities included children’s races, free yoga sessions, beginner SUP lessons, and inclusive paddle experiences designed to make the sport accessible to all.
The Feria Marinera, organised by the Santa Pola Traders’ Association, added a cultural dimension with exhibitions, live performances, and local business participation, creating a vibrant festival atmosphere.
The Parade of Nations brought athletes together with local children carrying national flags, celebrating the international spirit of the event.
Business and Networking Opportunities
The festival also served as a platform for networking and business development. Sponsors such as Convotis Iberia hosted VIP experiences, allowing guests to watch the long-distance race from the water before attending networking sessions.
The Fundación del Deporte Ilicitano organised a business breakfast that brought together representatives from the sports and corporate sectors, strengthening connections between institutions and industry.
We at the Stand Up Magazin are happy to see that the organizers continue to include SUP Foiling into the event. It brings more people into the community and as we can see in the results some accomplished SUP Athletes are also talented foilers. As it appears Shrimpy Araki just won his first European SUP Foil Race amongst all the other diciplines.
Foil Race
- SHURI ARAKI (JPN)
- SERGIO CANTORAL QUIRANT (ESP)
- LUKAS SCHULER (GER)
- BORIS JINVRESSE (FRA)
- TIAGO CAMPOS (PRT)
- BERNAT CASTELL POLO (ESP)
- FRED BONNEF (FRA)
- TOMMASO PAMPINELLA (ITA)
- SANTIAGO CERDA TOFE (ESP)
- RUBEN SALVADOR MORTE (ESP)
- DORÉ DE MORSIER (SUI)
- Holly Pye (UK)
Men Longdistance (Top 20 of 69)
Shuri “Shrimpy” Araki dominated the longdistance race with over a minute ahead of Donato Freens. Donato had a strong race himself as the gaps behind him are getting bigger and bigger.
| Rank | Name | Nat. | Cat. | Time |
| 1 | ARAKI SHURI | JPN | OPEN | 1:23:20 |
| 2 | FREENS DONATO | DEN | OPEN | 1:24:46 |
| 3 | MORILLO ANTONIO | ESP | OPEN | 1:26:22 |
| 4 | SÁNCHEZ QUETGLAS AARÓN | ESP | OPEN | 1:27:05 |
| 5 | PÉREZ SERRA FERNANDO | ESP | OPEN | 1:27:23 |
| 6 | PEROTI LLUIS | ESP | OPEN | 1:27:23 |
| 7 | BRY ELIOTT | FRA | U18 | 1:29:06 |
| 8 | RICCO NICOLÒ VINCENZO | ITA | OPEN | 1:29:29 |
| 9 | CANTORAL QUIRANT SERGIO | ESP | OPEN | 1:29:46 |
| 10 | LOUKA BRARD | FRA | OPEN | 1:30:10 |
| 11 | MERCURIALI FILIPPO | ITA | OPEN | 1:30:24 |
| 12 | RAMOS ARON | PRT | U18 | 1:31:58 |
| 13 | VIEIRA FREITAS PAULO MIGUEL | PRT | OPEN | 1:32:32 |
| 14 | JINVRESSE BORIS | FRA | OPEN | 1:32:41 |
| 15 | DE FRUTOS RUIZ IVÁN | ESP | OPEN | 1:32:46 |
| 16 | DUSCHNEIT VINCE | GER | OPEN | 1:33:52 |
| 17 | PERNISCO MATTEO | ITA | U18 | 1:34:26 |
| 18 | MAJDAN MIKOLAJ | POL | OPEN | 1:35:41 |
| 19 | MARTÍNEZ DURÁ ISAAC | ESP | OPEN | 1:35:52 |
| 20 | RAMOS RUI | PRT | M40+ | 1:35:59 |
Women Longdistance (Top 10 of 24)
Esparanza Barerras opened up her season with a victory but was closely followed by Alba Frey who came in second with only 5 seconds behind. Note worthy is also Anna Tschirkys 8th place coming back from multiple years of absence. We do miss some notable names on this list such as Marie Carmen Rivera, Duna Gordillo or Csillag Kocsis just to name a few.
| Rank | Name | Nat. | Cat. | Time |
| 1 | BARRERAS ESPE | ESP | F40+ | 1:34:59 |
| 2 | ALONSO FREY ALBA | ESP | OPEN | 1:37:04 |
| 3 | TONCELLI BIANCA | ITA | U18 | 1:39:51 |
| 4 | SABATO SVEVA | ITA | U18 | 1:40:18 |
| 5 | PARICIO GODIAN LAURA | ESP | OPEN | 1:40:55 |
| 6 | SOTO SÁNCHEZ ALEXIA | ESP | OPEN | 1:41:31 |
| 7 | CHIQUERO GARCÍA NURIA | ESP | U18 | 1:41:46 |
| 8 | TSCHIRKY ANNA | SUI | OPEN | 1:42:22 |
| 9 | CAIMARI POL SONIA | ESP | OPEN | 1:42:26 |
| 10 | PAGE ANNABEL | UK | OPEN | 1:43:08 |
Tech. Finals
Shrimpy also won the Tech. Races making him the winner of 3 out of 4 races. On the women side, Alba Frey was faster than Esperanza Barreras trading places from the Longdistance.
Men
- Shuri Araki – JPN
- Sergio Cantoral – ESP
- Fernando Perez – ESP
- Antonio Morillo – ESP
- Nicolo Vincenzo – ITA
- Aaron Sanchez – ESP
- Luis Peroti – ESP
- Donato Freens – NL
- Isaac Martinez – ESP
- Mattoe Pernisco – ITA
- Ruben Cantoral – ESP
- Filippo Mercuriali – ITA
Women
- Alba Frey – ESP
- Espe Barreras – ESP
- Cecilia Pampinella – ITA
- Sveva Sabato – ITA
- Claudia Postiglione – ITA
- Alexia Soto – ESP
- Ines Blin – ESP
- Rinka Mitztani – JPN
- Veila Pisanelli – ITA
- Emilia Daszewsak – POL
- Nuria Chiquero – ESP
- Bianca Toncelli – ITA
Sprint
The Sprint Podium looked a bit different, Shrimpy did not do very well in this discipline leaving the door open to the Spanish. Alba took another victory as the podium was a full Spanish affair for all athelets.
Men Top 3
- Sergio Cantoral – ESP
- Marc Simoncelli – ESP
- Luis Peroti – ESP
Women Top 3
- Alba Frey – ESP
- Sonia Caimari – ESP
- Teres Criado – ESP
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