Wind foiler Luuc van Opzeeland will represent the Netherlands at the Olympic Games next summer. The 24-year-old from Hoofddorp finished third in the Olympic iQFoil class at the World Championships in Lanzarote, ahead of his competitor Kiran Badloe.
Last year Van Opzeeland became world champion. Badloe, who is Olympic champion in the ‘old’ RS:X class, still had a chance at the Olympic ticket if he could stay ahead of Van Opzeeland in Lanzarote, but he could not do so. He came last in the semi-finals and thus squandered his last chance of qualification.
In the final, Van Opzeeland finished third behind the Pole Pawel Tarnowski and the Italian winner Nicolo Renna.
Olympics
The Netherlands may send one participant to Marseille, where the sailing program for the Paris Games will be held. The starting ticket goes to the person with the best results during the previous World Cup, the World Cup in Lanzarote and the Mallorca World Cup in April. Van Opzeeland’s lead is already big enough, which means he is assured of participation.