Six races for the men, and seven races for the women, on the Sea of Korea, allow the world's most savvy slalom racers to prove their worth, collect their cash, gain those all important points towards their overall world ranking, and stake their claim for the highly coveted PWA slalom world title.

Open Season

Men

The opening rounds of the 2010 slalom season began on day 2 in Korea, allowing the French to leap ahead and take command after 3 fast an furious eliminations in the men's fleet, and four for the women.

After a winter away, Antoine Albeau (JP, NeilPryde) dominated his early heats and earned his ticket to the race 1 final with ease. In the manner that we've come to accept, Albeau led the final from start to finish, creating a vibe that Korea would be another Antoine Albeau white wash.

However, in race 2, Bjorn Dunkerbeck (Starboard, Severne) put in a performance that was akin to that of his '80s and '90s days, flying off the start line without a second thought for anyone else and claiming a convincing victory. Jimmy Diaz (Starboard, North) and Arnon Dagan (Tabou, Gaastra) also sailed an impeccable final to finish clear ahead of Albeau, and claim 2^ndand 3^rdrespectively.

The unbeatable Albeau had already become beatable. And, this continued in race 3 when Finian Maynard (RRD, Gaastra) found his form and claimed a bullet, redeeming himself of his premature start in the first race, and his 10^thplace finish in the 2^nd.

Despite the first day of racing not belonging entirely to Albeau, he had been more consistent than any of his rivals, allowing him to take the early event lead.

Women

With the 2009 slalom world champion, Valerie Ghibadou (Loft), out of the picture due to injury, Karin Jaggi (Patrik, Severne) was the event favourite from the word go. However, a premature start in the first race, had her playing catch up for the remainder of the event.

The young star, Alice Arutkin (Starboard, North), took full advantage of the situation claiming the first bullet of the season. Sarah Hebert (Naish), and Jaggi took the next two consecutive race wins with Arutkin posting consistent results just behind them. Arutkin went on to win the final race of the day, and take an early hold on the event with a great set of results.

The Waiting Game

A frustrating day of being teased by the wind, and another getting soaked by torrential rain, left Albeau and Arutkin sitting pretty at the top of their fleets on the beautiful Jinha beach.

A Day Of Mistakes

Men

Day 5 saw a return to the norm. With the cloud dispersed and the land heating up, the thermal wind kicked in towards the mid-afternoon, allowing another full round of world-class racing.