Located in the Southern Caribbean, Bonaire boasts crystal clear waters, consistent trade winds and a tranquil atmosphere. The PWA's finest freestylers were welcomed with open arms onto the beautiful island between the 12^th- 16^th June for the third round of the men's freestyle world tour, and the opening event in the women's calendar.

Competition took place in the turquoise waters of Lac Bay, home spot to local legends; Kiri Thode (Starboard /Gaastra), Taty Frans (Starboard / MauiSails / Mystic) and style master Tonky Frans (Tabou / Gaastra). Lac Bay didn't disappoint delivering five days of wind between 15-25 knots and scorching sun, allowing two eliminations to be completed and the new kings and queens of Bonaire to be crowned.

Once the formalities of registration were out the way and the skippers meeting completed, head judge Duncan Coombs wasted no time in releasing the 39 men and 8 women onto the water for a five day freestyle extravaganza.

Mens elimination one - Thode takes control.

Elimination one exploded into action from the word go, with the Bonaire trades blowing around 20 knots the sailors entered the battle arena on sails around 5.0m, completing the single elimination on the first afternoon of competition.

Lac Bay's super flat water allowed a whole variety of aerial and sliding maneuvers to be performed and quickly saw event favourites Steven Van Broeckhoven (F2 / Gaastra), Thode, Taty Frans and Jose 'Gollito' Estredo take advantage of the conditions and work their way to the semi-finals.

In the final it came down to two local freestyle wizards Thode and Taty Frans to fight it out in front of their home fans. Both sailors went to town displaying a performance of huge culos, and konos. Thode managed to separate the two score sheets with an enormous Kabicutchi successfully securing his first victory of the competition.

Double elimination

The double elimination took place on the second day of competition. An action packed day saw emotions running high, as the sailors fought their way through each round in an attempt to raise their place on the scoreboard.

Choco Frans (F2) flew though his heats quickly climbing from 17^th to 7^th, wowing the crowds with his perfect ponchs in front of the judge's tower. As did Davy Scheffers (Tabou / Gaastra), who managed to raise his position from 9^th to 5^th sailing expertly though 8 heats.

The final boiled down to a repeat performance of the previous day. Thode and Taty Frans unleashed every trick in their armour an attempt to gain the upper hand. This was the most exciting heat of the elimination as both sailors pushed the boundaries of freestyle further and further. The day ultimately went to Thode, who gained the favour of the judges with the magnitude of his maneuvers and finally sealed the deal with an astonishing spock-culo.

Women's Elimination one - The rise of Offringa