2026 Aloha Classic

Date

Congratulations, Marc and Kai! It was a long event on Maui, and the conditions were challenging, but it all came together on the last day. You guys wrote windsurfing history wave by wave, heat by heat, winning both the Pro Men’s and the Masters. We are incredibly proud of both of you.

Photo by Fishbowl

Congratulations on your first Aloha Classic win, and on your third event win of the year and your fifth podium finish. That’s incredibly impressive. You must be very proud of your achievements this year.

Marc – I’m proud of my achievements this year. I didn’t know if I’d be able to put myself in this position again, so I’m stoked to have made it happen, and stoked to come out on top on Maui, in such a legendary event. That’s pretty cool.
Photo by Fishbowl

What was your mindset coming into the final against Bernd Roediger, Morgan Noireaux and Antoine Martin?

Marc – These guys have all won multiple Aloha Classics. I think it’s probably four for Morgan and three for Bernd, and Antoine has won it too, so that’s quite a few between them. I was really happy just to be in the final, because making the Aloha final was my goal this year. I was pretty relaxed and wanted to execute the moves I knew I could do. Those conditions suited me a little better, because it was smaller and windier than the previous days. I knew they’d do whatever moves they could, so I took my chances and was stoked to pull it together and get some good waves.
Photo by Fishbowl

That was a nail-biter of a final. You won by 0.05 points after Bernd led most of the heat. What went through your mind in the last few minutes?

Marc – I didn’t see Bernd’s highest-scoring wave, but I saw him do a 360. I did my 360 right in his face, and he did one the wave after. I knew it was going to be tight, but I definitely wasn’t expecting to come out on top. I was talking to Paul, the fishbowl photographer, in the water, and he said, “I think you’re first.” I was like, “Oh, really?” That was quite cool.
Photo by Fishbowl

Your performance was flawless in the final, with perfect timing, vertical hits, tweaked aerials, a wave 360 and a goiter. What’s the secret to putting together such a perfect heat?

Marc – I think it’s a mix of being lucky with wave selection, getting the opportunities, and then executing what I’d planned to do. I had the things I wanted to do, and I was just stoked that they lined up. Sometimes it doesn’t happen, but this time it went my way, so that’s awesome.
Photo by Fishbowl

With first-place finishes on Maui, Tenerife and Wissant, and a second place at Pozo, you have increased your lead on the World Tour heading into the season finale in Chile. How are you approaching the final event?

Marc – I’m going to go all in. I still have to do all the work to win the title, because you can never be sure I’ll improve on my result, or that Bernd won’t take a first place here. So the plan is to go all out, keep calm, take it step by step and do everything I can to get as far as possible. It’s an event I’d love to win after being close last year, and Chile is a special place for me, so it would be nice to do it.
Photo by Fishbowl

Let’s talk about the gear. You designed the 2027 Blacktip Team Carbon, and you’re deeply involved in the design of the boards. How much does it help to have such detailed control over the equipment you use in competition?

Marc – I’m very involved in the development of everything. I’m now more or less designing the sails myself, which is cool because I have free rein there. It definitely gives me an extra boost of confidence, because I know what I have in my hands and under my feet. It just reacts to my input, which is pretty fun. It gives me something I don’t have to think about.
 
We’re so proud of you Marc. Good luck in Chile Marc!
Photo by Fishbowl

Congratulations, Kai! That was an amazing win in Light-wind conditions at Ho’okipa. It was your day, you looked on fire!

Tell us about the final. How were you feeling?

Kai – Before the final it was an amazing feeling after all these years of competing, sailed out early as the rain squalls were forming upwind, a magnificent rainbow formed corner to corner, and Keith Teboul and I just sat on our boards on the outside and stared. It was the portal into the next dimension and we both agreed it was our recently passed friend Pio watching over us. Suddenly the Final and the thought of competing was replaced by the glory of Life and it was such a powerful moment to experience, words fail to describe.  Then the heat started and I caught the wave of the Final right at the start of the heat and rode that momentum to Victory.
Photo by Fishbowl

That was an intense week for you, commentating and competing in the Masters. How did you manage both?

Kai– Its not easy to manage both but in this case we also have had to simply believe we would even get the chance to compete at all. It was such a challenging contest in that day in and day out, we were simply trying to get the heats done. By the time we had the Final for the Pro Men, running the Livestream came naturally. Directly after the Pro Final that Marc won, we went straight into the Masters heats and it was nice to have our backups commenting in my place. By that time we had broadcast for 5 days.  The timing was perfect, because the comp was ending that day as well, it was our last day of the waiting period. Not entirely the easiest thing to do, but our media team is an incredible bunch and made it not only easier to do both, but made it enjoyable as well. 

Kai Katchadourian, Masters Final. Photo by Fishbowl

You joined the Simmer Style team in 1986 when you moved to Maui, so 2026 marks your 40th year on the team. You must be the longest-standing team rider in the sport’s history? How has the brand changed during the years?

Kai – It has been an amazing journey since the moment Laurent Vrignaud started me with the brand in 1986 at B&D sports in Redwood City. I have so much admiration for Malte and his incredible passion for Waveriding, the sails took my riding to new heights immediately. Indeed my now 40 years with Simmer Style is the longest standing in Windsurfing History. Something to be very proud of for sure,  where Simmer Style is today, how we got here, who we are working with, and last but not least, how incredible the gear performs. 

The 2026 Aloha Classic Champions, Kai Katadourian and Marc Paré. Photo by Fishbowl

How do you feel competitive windsurfing has evolved during your years?

Kai – It has evolved a great deal. In my first Hookipa contest, the 1987 Marui-Oneill Invitational, we had 8 minute heats with Waves, Jumps, and transitions being scored. Can you imagine trying to ride 3 waves, find 2  jumps, and spin as many Helicopter tacks as you can in 8 minutes ?!

Mind blowing. Today it is very much about the respective environments dictating the way things are scored. Hookipa is all about Wave riding, with the best two wave scores counting. Its much more related to Surfing itself now as far as how you compete in Wave Performance.
Photo by Fishbowl Diaries

Tell us about the four-fin slalom board you used in the final.

Kai – It is our latest Peahi design. 95 Liters, narrow and very fast. Ola designed the fastest board possible. Speed is the number one priority in Big Waves and it turned out to bring back a very important component in my riding. 

Even in the very marginal conditions we usually compete in Masters heats, it found the sets and caught them easily. My riding looked a little retro, but it was also different from that flashy slashy flavor of the day. A welcome change up, and it paid off.  Ola designed my first Peahi over 15 years ago and the lessons we learned from that board’s success in huge surf, transferred into many designs in Simmer Style’s board line. Speed is your friend. 
 
How many wins do you have at the Aloha Classic?

Kai – This was my second Win at The Aloha Classic, and for sure the sweetest as it happened 9 years after the last one. Competing at this level is very challenging, and to win at the same time Marc won his first Aloha is truly special. Truly Historical for our amazing Team which is having an amazing season, and we are not done yet.

That’s epic, thanks Kai

For more information about the 2026 Aloha Classic: worldwindsurftour.com