This weekend: Europe heats up as 2x world champ Noic Garioud makes his season debut in Sevilla
The European roadshow rolls on this weekend with the iconic Euro Tour hopping across the Strait of Gibraltar after its anomalous opening round in Ceuta (aka Afrika). With the second round in Sevilla we haven’t even left Spain but are suddenly a whole continent away, and the level of competition is rising accordingly: Headlining the start list for the Sevilla SUP Festival is 2021 dual ICF world champion (and 2022 bridesmaid) Noic Garioud.
There are few paddlers as talented as Noic. After mixed results in his first season with Team Starboard – he crashed in Carolina last year but then won the World SUP Festival and bagged three silvers at the Worlds – the sport’s youngest “veteran” is no doubt eager to show he can still match the other big guns while also keeping the fast-rising kids at bay.
It seems absurd to call Noic a veteran when he’s only 21, but the kid with the infectious smile has been making headlines for almost a decade already. I remember seeing 13-year-old Noic racing in Australia and ruffling feathers. By the time he was 16, Noic was already on top of the podium. He was a dual world champ while still a teenager.
Alongside Titouan Puyo and Clement Colmas, Noic is part of the uber elite trio from New Caledonia (“Les Cagous”) that have helped make France the #1 SUP racing nation over the past few years. The Frenchies now face a formidable foe in the form of Spain, which sets up a mouth-watering clash both in Europe and at the Worlds later this season.
We’ll get our first look tomorrow when Noic clashes with Spain’s finest in the battle of Sevilla. Check back Saturday afternoon for results…
