RS:X Class: End of an era

There are some realities regarding Olympic equipment. One is the overall level of class competition will heighten, and this can lead casual class members to seek lower ground. Another is for equipment created specifically for the Olympics, the class will likely fade out if the equipment is not renewed.

That is now the situation for the RS:X windsurfer, introduced at the 2008 Olympics for the Men’s and Women’s Windsurfing event, and now to be replaced by the iQFoil for Paris 2024. With the focus solely on elite competition, Olympic classes don’t establish the grass roots level needed to live on.

Farrah Hall, who will represent the USA in the Women’s Windsurfing event at Tokyo 2020, shares her view of the RS:X last hurrah:

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