1,646 kilometers on a kiteboard!

Manama : Anke Brandt, Bahrain’s kite surfing champion, has done it again. 

This time she crossed a third of the Atlantic ocean by kitesurfing along with Portuguese Kite-surfer Francisco Lufinha. 

Together they surfed 1,646 km. 

“Although the ten-day experience was very demanding, it was equally fulfilling,” said Brandt after completing the tiring journey. 

Brandt, who had previously set a world record by kite surfing from Amwaj Islands, Bahrain to Abu Dhabi, set her new record earlier this month. 

The unprecedented odyssey that began on September 4 in Ponta Delgada on the island of São Miguel in Portugal ended at Marina of Oeiras on September 13, also in Portugal. The two kiters shared the distance and swapped rider every 8 hours. 

“On the 13th September, we were able to finish this extremely hard crossing, which demanded a great deal from us in physical and psychological terms as the head winds diverted us from the route, making it more difficult,” she said.  

“In the end, we are proud of this achievement. And I’m very proud I could support Francisco to fulfil his dream, four years after his first odyssey, to finally connect entire Portugal by sea,” she said.

Speaking about here experience during the journey, Brandt said: “It was a very demanding crossing.” 

“I came across a sea and strong swell with which I was not familiar with. But the joy of having overcome this challenge overcomes all the feelings of difficulty that we face. 

“It was a great pleasure to discover the Azores and the fantastic Portuguese sea along with Francisco,” she added.

“Francisco, myself and the team were welcomed like heroes in the Marina of Oeiras, after a long journey with 1,646 km that had several obstacles and set a historical landmark in the nautical sport worldwide.”