Foto: TAVARES JÚNIOR
,, The festival continues with its next stop at Preá Beach in September, while the final stop of the 2026 season will take place in Paracuru in December
The fifth edition of the GKC Velas Trairi Festival kicked off the 2026 wind season in Ceará. The event gathered 168 athletes from seven Brazilian states (CE, PI, RJ, SP, RN, AL, PE) and three countries (Germany, Argentina, and Brazil). Held at Guajiru Beach in Trairi (CE) from June 21 to 27, the festival solidifies the State as one of the world's leading destinations for sailing sports. In total, 146 men and 19 women aged between 9 and 71 gathered in the wind at the GKC arena.
Kitesurf forums discuss the best ways to regulate the sport
On Wednesday (24), the Kiteboarding Schools Forum of the Costa dos Ventos Route focused on risk management in the sport, featuring Hadassa Matos, Lieutenant Colonel André, and George Wagner, president of the Brazilian Kiteboarding Association (ABK). The discussion regarding the State's Sports Practice Regulation Law brought together the private sector, public authorities, and the local community to debate the future of kiteboarding, governance, and development. "Regulation is inevitable; now we need to discuss how it will be implemented, and that is why ABK is hosting these forums," explained George Wagner.
Traditional Brazilian raft races are part of the festival's competition program
The competitions took place from Thursday (25) to Saturday (27), featuring disputes in kite wave, strapless, TT race, kite hydrofoil, wing race, and traditional jangadas (fishing boats)—the latter divided into two categories, small jangada(3.9m) and large jangada (4.5m), honoring Ceará's ancestral culture.
Leonardo Grangeiro traveled from Canoa Quebrada to Guajiru, but his supporters stayed with him every step of the way by following the event's live broadcasts
For the first time in the event's history, all competitions were broadcast live over the three days by Web Surf Live, a global benchmark in streaming services for water sports. Featuring super-slow-motion replays, the broadcast raised the festival's communication standards and provided an unprecedented showcase for the athletes' technical quality, allowing anyone anywhere in the world to follow every maneuver in detail.
Adults and children join forces to build an eco-barrier
The festival reaffirmed its pioneering role in environmental regeneration actions. Waste management was conducted through selective collection based on the Zero Waste Methodology, strengthening and empowering the Sol Nascente Cooperative—formed by local waste pickers from Trairi—who aimed to recycle and divert over 90% of the event's waste away from the Trairi landfill. The event also restored and reinstalled the floating eco-barrier to trap solid waste in the Corrente Stream, located next to the venue. Furthermore, it promoted beach cleanups, offset the carbon footprint generated by the event by planting more than 260 Red Mangrove and Buttonwood seedlings in the region.
GKC Velas Trairi closing celebration draws visitors and locals to the beach
The festival continues with its next stop at Preá Beach in September, while the final stop of the 2026 season will take place in Paracuru in December.
Results
Kite Wave — Men's
1st Artur Santos Bodinho
2nd Patrick de Souza
3rd Leonardo Grangeiro
4th Wesley Silva
Strapless — Men's
1st Wellington Carmo
2nd Elias Morais Antena
3rd Luiz Emmanuel
4th Andrade Vasconcelos
Wing Foil Race — Women's
1st Luna Junqueira
2nd Lidiane Sanders
3rd Cintia Levorin
Wing Foil Race — Men's
1st Benjamin Almeida
2nd Carlos de Araújo Dias Júnior
3rd Rafael Rodrigues
4th Rafael Modesto
Hydro Foil Race — Men's
1st Vittor Maciel
2nd Gerlano Torres
3rd Pedro Alexandre Morais
4th Francisco Adryan
TT Race — Women's
1st Cristielly Da Silva
2nd Jahra Sampaio
3rd Cauane Polo
4th Andressa Monteiro
TT Race — Men's
1st Gerlano Torres
2nd Ian Máximos
3rd Arthur Caetano
4th Wesley Silva
Under 12
1st Lucas Maciel
2nd Yuri Correa
3rd Paulo Henrique
4th Heitor Sena
Small Jangada
1st Fé em Deus Jangada
2nd Brasileirinha Jangada
3rd Camaro Jangada
4th Chicote Jangada
Large Jangada
1st Julio Cesar Jangada
2nd Pitbull Jangada
3rd Gabriel Jangada
4th Rei do Peixe Jangada
