Johnny Yagen is one of the young upcoming freestyle riders, who wants to climb up the rankings as soon as possible. He participated in a PWA freestyle event in Bonaire in 2014 for the first time and finished in 40th place. In 2015 he didn’t compete but returned to competition in 2016. Each time we meet Johnny we are impressed by his enthusiasm on the water and during the parties. He really lives the free-style. This year he spent the whole summer in Fuerteventura this summer, windsurfed and crashed a lot, but made a huge progress on the water. Watch his latest action video from Fuerteventura!
In addition to the video we caught up with Johnny, to find out more about 18 year-old Johnny from Israel.
Johnny Yagen with great freestyle action from Fuerteventura, filmed during summer 2017
Interview with Johnny Yagen, freestyle windsurfer from Israel
Continentseven: How are you doing after your long stay in Fuerteventura?
Johnny Yagen: I am fine. I am actually in Canada planing to work to go to my next destination.
Continentseven: Did your summer in Fuerteventura pay off for you?
Johnny Yagen: Yes, it was very good meeting lots of people and also learned lots of new tricks. It was a very funny time.
Continentseven: When you look back on your summer in Fuerteventura what were the great things?
Johnny Yagen: Waking up early in the morning and going windsurfing full power with my friends at an awesome beach.
Continentseven: And what was not so good?
Johnny Yagen: It was not so good that I had some broken gear to fix, but it’s all good now!
Continentseven: When and where did you start windsurfing?
Johnny Yagen: I started in Eilat, Israel at the age of 11.
Continentseven: How old are you now?
Johnny Yagen: I’am 18 years-old.
Continentseven: Was freestyle windsurfing your main focus from the beginning on?
Johnny Yagen: Yes, freestyle is life (everything is freestyle)!
Continentseven: Are there any windsurfers who inspire you?
Johnny Yagen: Yes, I like Jason Polakow, Josh Stone, the Angulo brothers, Tonky Frans, Adam Gavriel and Yarden Meir, just to name a few.
Continentseven: You learn quick, but you crash very hard, too. It looks painful. Did you have a lot of injuries already?
Johnny Yagen: Crashing is the part of the game and yes, it hurts, but I enjoy each moment in the water for good or bad.
Continentseven: You are a very active guy. Where do you get all the energy from?
Johnny Yagen: I eat very well, good food and do a lot of hard training.
Continentseven: You aren’t only a free styler. You like to ride waves and you are a brilliant kite surfer. Will we see you competing in different disciplines soon?
Johnny Yagen: Yes, I will do kite surfing and wave windsurfing as well.
Continentseven: What do you like besides windsurfing?
Johnny Yagen: Kite surfing, surfing, yoga, long boarding, snowboarding and chicas!!
Continentseven: What are your long term goals in windsurfing?
Johnny Yagen: My dream is to be a world champion and riding jaws and windsurfing every day of my life and having fun pushing myself to the limits.
©continentseven 2017
