Who is Coen Swijnenburg?

Coen Swijnenburg (NED-262) is a 14 year old windsurfer from the Netherlands and he got caught by the slalom and speed bug. Last autumn he trained with Ben van der Steen in Tarifa and he reached almost 68km/h. Now DS Promotions (the same team they do the clips with Davy Scheffers) made a clip about the young aspiring speed freak. Below you can read a short interview with Coen.

C7: When did you start to windsurf?
Coen: I started at the age of 8 years old. On a JP Young Gun and with kids gear. I didn’t start at Sea but nearby on small water named De Kurenpolder. Since I was 11 years I am sailing on slalom gear.

C7: Did you already take part in competitions?
Coen: At the age of 11 I first started in regional competition. When I was 13 years old I won my first contest. I won “The Mission”, one of the greatest youth contests in Europe. My most important results were: 1st U15 The Mission 2010, 2nd World Championships Slalom U15 2011, 2nd European Championships U15 2011, 3rd Dutch Championships Formula 2011.

C7: Do you only sail on slalom and formula boards?
Coen: Mainly I do slalom and formula. Autumn 2011 I went to Tarifa and trained with Ben van der Steen. There I challenged my first big waves and was stoked. I also did my first attempt in speed with slalom gear and I managed a great personal best of almost 68 km/h.

C7: What are your goals for the future?
Coen: For 2012 I want to improve my jibes and speed. For European and World championships slalom and Formula I set my goals on reaching top 3. Setting my personal best high speed above 70 km/h. I want to enter the PWA tour after doing High school at the age of 17.

Good luck!