California Summer Opening Sylt

Sylt — Germany's Surf Island

Sylt, with a length of 38 kilometers and around 18,000 inhabitants, is the largest German North Sea island and belongs to the district of Nordfriesland in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. Since the 1950s — when lifeguards established surfing on the island — Sylt has been considered the cradle of German surfing. Today, the island is also the most important destination in the German-speaking world for windsurfers, wingfoilers, and kitesurfers.

Brandenburger Strand — The Competition Arena

The Brandenburger Strand in Westerland is Sylt's central competition beach. With consistent wind, high waves, and a wide, easily accessible sandy area, it is ideally suited as a venue for national and international competitions. In summer, the California Surf Cup (German Championship) is also held here — the Summer Opening is the formal season-opening event.

Sporting Core: Wind and Wing

• Windsurfing — disciplines such as Wave, Slalom, Freestyle
• Wingfoiling — the newest board sport discipline, with its own competitions
• International professionals and ambitious German athletes participating
• California Wingfoil Masters as a parallel series in May

Festival Atmosphere

What distinguishes the Summer Opening from a pure competition: alongside the sports program, a festival operates on the promenade. Shopping stalls from the most important water sports brands, catering, and DJ sets transform the Westerland promenade into a festival mile. Families can watch the competitions from the beach, while the promenade bars provide the after-race atmosphere.

Organizers and History

The organizer is Choppy Water GmbH from Stein near Kiel — one of the most important organizers of water sports competitions in Germany. The California brand represents a series of competitions held on Sylt throughout the season — the Summer Opening kicks off the series, the California Surf Cup in summer is its highlight, with further dates concluding the season in September.