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7 reasons to go to the SUP Race Cup in Sainte-Maxime!

For its 7th edition, The SUP Race Cup returns to the central beach of Saint-Maxime for a big week-end of racing. Every year, the event attracts dozens of world class paddlers and delivers some epic battles for the win in each divisions. For this year’s edition, the SUP Race Cup is setting up to host the most stacked field of racers Sainte-Maxime has ever seen. More than just a stop of the Euro Tour, the SUP Race Cup is the number one international event in France. At TotalSUP we love this event and we found 7 reasons to go to the SUP Race Cup!

 

1. The location

Located in the south of France along the Mediterranean Sea in Saint-Tropez’s Bay, Sainte-Maxime is a charming coastal city with some beautiful white-sand beaches and breathtaking landscapes. Saint-Tropez’s Bay is known worldwide for its landscape so expect to discover one of France’s most beautiful destination.

eurotour SUP Race CUP sainte maxime location

2. It’s the third stop of the Euro Tour

For the second year, the SUP Race Cup is part of the Euro Tour circuit which promises to be one of the highlights of the SUP racing scene this year. The Euro Tour reunited 14 events all around Europe for more than 3 months of racing all across Europe with one event every week-end. Moreover, Sainte-Maxime is setting up the be the first one of the “big three” events in this Euro Tour. Indeed, the prestigious race will be followed by the world-famous Lost Mills race (Germany) and the biggest prize-pursed event ($10000) of the Euro Tour : the Bilbao World Challenge.

third stop euro tour

3. The weather

Every year, the weather in Sainte-Maxime is warm and sunny for the SUP Race Cup. Once again, the weather conditions are in favor of a beautiful week-end on Sainte-Maxime’s central beach. If you don’t race, you can still come and enjoy the show while sitting on your beach chair.

sainte maxime wheather

4. The village

With more than 20 brands coming to set up their tents, Sainte-Maxime’s event village is a good way to discover the 2016 new lines of products and to try them. A rare chance you must take!

sainte maxime brand village eurotour

5. The field

Probably the main reason why you should come : the field is going to be stronger than ever for the SUP Race Cup. On the men’s side, you can expect the likes of : Connor Baxter, Titouan Puyo, Casper Steinfath, Arthur Arutkin, Jake Jensen, Trevor Tunnington, Leonard Nika, Beau O’Brian, Paolo Marconi, Michael Booth and a few more world class paddlers. On the women’s side, you can count on Fiona Wylde, Sonni Honscheid, Manca Notar, Susak Molinero, April Zilg, Lexi Alston, Ane Zulaika, Olivia Piana, Amandine Chazot and CĂ©line Guesdon to put on a good show.

Don’t forget the local guys training at La Cigale Surf Club such as Gabriel Bachelet who’s always a top finisher on the Technical Race, Nicolas Beynet and Simon Gallot who can overtake some big names on both races, and the two young guns Melanie LafenĂŞtre and Inès BlatgĂ© who really stepped up their game this year and are looking for a good performance next week-end.

So, to challenge yourself against the world’s best paddlers or just to meet your idols, the field of competitors confirmed in Sainte-Maxime is probably the #1 reason to come this year.
eurotour SUP Race CUP sainte maxime field
The two paddlers to follow this year :  Titouan Puyo, winner of the Carolina Cup and Casper Steinfath, winner of the Victoria Cup, sprinting together at the 2015 ISA World Championships. You can expect them to fight as hard in Sainte-maxime to take the win!

6. The pictures

On both races you will see photographers everywhere, they will follow you on boats during the distance race or they will capture your buoy turns on the technical race. Every year, the SUP Race Cup makes some epic shots of SUP racing like this one below from Michel Terrien in 2012 which has been seen all around the paddling world.

eurotour SUP Race CUP sainte maxime photo

7. The food

Last but not least reason why you must go to the SUP Race Cup : the FOOD! Yes, before or after your race, you can enjoy some Mediterranean and french cuisine in one of the numerous restaurants along the beach in Sainte-Maxime. You can also drive to Saint-Tropez on the other side of the bay, where you can find some of the best restaurants France has to offer.

eurotour SUP Race CUP sainte maxime food

So take these reasons in consideration and see you next week in Sainte-Maxime!

More links:

Report on the 2015 SUP Race CUP

Report on the 2014 SUP Race CUP

About the Author

Mathieu Astier

Mathieu is the hyper-active founder of TotalSUP and a multilingual online marketing veteran with more than 20 years of experience working for top international internet companies. His love-at-first-sight for Stand Up Paddling in 2013 led him to build one of the leading online media dedicated to SUP in English and French and to turn his family lifestyle towards the ocean.

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