Lena Erdil is a windsurfer who succeeds in the pursuit of waves in the open sea. Erdil, who has represented our country in many international competitions; has become 2nd overall on the PWA slalom...

In 2016, Lena Erdil got the 2016 IFCA Slalom World Champion title, became PWA Slalom vice World Champion and also Turkish National Champion. Lena Erdil, became Turkey's Turkish National Champion again in 2017, is one of the fastest women in the world for windsurfing. As the professional windsurfer of Bodrumspor, she has been consistently on the world cup podium for the last 5 years, always in the top three. We interviewed the successful windsurfer, at the Lena Erdil Windsurf Center,where she runs the business with her family in Ortakent; we gave our ears to a pleasant adventure where the open seas, sports, waves and winds take place.

We would like to hear Lena Erdil and how her surfing passion started...
I was born in 1989 in Izmir. I got my first surfing lesson from my Dad and with the encouragement of my parents, I started surfing.

I can say that, I have been surfing since childhood; incidentally my parents met each other thanks to surfing. As a teacher in Germany, my mother often wondered about the culture of Turkish students and came to explore Turkey taking her surfboard with her. When she had a problem with her board at a beach in Marmaris, my father helped her with it. In this way, they got to know each other and decided to get married.

I completed my high school education in Brussels. When I graduated in 2007, I took a break for one year. This is common in Europe. Students travel, gain new experiences, decides on their jobs. I gave myself time to come to the point of surfing. I started participating in international races. Having moved to Bodrum, I participated in the world cup races for 3 months and won 4thplace. That gave me great motivation. Upon a decision I had made earlier, I took a break from windsurfing and completed my education in politics and philosophy at the University of Sussex in England. When I graduated, I said to myself it was time for surfing. Meanwhile, I have had sponsors to support me. Redbull is one of my sponsors and Turkish Airlines Company (THY) have met my travel expenses. I have had the chance to practice in different seas in different countries and I have participated in the races. I have been a registered surfer of Bodrumspor for five years.

This year the world cup was held in Japan, South Korea and Portugal. I have just returned from Portugal. I ranked 2ndin Japan and Korea and 3rdin Portugal. With these results, I became 2nd in The Women's slalom competition at the PWA Windsurf World Cup.

In the world cup, we race in different seas, different winds and different conditions. The best of the world becomes clear after struggling in many seas. I had the opportunity to visit a number of countries due to the international races I participated in. I had the opportunity to see South Korea, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia, South Africa, Namibia, Egypt, Morocco, all European countries, Hawaii in America, Brazil in South America, Peru and Bolivia. I speak Turkish, German, English, French and Spanish. I have also the opportunity to practice in addition to the great advantage of travelling around the world.

Is windsurfing adequately appropriated particularly by female athletes?
Windsurfing is a difficult sport and it requires stamina. Therefore, the number of participants is less. The number of female athletes is lower than the number of male athletes. This ratio is such worldwide. The situation in Turkey is slightly different. There are no male windsurfers participating on behalf of our country, we currently have 3 female athletes. We can say that female athletes are in the forefront, however, from Turkey, I am the only female surfer who has won a cup.

How did you get prepared for the World Championship?
I made a decision based on my annual plan, training schedule and when to train. First, I usually consider that what will improve me most and then choose the occasion. I have surfed in many parts of the world, but I really like Bodrum and the windsurf school that we have set up. At the beginning of the season, in the spring, I definitely practice here. The wind is beautiful, the environment is nice, the water is calm, and it is very convenient to test the speed and the materials. In the winter months, I spend a lot of time in South Africa. The weather conditions are very good, I am able to go out to sea every day, the days are long and I can stay in the sea for 6 hours. There are also training camps in the Canary Islands. Special racing simulations and programs are available in the winter.

Apart from physical performance for windsurfing, our materials are also significant. The board brands develop materials each year, just as in car racing. The most important thing in windsurfing is speed. You compete at an average speed of 60 km/h. The windsurfing competitions are held in different disciplines as 'freestyle', 'wave', 'slalom', 'formula', 'RSX' (Olympic). All these disciplines have separate world championships and world cups. Slalom class, which I won the IFCA World Championship at, is quite different compared to the Olympic class. Both our equipment and tracks are different. You choose materials according to different weather conditions.

We as 10 people start at the same time finish the turn of 5 buoys and come to the finish line. The first person who goes to the line wins the first place. Then if 30 people participate in the race; the first 2 rounds are qualifying rounds. For the next round, you pass the rounds by ranking in the first four. Finally, you get to the final and what ranking you achieve then is your ranking in the world ranking. The first race usually takes one week, as it is not always windy; therefore we have to wait. Sometimes we complete two or three finals a day. In the last race in Portugal, we completed ten finals.

We would like to hear a memory of yours that affected you very much.
I have surfed in many parts of the world. In South Africa, you need to go forward into the sea in order to choose the good waves. It was evening time, something hit my board and I fell overboard. Immediately I went on my surfboard. Since I often see seals and dolphins, I thought that the thing that hit my board had been one of them; however, I saw a shark swimming around in the water a little ahead. That was the greatest fear I have ever felt. I tried to be calm and thought about what I had to do. There was also another windsurfer around me, I called him but he did not want to wait for me as he had seen the shark and was scared. I had to be in the water to get back in action; I sat still for 5 minutes and looked to see where the fin was. When the fin disappeared, I caught a big wave; it was in that moment that I was in and out the sea standing. Before the shark appeared once more, I returned to the beach and breathed a sigh of relief. I had surfed in Cape Town with dolphins, whales and seals before, but hitting a dogfish was a completely different feeling! The next morning, of course, I was back in the sea.

How did the idea of opening a surf school come up?
Before having it in Bodrum, we had a surf school in Cesme. As Cesme became too crowded, we became in search for a quieter place. Actually, we had come to Yalikavak for a race. A surfer friend of mine introduced us to Mehmet Kocadon, the mayor of Ortakent then. We established the school in Bodrum with the support of Mehmet Kocadon. We had heard that Ortakent was very good in terms of wind; meanwhile, foreign companies had already determined that it was suitable for surfing and hence the sport started up. Every year we train many people to surf here, and we cultivate new surfers.

Would you talk about your goals?
My biggest dream is that Bodrum will be one of the places where one part of the world cup will be held. In 2019 in Ortakent, I am planning to organise events first for women and then for men and women in Ortakent. I need to find sponsors for this event. It will have expenses, such as money for the prize, organisation costs, copyright fees...etc. I think it is important to have Bodrum widely known in the world. We have a wonderful breeze and I prefer it as to someone who has surfed in many parts of the world. I believe that it is necessary to show the world how valuable Bodrum is for surfing. Although the Bodrum Municipality does not refrain from supporting, in this respect it is still not enough for an international organisation.