Toni Vodišek (born 7 June 2000) is a Slovenian

kitesurfer Kiteboarding or kitesurfing is a sport that involves using wind power with a large power kite to pull a rider across a water, land, snow, sand, or other surface. It combines the aspects of paragliding, surfing, windsurfing, skateboarding, snow ...

. Vodišek won the

Formula Kite Formula Kite is the kitesurfing class chosen by World Sailing for the 2024 Summer Olympics. The class features a foil kite and a board with a hydrofoil. The equipment is not one-design, but instead competitors use their choice of approved producti ...

World Championship in 2022. He competed at the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

in the inaugural men's Formula Kite event, where he reached the finals and won the silver medal.

Biography

Vodišek was born on 7 June 2000 in

Izola Izola (; ) is a town in southwestern Slovenia on the Adriatic coast of the Littoral traditional region. It is the seat of the Municipality of Izola and is one of the three major towns of Slovenian Istria. Name Izola was attested in written s ...

, Slovenia. His father was also a

, described as one of the "pioneers" of the sport in Slovenia. His father had attempted to make the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

when kitesurfing was in consideration for the games, but his career ended due to injury. Vodišek's first experience in the sport came at age six, and by age nine he started competing in competitions, in the freestyle discipline. He later changed to kite racing. He recalled that when his father was injured and "couldn't continue ... The equipment was in the garage and he said, 'now you do it.'" In 2015, at the age of 15, Vodišek was the European and world junior runner-up and qualified for the 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup, where he reached the finals of the Formula Kite event. Then, from 2016 to 2018, he won three straight European and world junior championships; he also competed in senior competitions, placing sixth at the 2017 world championships and seventh at the 2018 World Cup. Vodišek was selected to represent Slovenia at the

2018 Summer Youth Olympics The 2018 Summer Youth Olympics (), officially known as the III Summer Youth Olympic Games, and commonly known as Buenos Aires 2018, were an international multi-sport event, sports, cultural, and educational event held from 6 to 18 October 2018 ...

, where he won a silver medal and was the Slovenian flagbearer. Vodišek won silver in Formula Kite at the 2019 senior European championships, the first-ever medal for Slovenia at the event. He also won three World Series competitions that year. In 2020, he competed with his sister, Marina, at the European mixed team championship, placing 10th. He won one World Series title during the 2021 season. He won the European championship and later his first World Championship in 2022. Vodišek was runner-up at the World Championships in 2023, which qualified him for the

, the first time Formula Kite was featured at the games. He was named the 2023 Slovenian Sailor of the Year. He reached the finals of the 2024 World Championships. At the Olympics, he reached the finals and ultimately won the silver medal, behind Valentin Bontus of Austria. He served as the flagbearer for Slovenia at the closing Olympic ceremony.

References

External links

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Toni Vodišek
at the

Paris 2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

Toni Vodišek
at Team Slovenia * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vodišek, Toni 2000 births Living people Kitesurfers Slovenian male sailors (sport) Olympic sailors for Slovenia Olympic medalists in sailing Olympic silver medalists for Slovenia Sailors at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics Sailors at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Formula Kite Medalists at the 2024 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Izola