A Mental Opener to DAM-X | FPT Brouwersdam 2026 Day 1 Recap

The FPT Brouwersdam kicked off in nuclear fashion today, with the Open Fleet, Pro Women’s Single Elimination and the opening round of the Pro Men’s Single all taking to the water.

Things got underway yesterday, as riders gathered at Brouwersdam for registration, stickered up their sails and prepared for what was shaping up to be a serious few days of wind.

The action started bright and early at 08:00, with the Men’s Open Fleet first on the menu. And the name of the game? Rippers returning to the FPT.

It was immediately clear that the level was high. With names like Davy Scheffers, Kiril Kirilov, Julien Join, Nick van Ingen, Primus Sorling, Luka Stomp and, to the delight of the local crowd, Brouwersdam Big Boss Rick Jendrusch all lining up, crowds knew the Open Fleet was stacked before the first horn even went off.

There were plenty of close heats, but four riders ultimately strong enough to secure spots in the Pro fleet.

Davy Scheffers dominated from the start, putting together heats that would have rivalled some of the top scores on tour. Air Kabis and big combinations were the norm, with the culmination happening in a signature piece of Davy madness, smashing out a Switch Chachoo into Funnel Clock.

Rick Jendrusch, meanwhile, returned like he had never left. After suffering what would become a career-ending injury here during EFPT DAM-X 2017, the story came full circle as Rick tore through the elimination, landing big power moves consistently every heat. His run eventually came to an end against a red-hot Davy in the finals, but his return to competition was one of the biggest stories of the day.

Luka Stomp and Primus Sorling secured the remaining two spots. Luka was seemingly operating an Air Funnel production line, while Primus landed his first-ever Double Culo in competition to book his place in the next stage.

Then it was straight onto the Pro Women’s Single, where the usual names once again rose to the top. Bijou Shahmirian and Živa Batis both made their way through to the semifinals, with both riders showing just how much their off-season training has paid off. Bijou consistently brought out Forwards in her heats, while Živa showcased a whole new arsenal of regular-stance power moves, landing both Culos and Konos as she progressed through the elimination. After both riders got knocked out in their semi-final heats, a thrilling small final saw Živa take the third place spot.

At the top of the draw, it was a battle we have become very familiar with: Maaike Huvermann versus Lisa Kloster in the final. Despite nuclear winds throughout the elimination, conditions dipped slightly as rain moved through for the final. Neither rider was fazed, however, with both filling their score sheets with big power moves despite the more challenging conditions.

After a short break, the wind kicked back into gear and it was straight onto the opening round of the Pro Men’s Single Elimination.

There were tight heats throughout the first round, including Arne Jorn taking down Pier Bongianni with a clutch Double Culo, while an all-local battle between Tim Gerdes and Bodhi Kempen saw Bodhi knocked out after Tim put together a storming 33-point heat. Yentel Caers was also on fire, putting together a 35-point heat, while Lennart Neubauer secured the highest heat score of the day, breaking 40 points.

And with that, Day 1 comes to a close. Tomorrow, the game plan is to finish the Pro Men’s Single Elimination, with the potential for a Double Elimination to follow.