Chen, along with other local kite riders in Fujian's Pingtan island county, is currently training under the instruction of Michael Khromykh, a famous professional freestyle kite rider who assumes the duty at PKA's invitation.
“Most Chinese kite riders hone their game by watching videos. It is rare in China to hire someone to coach freestyle kiteboarding classes,” said Di Dahui, PKA's president
Previously the Chinese kite riders focus their game on the race speeding. This time PKA hopes to make a breakthrough in the freestyle group, where kite and board are used to get big air (jumps) for various airborne tricks.
The Chinese kite riders took theory lessons in the past few days due to unsuitable weather condition for outdoor training. And the learning is effective, according to coach Khromyhkh.
At the age of 12, Chen Jingyue is already an accomplished kite rider and a future star in China. She was crowned the champion of the entire Kiteboard Tour Asia (KTA) season in her group after winning KTA's Pingtan leg in May.
Pingtan, as an island county embracing the kitesufing sport, has hosted the KTA events two years in a row, and set up a kiteboarding association in April to promote the sport in China. It also provides kiteboard training services and organizing competitions at domestic and international levels.
Edited by Chen Zhilin and Micheal Thai
