Soaring 30 feet above the waves gives Dutch para kiteboarder Willem Hooft some of the freedom he lost five years ago in a motorcycle accident, as he now travels the world to grow the sport as a professional athlete.
Hooft was part of a Para Development Program (PDP) event exclusively for kiteboarding at Lake Garda, Italy, last weekend, as the sport's governing body World Sailing looks to nurture a discipline showing plenty of promise.
But his journey from recreational kiteboarder to a man on a mission to inspire others and promote the sport globally has not always been plain sailing.