Sport kite

Developments in multi-line kites in recent years has allowed forms of kite flying to develop into a sport. Kite competitions have much in common with figure skating, with competitors being judged on their performance in compulsory figures as well as a "ballet", which involves artistic interpretation of music.

The most common configuration for a sports kite is a roughly triangular "delta" shape, with two lines for control. Pulling on the right hand line causes the kite to turn to the right, and so on. Using combinations of pulls and pushes (to give slack to the lines), complex tricks and patterns can be flown.

Many pilots also fly four-line (or "quad-line") kites, which are controlled with a pair of joystick-like handles, each with two lines attached. Skilled use of these handles allows a quad-line kite to achieve tricks that are difficult or impossible with a dual-line kite.

Other aspects of sport kiting includes "power kites" which can be used to tow wheeled buggies or surfboards (kitesurf).