Some of the most dominant figures in international sailing today are heading for Abu Dhabi to battle for honours in the ISAF 2015 World Cup Final next week.
Among the world and Olympic champions who will be in action at the five-day regatta taking place from 28 October to 1 November, none are currently more on top of their sport than Australia’s Mat Belcher.
The 2014 World Cup gold medallist and 2012 Olympic gold medallist captured his sixth successive world title in partnership with fellow-Aussie Will Ryan at the recently concluded 470 World Championships.
With Belcher at the helm, the pair will now start as firm favourites in Abu Dhabi to repeat their World Cup success in the UAE capital 12 months ago.
Also back on a gold medal course in Abu Dhabi will be Belgium’s Evi Van Acker, the 2014 World Cup final gold medallist and 2012 Olympic bronze medallist who has a particular liking for the venue.
After capturing the womens’ laser radial World Cup crown last year, leading from start to finish, she described her appearance in the UAE as, “one of the best sailing weeks I have had in my life.”
image Credit Sailing Energy/ISAF.
Abu Dhabi, growing in status as a top international sailing venue, is staging the climax of the prestigious annual series of Olympic sailing for elite and professional sailors for a second year. More than 150 competitors from 39 countries are taking part.
The battle for World Cup final places has produced plenty of spectacular competition since the first of five qualifying regattas was held in Melbourne, Australia last December. Among the first to seal their trip to Abu Dhabi was world No.1 laser sailor Tom Burton who topped the class to complete a hat-trick of gold medal wins in Melbourne. He will start as favourite in the UAE capital to clinch the World Cup crown, and a share of a $220,000 prize fund.
Croatia’s Sime Fantela and Igor Marenic will be looking to recreate the performance from the French qualification regatta held in Hyères in April. Fantela and Marenic were dominant in the Men’s 470 and stormed to a relatively easy victory in a world class fleet. They will have their eyes focused on top spot in Abu Dhabi.
Great Britain was next on the World Cup qualifying trail. Among those who came through from Weymouth and Portland were the British pairing of Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark who snatched the gold medal in the Women’s 470 by beating Aleh and Powrie, reversing the result from the 2012 Olympics.
The final qualifier took place in Qingdao, China last month. Not surprisingly, Chinese competitors were in sparkling form, among them Dongshuang Zhang who moved up to No.8 in the ISAF Laser Radial world rankings.
Four days of intensely competitive World Cup final sailing in Abu Dhabi will unfold for spectators, and a worldwide ISAF television audience of millions, in the waters around Lulu Island off the corniche.
Featuring eight of the ten classes chosen for the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Competitions in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as well as kitesurfing, the ISAF Sailing World Cup has attracted more than 2,000 leading sailors from over 75 nations over its seven-year history.
The final in Abu Dhabi is organised by ISAF, the International Sailing Federation’s, and Abu Dhabi Sailing & Yacht Club (ADSYC), with the support of the UAE Sailing & Rowing Federation (UAE SARF), Abu Dhabi Sports Council and Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi).
The final day at ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao was filled with tension as the Medal Races decided the podium places, Rio 2016 Olympic qualification spots and Abu Dhabi World Cup Final positions.
Alongside this, sailors in the top three in each fleet receive a share of the 150,000 Euro prize fund.
Light wind and strong current has been a regularity throughout the week with those reading the conditions to full effect reaping the rewards. A 5-7 south eastern breeze made for a tense finale with sailors aiming to leave nothing on the water.
Chinese sailors dominated the day taking gold in the Men’s 470, Finn, Laser Radial and the Men’s and Women’s RS:X. Meanwhile, Singapore’s Justin Liu and Denise Lim in the Nacra 17, Laser sailor Lorenzo Chiavarini (GBR) and Japan’s Women’s 470 team took the spoils in their fleets.
Nacra 17
Singapore’s Justin Liu and Denise Lim stylishly wrapped up gold in the Nacra 17 with a Medal Race victory. It was their tenth race win of the week and with gold, they have qualified Singapore for a Rio 2016 Nacra 17 spot.
The pair revelled in Qingdao’s light air and with conditions in the Medal Race similar to the days prior, the odds were in their favour. Liu and Lim worked their way through the fleet during the Medal Race and finished 51 seconds clear of Japan’s Hiroki Goto and Wakako Tabata.
Throughout the week the Singaporeans remained coy about their chances, not taking anything for granted. When they crossed the finish there was visible sense of a relief that was quickly overtaken by joy as they let the celebrations commence.
“It’s amazing,” said Liu through a beaming smile. “There were so many challenges to make it here and to try and qualify the country. To be able to do it is amazing. It’ll be our first Olympics so there is so much to look forward to.”
Lim added, “We sailed the conditions quite well, and with our coaches help, he helped us a lot with the current and the wind changes and I think that gave us an advantage over the rest.”
Whilst the Singaporeans can look forward, the teams from China, Hong Kong, Japan and Thailand were understandably disappointed. A world cup silver and bronze for Zijin Wen and Rubei Yuan (CHN) and Tat Choi Fung and Yu Ting Chan (HKG) were mere consolation with Olympic dreams filling their head in advance of the competition.
Japan’s Goto and Tabata had beaten their main rivals in several key regattas building up to Qingdao but the big breeze that they excel in failed to kick in in Qingdao as they finished fifth overall.
Nonetheless, Goto remained complimentary to the Singaporeans and has an eye on the future, “I have to take my hat off to the Singapore team. It was light wind and they totally dominated. They sailed the wind so well.
“My aim was to inspire the next generation of Nacra sailors, and the next Olympic Sailing [Competition] will be in my home town of Enoshima. I will be there, hopefully as a coach because I have young people asking me to help them, so this is good. I’m not happy now but we have to look to the future for everyone.”
The Olympic Games aims to inspire generation after generation and with key inspirations such as Hiroki Goto driving the sport and multihull sailing forward, watch out for a high flying Japanese Nacra 17 team at Tokyo 2020.
Men’s and Women’s 470
Meanwhile in the Women’s 470 there was cause for Japanese merriment as the team snapped up gold and silver respectively.
Ai Kondo Yoshida and Miho Yoshioka (JPN) held onto their overnight lead whilst a second in the Medal Race promoted Akiyo Yamaguchi and Eri Hatayama (JPN) into silver medal position.
As Yamaguchi and Hatayama crossed the finished line there were smiles stretched across their faces with high fives aplenty. Kondo Yoshida and Yoshioka followed behind them in third and revelled in their compatriots’ celebrations with grins creeping in before they finished.
It was a tense race in the light breeze for all the competitors and the points were close going into the race. Xiaoli Wang and Lizhu Huang (CHN) were breathing down the Kondo Yoshida and Yoshioka’s necks but the Japanese experience shone through as they remained calm as Kondo Yoshida explained, “Today there was a two point lead for us against the Chinese team who were our closest rivals. We got the win and we are very very happy.”
Shasha Chen and Haiyan Gao (CHN) completed the Women’s 470 podium.
It was a three way shoot out in the Men’s 470 between the Austrian, Chinese and Spanish teams. Four points separated them going into the Medal Race and it was China’s Hao Lan and Chao Wang who prevailed.
Lan and Wang finished second in the Medal Race compared to overnight leader David Bargehr and David Mahr’s fourth (AUT) and Onan Barreiros and Juan Curbelo Cabrera’s (ESP) third. As a result the Austrians were made to settle for silver, one point behind the Chinese with the Spaniards rounding off the podium.
“There is a little bit of a mixture between happy and disappointed,” explained Bargehr. “But overall the happy feeling is superior because we won a medal here and it’s always good to win a medal.
“We knew that points were very close with not much separation so we knew we had to sail a really good Medal Race to win this event.
“After the race you are always more clever than before, but it was a really tight Medal Race and it could have gone either way. And always you need a little bit of luck in a Medal Race.”
Laser and Laser Radial
The advantage going into the Laser Medal Race belonged to Great Britain’s Lorenzo Chiavarini as he owned a 17 point lead. He delivered the goods with a sixth place finish to complete a comfortable victory.
“I was a bit nervous coming into the day,” explained the British sailor, “but once I got out on the water everything started calming down.
“The race track was shorter so the gains were less today. Tiredness was also another point of the day but for me it was important to keep Tonci [Stipanovic] around me and not let him go too far.”
Croatia’s Stipanovic needed the to go massively in his favour if he was to overthrow Chiavarini. The British sailor controlled him and kept the Croatian behind him throughout the race with Stipanovic finishing second overall.
The Medal Race victory went the way of Pavlos Kontides (CYP) who moved up into the bronze medal position.
Chinese Laser Radial sailor Dongshuang Zhang loves sailing in Qingdao. She took her third consecutive victory at the event with another professional performance.
Zhang finished second in the Medal Race which confirmed her as gold medallist after the second placed Isabella Bertold (CAN) finished eighth overall.
Despite finishing 17 points clear of her rivals, taking another World Cup gold medal, 12,000 Euros in prize money and booking a spot at the ISAF Sailing World Cup Final Zhang was less than impressed with her performance as she explained, “The race went very well, better than yesterday. I’m not very satisfied with the regatta, I made a lot of small mistakes which I will work on little by little.”
Men’s and Women’s RS:X
It was double gold for China in the Men’s and Women’s RS:X with Chunzuang Liu and Jiahui Wu clinching gold in their respected fleets.
Wu led the Women’s RS:X fleet from the first day but heading into the Medal Race Peina Chen (CHN) was firmly in contention, just six points off the leader. Chen finished one place ahead of Wu in the Medal Race but it wasn’t enough to topple her as Wu sealed gold.
“There was little wind and a lot of pumping,” explained Wu after racing, “but I am very happy with the win. It was a great competition for me and the less wind suited my style.”
Pei Ling Chen (CHN) took the Medal Race victory to pick up bronze.
Experienced Spanish racer Blanca Manchon finished in eighth but was upbeat after racing with lots of lessons learnt from Qingdao’s challenging current, “I had two OCS this week, I was risking a lot because I came here for training so it was good for me to try a little risk on the starts, but with the currents it was hard to be on the line and sometimes I just made a mistake. If I didn’t have that second OCS I would have finished third so I am happy.
“This place is totally different to Spain. It’s funny. It’s a different culture and wind so it was good. There was not much wind but it was great for my training.”
Not much separated the Men’s RS:X fleet throughout the Medal Race with tensions high but Liu managed to put himself in a good position. A second place confirmed his gold medal and upon crossing the finish line he let out a triumphant, “woohoo.”
Once ashore Liu said, “I performed really well, better than normal. Over the regatta there has been good and bad, but overall it has been good and I have learned a lot. We have made great progress as a nation in windsurfing with tough exercises.”
Bing Ye (CHN) and Zhichao Zang (CHN) complete the podium.
Sailing World Cup Qingdao
Finn
China’s Lei Gong overthrew Luwen Shen in the Finn to snap up a hard earned gold medal.
Gong and Shen battled hard throughout the week with very little separating them on the race track. The advantage belonged to Shen going into the Medal Race as he led Gong by five points.
However it was Gong’s experience that shone through in the Medal Race as he took a convincing bullet with Shen sailing through in fourth. One point was the difference at the end of the day.
For China’s Finn team it was a job well done throughout the week as they booked the nation a spot at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Attention now turns to the ISAF Sailing World Cup Final that is scheduled to take place from 27 October to 1 November 2015 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
The best placed Asian and International sailors from ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao have booked their spot on the start line with the remaining sailors to be invited based on the ISAF World Sailing Rankings that will be released on 21 September.
Another day of light breeze and testing current made for minimal separations across the nine fleets competing at ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao.
After a short wait for wind the 320 competitors from 32 nations took to the water mid-afternoon for some tight racing where any mistake was duly punished.
With the competition reaching the midway point the leader boards are shaping up nicely ahead of Sunday’s Medal Races where Abu Dhabi World Cup final spots will be awarded, prize money distributed, world cup medals presented and Rio 2016 Olympic Games spots snapped up.
Sailing World Cup Qingdao
Laser and Laser Radial
Very little separated the Laser and Laser Radial fleets with packed mark roundings and bunched finishes a common occurrence across the two races in each fleet.
Winning races in any sport is a wonderful feeling. Knowing you’ve controlled a pack of racers behind you generates positivity but in sailing, it’s a different game. Across a series of races consistency ultimately pays and France’s Jean Baptiste Bernaz has proved this point with a pair of fourths to promote him to second overall, just three points off Lorenzo Chiavarini (GBR).
“It was light and shifty, all day,” Baptiste Bernaz quickly summarised ashore after racing, “it was just like yesterday more or less. I had a four and four which is a good day, I think.”
And a good day it was indeed as the Frenchman advanced up the leader board but he knows exactly where he wants to be come Sunday evening, “I came here to win,” he exclaimed. “I still have two days to do it in this fleet. It’s a good level with sailors from Croatia, Cyprus, Australia, Virgin Islands and Canada. There are many good sailors who know how to play these winds and I’m pretty happy to be second at the moment.”
Overnight leader Chiavarini was consistent on the day, but not the way he would have wanted it. A pair of 13th place finishes was enough for him to maintain his advantage but only just.
Tonci Stipanovic (CRO) was unable to fully start the regatta the way he wanted it with a 27th and a black flag coming from the first three races but things have picked up for the defending champion. He managed to secure an 11th and second to move into third spot.
The day’s race wins in the Laser went the way of Ryan Palk (AUS), who is 18th overall and the seventh placed Pavlos Kontides (CYP).
It’s tight at the top in the Laser Radial with two points splitting Manami Doi (JPN), Dongshuang Zhang (CHN) and Isabella Bertold (CAN).
Out on the race track both races were exceedingly close. The 28-boat fleet could barely be separated with the competitors looking to gain an edge any which way possible.
A matter of metres separated the competitors at the finish which made for some nerves on the race track. However the leading trio sailed well with control. Doi secured a 5-4, Zhang a 6-1 and Bertold a 2-9.
If Doi, Zhang and Bertold continue to post strong scores, the chasing pack will struggle to make the gains on the penultimate day ahead of Sunday’s Medal Race.
Sailing World Cup Qingdao
Men’s and Women’s 470
Spain’s Onan Barreiros and Juan Curbelo Cabrera lead the way in the Men’s 470 after a good day on the water, heading back ashore with a bullet and a third to show for their efforts.
They are being pushed by China’s Hao Lan and Chao Wang who lay in second overall, but it is in the middle of the pack where it starts to get interesting.
Fighting for an Olympic qualification place are the Korean and Thailand teams. Currently with their noses in front are Korea’s Chang Ju Kim and Ji-Hoon Kim who managed to mark off both ends of the spectrum with a discarded OCS in the first race before coming back to take a bullet in the next.
Talking of the first race, crew Ji-Hoon Kim said, “We had some pressure and our minds and we were a little bit nervous. We could not see the line and we just pulled the main sheet and we had an OCS.”
Kim continued, “Our second race we were fast, and now I think we have a chance for Olympic qualification. We will try hard tomorrow, but it will still be very hard. But I am happy with our sailing.”
One place behind the two Kim’s are Thailand’s Navee Thamsoontorn and Nut Butmarasri who ended with a 13th and a discarded 16th.
It is still all too play for on the Olympic qualification front with Korea’s Daeyoung Kim and Hyun-Ho Yun and Singapore’s Darren Choy and Jeremiah Yeo hunting the two teams just ahead of them in the standings.
In a three way shootout between Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong in the Women’s 470 for Olympic qualification, it is Priscilla Low and Shu Xian Lee of Singapore who have the initiative.
Low and Lee are ahead of Malaysia’s Nuraisyah Jamil and Norashikin Mohd Sayed and Hong Kong’s Catherine Carroll and Chi Han Yau.
Despite a 15th in the first race of the day, which they discard, the Singaporean pair came back with a sixth in the second race to stay above their Rio qualification rivals.
Sitting above them, and all others in the fleet, are Japan’s Ai Kondo Yoshida and Miho Yoshioka who finally took the bullet they have been so close to all regatta. They stand top with ten points.
Taking the first bullet of the day were the second placed Xiaoli Wang and Lizhu Huang of China. Adding a third to the bullet means they have 15 points, just two ahead of compatriots Sasha Chen and Haiyan Gao.
Men’s and Women’s RS:X
Tied at the top of the Men’s RS:X are China’s Bing Ye and Tao Li who both sit on 37 points. Ye took a bullet in the second race which was sandwiched between a fifth and eighth which all count on his scorecard. Li however posted a 14th in the second race which he discards. Fortunately for Li he scored two seconds to keep in touch with his compatriot.
Overnight leader Mateo Sanz Lanz of Switzerland slips down to fifth on the leader board.
China’s Jiahui Wu continues to lead the Women’s RS:X with a third, fifth and sixth place finish which she discards. Wu tops the leader board with 17 points.
Closest rival to Wu is China’s Peina Chen on 23 points which was helped by a bullet from the first race, followed by a third and a discarded seventh.
Spain’s Blanca Manchon is the nearest challenger to the Chinese sailors, lying in fourth overall on 45 points.
Sailing World Cup Qingdao
Finn and 49er
Lei Gong (CHN) and Luwen Shen (CHN) jockeyed for position in the Finn fleet as they shared the bullets on the third day of competition. Gong holds the advantage at the top of pack on eight points but Shen remains within touching distance on ten points.
The third placed He Chen (CHN) has shown he has the beating of the duo after he won the second race of the week but with an OCS his discard, he can’t take too many risks if he is to overtake the leading pair.
In the 49er, Kim Sungwok and Yang Hoyeob (KOR) are tied on ten points with Bongjim Chae and Kim Dongwook (KOR). The teams have four race victories apiece across the eight races over three days.
Sailing World Cup Qingdao
Nacra 17
It’s hard to bet against Justin Liu and Denise Lim (SIN) in the Nacra 17 with the pair making it look easy in the light Qingdao air.
Liu and Lim’s lightweight frames have seemingly given them a strong advantage in the Nacra 17 in Qingdao and after a 1-3-1 they have opened up a ten point advantage over Hong Kong’s Tat Choi Fung and Yu Ting Chan.
Across the week the Singaporean pair have won seven of nine races, dominating the fleet. On the race track itself Liu and Lim have found themselves behind at the first mark on several occasions but continuously push their way up through the bunch for win after win.
With the event acting as the Asian Nacra 17 Rio 2016 Olympic qualification regatta, another good day could see them book their spot on the start line and plan their road to Rio.
Racing at ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao resumes at 12:00 local time on Saturday 19 September.
Sailors and officials were welcomed to the 2015 edition of ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao at the opening ceremony on Tuesday 15 September.
More than 300 sailors from 32 nations have completed registration and are ready to race out of the venue of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Sailing Competition.
ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao is the fifth regatta of the 2015 series and is the final qualification regatta in the build up to the 2015 Abu Dhabi ISAF Sailing World Cup Final. Whoever wins in each fleet will book their spot on the Abu Dhabi start line and the competition is set to be fierce over four days of fleet racing and Sunday’s Medal Race.
ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao Opens
Alongside Abu Dhabi qualification spots, sailors will be gunning for a share of the 150,000 Euro prize fund as well as an ISAF Sailing World Cup medal. For Asian sailors in the Men’s and Women’s 470, Finn and Nacra 17, Qingdao holds extra significance as it is the qualifier for Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition. Across the four fleets, sailors from China, Hong Kong, India, Iran, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand will all be aiming to book a Rio 2016 spot.
Ahead of racing, sailors had a few final moments of relaxation at the opening ceremony and were treated to a cultural dance, traditional song from a local children’s choir as well as local cuisine.
During the opening ceremony ISAF Technical Delegate, Antonio González de la Madrid said, “On behalf of ISAF I would like to thank the city of Qingdao for the incredible welcome that you have shown all the sailors and officials who have come here.
“It is the third time Qingdao has hosted an ISAF Sailing World Cup regatta and it is very important for ISAF to continue our strong relationship with the Chinese Yachting Association and the Qingdao Municipal Government.
“The organizing committee have done an outstanding job in preparation for ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao and we have more than 230 sailors from 32 nations in attendance, highlighting the strength of the event as it continues to grow.
ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao Opens
“This week, the sailors will be aiming to qualify for the ISAF Sailing World Cup Final in Abu Dhabi, claim a share of the prize fund as well as sealing an ISAF Sailing World Cup medal.
“Alongside this, ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao is an important step on the road to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Asian sailors in the Men’s and Women’s 470, Finn and Nacra 17 will be aiming to qualify their nation for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
“The Olympic Games can leave an amazing legacy within each host nation and it’s excellent to see the legacy of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games lives strong here, in Qingdao, China’s Sailing City.”
With the forecast set to be fair for the opening day of racing on Wednesday 16 September sailors will take to the water from 10:30 onwards in preparation for a 12:00 local time start.
More than 240 sailors from 37 nations will be in Qingdao, China from 14 – 20 September 2015 for the next ISAF Sailing World Cup instalment.
On offer will be world class racing across nine Olympic fleets, Abu Dhabi ISAF Sailing World Cup Final spots, Rio 2016 Olympic Games places, a share of the $150,000 USD prize fund as well as World Cup medals.
As the Asian continental qualification regatta for the Men’s and Women’s 470, Finn and Nacra 17 the competition in Qingdao is set to be fierce with a depth of international sailing talent within the respective fleets. Alongside this, sailors will be aiming to book their place on the start line of the Abu Dhabi ISAF Sailing World Cup Final at the end of October.
Dongshuang Zhang
China’s Aichen Wang will be the man to beat in the Men’s RS:X after he dominated the Aquece Rio – International Sailing Regatta 2015, the Olympic test event. Under the leadership of Beijing 2008 gold medallist Tom Ashley (NZL), Wang led from start to finish and looked untouchable.
Following a silver medal at ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao in 2014, Wang will be aiming to go one better to pick up his first World Cup gold.
Mateo Sanz (SUI) will head into the Men’s RS:X competition off the back of a solid result at the test event that saw him qualify for the Swiss Sailing Team. As well as aiming to qualify for the ISAF Sailing World Cup Final, Sanz is using Qingdao as preparation for the RS:X Worlds, an Olympic qualifier, “I’m looking forward to the event because it’s going to be my last regatta before the Worlds in Oman, but not as a peak event.
“My next step is to qualify the nation for the Olympic Games in Oman as the next six countries will qualify, so I want to be there.
“I expect a physical regatta with light wind where we will have to pump a lot, but everything could be. I haven’t done anything special for this event, as my team only decided to go short time ago – but [I have done] water training combined with endurance and strength sessions.”
A fleet of 30 will race in Qingdao with Wang’s and Sanz’s main threats likely to come from Spain’s Joan Cardona, Hong Kong’s Michael Cheng, Italy’s Daniele Benedetti and Lithuania’s Juozas Bernotas.
The Women’s RS:X fleet will be spearheaded by a strong Chinese contingent that often revel in the light conditions that Qingdao has to offer.
China’s Jiali Sun enjoyed the conditions in 2014, taking a solid victory over Russia’s Olga Maslivets. Sun returns for the 2015 edition aiming to stake her claim and qualify for the Abu Dhabi World Cup Final.
Alongside Sun will be 20 other competitors aiming for a share of the prize fund, a World Cup Final spot and a World Cup honour. Peina Chen (CHN) will be looking to recapture the title she won at the inaugural World Cup Qingdao in 2013 whilst 2013 ISAF Youth Worlds gold medallist Yunxiu Lu (CHN) will be searching for her first major senior title.
Tonci Stipanovic (CRO) will be aiming to make it three victories from three at ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao having controlled the 2013 and 2014 editions. Stipanovic mastered Qingdao’s strong current and light breeze at the previous editions and with a wealth of knowledge; it will be hard for the chasing pack of 39 to catch him.
Tonci Stipanovic
One man with a strong chance of overthrowing Stipanovic is Cyprus’ Pavlos Kontides. The Cypriot, who won his country’s first Olympic medal ever at London 2012, has finished second to Stipanovic on both occasions in Qingdao. Kontides has come close but the Croatian has always managed to find a way to win. Will 2015 see a different result? Only time will tell.
The fleet is packed full of exceptional Laser sailors who will all be gunning for the podium. Jean Baptiste Bernaz (FRA), Wannes Van Laer (BEL), Bruno Fontes (BRA), Karl Martin Rammo (EST), Cy Thompson (ISV) and Colin Cheng (SIN) all have the capabilities of getting it right on the night and posing a challenge.
Like Stipanovic, China’s Dongshuang Zhang is undefeated at ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao. At the 2013 edition she match raced Tatiana Drozdovskaya (BLR) to the back of the pack to take gold, whilst in 2014 she came out on top in a four way shoot out for gold between Tina Mihelic (CRO), Sara Winther (NZL) and Drozdovskaya.
The Belorussian and New Zealand sailors return to Qingdao in a bid to defeat Zhang. Further sailors aiming to put themselves in the mix include Ashley Stoddart (AUS), Isabella Bertold (CAN), Alison Young (GBR), Manami Doi (JPN) and Elizabeth Sin (SIN).
Racing across the nine Olympic fleets is scheduled to commence on 16 September with Medal Races bringing the regatta to a close on 20 September.
The stakes at ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao, taking place from 14-20 September 2015, will be raised with Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition places on the line.
As the Asian continental qualification regatta for the Men’s and Women’s 470, Finn and Nacra 17 the competition in Qingdao is set to be fierce with a depth of international sailing talent within the respective fleets. Alongside Olympic qualification, more than 240 sailors from 37 nations will be gunning for a share of the $150,000 USD prize fund, ISAF Sailing World Cup Final spots as well as a World Cup medal.
Qingdao will be the final chance for Asian Nacra 17 sailors to qualify for Rio 2016 after 13 spots were distributed at the 2014 ISAF Worlds and 2015 Nacra 17 Worlds. The 470 and Finn sailors will have another opportunity later on in the year at their respective World Championships.
2014 ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao
The last time an Asian crew, who weren’t representing the host nation, sailed in an Olympic multihull competition was Seoul 1988 as Naoyuki Ogawa and Takashi Tamura flew the Japanese flag on their Tornado. Fast forward to 2015 and crews from China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and Thailand have an opportunity to qualify for an Olympic Games outright and on merit.
Japan’s Hiroki Goto and Wakako Tabata arguably come into the regatta as the pair to beat. Goto and Tabata finished ahead of Justin Liu and Denise Lim (SIN) by two spots at the 2015 Nacra 17 Worlds and five clear of Hong Kong’s Tat Choi Fund and Yu Ting Chan.
Goto has hopes of qualifying for Rio but his intention and drive is to inspire the youth of the country to sail multihulls ahead of Tokyo 2020, a home Olympic Games.
“There is almost no multihull sailing in Japan whatsoever,” commented Goto. “We have a home [Olympic] Games in Tokyo and we need someone there. It would be ideal to get someone in the Games before. I wanted someone to start but no one came forward so I went for it.
“The change to the qualification is good. It would be so tough otherwise for example Africa and Asia to qualify for the Olympics.
“I really hope that I can encourage the younger generation to take up multihull. I am 42 and I want to show if I can do it, they can definitely do it.”
Goto’s hopes could turn into reality in Qingdao but the Singaporean and Hong Kong teams will provide a real challenge whilst a contingent of four Chinese teams will benefit from knowing their home waters.
2014 ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao
Whoever takes that spot will also book their ticket to the Abu Dhabi ISAF Sailing World Cup Final making it a double whammy from Qingdao.
The Men’s 470 will be one of the most hotly contested battles with eight nations, China, Hong Kong, India, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand all battling for one Olympic spot.
Singapore’s Darren Choy, who will be sailing with Jeremiah Yeo, has had a feel of what the Olympics is like after competing at the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games and is aiming for the real deal. “The Youth Olympic Games made me want to experience the Olympic Games and feel the true spirit in the games because it is the highest prestige in the sport and to compete for Singapore would be an honour,” said Choy.
He continued, “The event is a really important one for us. It is our only ticket now to the 2016 Rio Olympics, as well as the opportunity to show that we are worth sponsoring and funding. I would love to qualify as this would give me a taste on what the Games are like and to experience it would be a dream for me.”
Compared to those around them, Choy and Yeo are two of the youngest sailors in the fleet and miss out on some big time experience that their rivals hold and Choy was quick to identify his main rivals for Qingdao when asked, “It would definitely have to be the top Chinese and Korean teams as they have been on the Olympic circuit for many years, thus have a lot of experience. We’ve been working on some speed technique and race preparation in Singapore and I’m aiming to be the top Asian nation, and to qualify Singapore for the Rio Olympics.”
ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao
China will be represented by 13 Men’s 470 teams in Qingdao and with a strong presence on the start line, could be viewed as the favourites to take the Olympic spot. However, in a fleet of 32 that also features top 470 sailors such as David Bargehr and Lukas Mahr (AUT) and Onan Barreiros and Juan Curbelo Cabrera (ESP), anything can happen.
In the Women’s 470, the fight will be between Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. The strong teams from China and Japan qualified at the Santander 2014 ISAF Worlds making it a three horse race for qualification.
As for the battle to Abu Dhabi, defending champions Mengxi Wei and Yani Xu (CHN) return to defend their title but will face stiff competition from Angela Pumariega and Patricia Cantero Reina (ESP) and Ai Kondo Yoshida and Miho Yoshioka (JPN).
In the Finn fleet, eight boats will take to the start line and include seven Chinese sailors and one Iranian. The odds will be heavily stacked towards the Chinese sailors with regards to the one Olympic spot on offer and the Abu Dhabi World Cup final spot but Iran’s Ahmad Ahmadi will fight hard across the week.
Racing across the nine Olympic fleets is scheduled to commence on 16 September with Medal Races bringing the regatta to a close on 20 September.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil is set to welcome 339 sailors from 52 nations for the Aquece Rio – International Sailing Regatta 2015, the Olympic test event, from 15-22 August 2015.
The Aquece Rio is the second sailing test event in preparation for the Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition and sailors will be looking to stamp their authority one year out from the largest sporting event in the world.
Sailing’s test event often acts as an indicator into who will be on the podium at the Olympic Games itself. In the build up to London 2012, the one year to go test event saw 18 eventual Olympic medallists finish on the podium with the remaining podium finishers demonstrating the attributes that it takes to become an Olympic medallist.
Rio 2016 Olympic Games
49er sailors Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen (AUS) were one of four crews who won the London test event before claiming an emphatic gold at the main event and they’ll be looking to set a similar precedent in Rio even though they’ve had a mixed year.
After a silver medal at ISAF Sailing World Cup Hyères followed by a couple of results off the podium, including a fourth place at the 49er Open European Championship most recently, the pair are looking forward to build on their performance at the Test Event.
“The European Champs were the last event for us in Europe this year. After a second at the World Cup in Hyeres and sixth in Weymouth we were looking to try and get back up on to the podium, which unfortunately did not happen after a bad last day and dropping from first into fourth. But reflecting on the event as a whole, I think it was really good for us to sail well there, all but the last day, which gives us a lot of confidence for Rio in August,” Outteridge said.
Rio 2014 Test Event – Aquece Rio Day 7-4. photo credit ISAF
Since their victory at London 2012 Outteridge and Jensen have taken somewhat of a back seat as their training partners and Olympic silver medallists Peter Burling and Blair Tuke (NZL) commenced an unbeaten 49er run that includes 2014 test event gold, two world titles and four ISAF Sailing World Cup golds.
Burling and Tuke will have the favourites tag pinned on them during the test event and will look to continue their good form.
The Aquece Rio 49er fleet will feature 20 boats, the same number that will be present on the Rio 2016 startline ensuring perfect preparation for all teams involved.
Whilst focus can easily be put solely on the Australian and Kiwi teams the fleet is full of exceptional talent that have the capabilities to take gold.
Nico Delle Karth and Nikolaus Resch (AUT) took gold at ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami at the turn of the year and will pose a strong threat across the week. Denmark’s Beijing 2008 Olympic gold medallist Jonas Warrer, sailing with Anders Thomsen has the experience and will be at the top of the pack throughout the week.
In addition, John Pink and Stu Bithell (GBR), Manu Dyen and Stephane Christidis (FRA), Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern (IRL) and Erik Heil and Thomas Ploessel (GER) will all be targeting the podium.
The Aquece Rio – International Sailing Regatta allows the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) to evaluate and make key decisions in advance of making the final decisions that will govern the Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition.
Six race courses will be tested throughout the week, three outside of Guanabara Bay and three inside. Courses outside include Pai, Copacabana and Niteroi whilst the inside courses are Pão de Açúcar, Ponte and Escola Naval. All will be tested throughout the week by the ten Olympic sailing events. Click here to view the racing areas.
Like the 49er, the 49erFX will feature 20 boats at Rio 2016 and with 19 boats on the test event start line conditions will be similar to Games time.
Rio 2014 Test Event – Aquece Rio Day 7-2. photo credit ISAF
Brazil’s Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze took gold at the 2014 test event and will be favourites to take another gold medal. Joining them in the fleet will be 2013 world champions Alex Maloney and Molly Meech (NZL), the consistent Danish duo Ida Marie Nielsen and Marie Olsen as well as Italians Giulia Conti and Francesca Clapcich (ITA).
The Finn fleet will see 20 competitors on the start line. All eyes will be on the in-form Giles Scott (GBR). Scott is on a run of 11 straight victories in ranked regattas, including the 2014 test event, and will be hard to beat on the Rio waters that he’s become accustomed to. Aiming to upset the run will be Olympic silver medallist Jonas Hoegh Christensen (DEN), bronze medallist Jonathan Lobert (FRA) and home nation favourite Jorge Zarif (BRA).
The Men’s and Women’s RS:X fleets will also serve up some strong competition. 2014 Aquece Rio gold medallists Dorian van Rijsselberge (NED) and Charline Picon (FRA) return to Rio aiming to further demonstrate they are the pair to beat in the Men’s and Women’s windsurfer.
However, gunning to put their mark on things in the men’s fleet will be Nick Dempsey (GBR), Pierre Le Coq (FRA), Byron Kokkalanis (GRE), Nimrod Mashiah (ISR) and Pawel Tarnowski (POL). Leading the charge in the Women’s RS:X will be Blanca Manchon (ESP), Bryony Shaw (GBR), Maayan Davidovich (ISR), Flavia Tartaglini (ITA) and Lilian de Geus (NED).
Racing is scheduled to commence at 13:00 on Saturday 15 August with racing concluding on Saturday 22 August.
ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth and Portland wrapped up on Sunday with ten Medal Races deciding the podium finishers, Abu Dhabi World Cup Final qualifiers and prize money recipients.
The day started off light from a northern direction with the Nacra 17 fleet getting the first racing in. Following a short postponement whilst the wind shifted the race action got going again and culminated in some tense Medal Race action.
Giles Scott (GBR) kept Josh Junior (NZL) at bay in the Finn to extend his unbeaten run. There was just six points of separation in advance of the Medal Race and the Briton forced the Kiwi down the back of the pack in an intriguing race.
The pair were close throughout and both were penalised with penalty turns. With the pair at the rear of the fleet, Scott stayed on top of Junior to keep him at bay. Even though Junior came through in ninth compared to Scott’s tenth, it was enough for another Finn gold for Scott. Junior settled for silver with Andrew Murdoch (NZL) taking bronze.
“It feels good, I’m very relieved,” said a relaxed Scott, “It was a bit of a stressful race out there. Both Kiwis were right on my tail and I didn’t make it easy getting a yellow flag and a penalty turn.
“I thought I was in a good position up the first beat but then the jury came in and gave me a penalty, which really livened it up.
“It’s always a nice way to win to come out in a match race situation and come out on top but they can be a little bit stressful.”
Stu McNay and Dave Hughes (USA) sealed gold in style in the Men’s 470. They took a comfortable Medal Race victory to finish 21 points ahead of Mat Belcher and Will Ryan (AUS).
“It feels awesome and it is a good return for both of us and a great way to close it out,” commented Hughes.
McNay added, “We have been knocking on the door for a while and it is great when hard work pays off. We have been sailing a lot and working with each other a lot in this and other classes and it feels good to close out this regatta.”
The Americans have been consistently at the top of the pack throughout the week with only a 17th looking out of place from eight top five results.
Mat Belcher and Will Ryan (AUS) finished eighth in the Medal Race to take silver whilst Panagiotis Mantis and Pavlos Kagialis (GRE) advanced to third overall after Sime Fantela and Igor Marenic (CRO) finished tenth in the Medal Race.
The last time Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark (GBR) and Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie (NZL) did battle in a Women’s 470 Medal Race in Weymouth and Portland it was for the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Aleh and Powrie came out victorious then but the roles were reversed at the ISAF Sailing World Cup regatta. Mills and Clark stayed ahead of the Kiwis throughout the duration of the race and with their fourth, compared to the Kiwis fifth, they sealed the deal.
“I think we still feel gutted after the [Olympic] Games that we basically lost control of that race and it was a bit passive and there was no race,” commented Clark.
“We were definitely up for a fight today and having a good race and a good battle. We were strict on ourselves about what we wanted to do and we managed to pull it off.”
Aleh and Powrie were forced to make do with silver whilst bronze went the way of Tina Mrak and Veronika Macarol (SLO) following a second in the Medal Race.
Nacra 17
First up on the day, the Nacra 17 had to contend with some light breeze on a changing race course. It was a game of patience where calm heads were required.
Keeping their cool were overnight leaders Jason Waterhouse and Lisa Darmanin (AUS). The Aussies kept things tight and a third was enough for gold, “It’s been a pretty tricky week. We had pretty nice breeze for the first couple of days so that was fun but there were lots of shifts and big pressure lines out there.
“Today was a little bit of a change of pace, nice and slow but still just as stressful.”
Matias Buhler and Nathalie Brugger (SUI) were ready to pounce on the Aussies if they slipped up. Waiting in the wings they came through directly behind Waterhouse and Darmanin which handed them silver.
Darren Bundock and Nina Curtis (AUS) were in top form and came through in second. This was enough to promote them up into bronze medal position after Thomas Zajac and Tanja Frank (AUT), who occupied the final podium spot overnight, were on the course side at the start and penalised with 22 points added to their tally.
Italy’s Flavia Tartaglini won gold in the Women’s RS:X after overnight leader Isobel Hamilton (GBR) sailed the wrong course.
Instead of heading to the leeward gate in advance of the finish she missed it and went straight to the finish line. Upon noticing her error she was forced to retire which dropped her out of the medals.
For the Italian, it was pure joy and a second behind race winner Bryony Shaw (GBR) gave her gold, “It was a really tough race and we were really close with points,” commented Tartaglini.
“We were all really close so it was all about the Medal Race. It was really exciting. The four people who could win were all together around the first mark so it was a straight race between the four of us.”
With Hamilton out of the equation, Shaw’s bullet handed her a silver medal. Tuuli Petaja (FIN) came through in bronze.
Men’s RS:X
Great Britain’s Nick Dempsey rounded off a solid week of action with a third in the Medal Race to seal gold. The Briton rarely finished out of the top two throughout the week and was rightly rewarded.
“For me the event has really gone to plan. It’s been six or seven weeks since the last World Cup in Hyeres and I didn’t do so well there so I wanted to get out on the water and perform again,” commented Dempsey, silver medallist at London 2012.
Dempsey’s compatriot Tom Squires (GBR) had a medal sewn up in advance of the Medal Race with the colour to be decided. A ninth kept him in silver medal position, 18 points off Dempsey.
The battle for bronze was far from straight forward. A number of competitors had the opportunity to seize it but Cho Wonwoo (KOR) managed to get the job done with a bullet. For Mattia Camboni (ITA) it was heartbreak as he finished on the same points as the Korean, missing out via count back.
Laser Radial
The odds were heavily stacked in Marit Bouwmeester’s (NED) favour in the Laser Radial after a commanding week of racing.
She held a 15 point advantage over Evi Van Acker (BEL) and only a near disaster could have seen her knocked off her perch. She sailed well, finishing fourth which was more than enough for gold.
“It has been a really good week for me,” commented Bouwmeester. “I had some steady results and I was happy to take it in today during the Medal Race.
“I had five first places and two seconds and that was my best scorecard ever, so I am very pleased with that, that’s results wise but todays sailing was a little less brilliant and still a lot to work on.”
Van Acker took the Medal Race victory to confirm silver.
The race for bronze was little bit more tense with plenty of equations possible. Alison Young (GBR) held the spot overnight however a great performance from Anne-Marie Rindom catapulted her into bronze. Rindom’s second enabled her to remove Young who managed a seventh.
It was a tense finale in the Laser with toos and fros aplenty.
Anything was possible with a number of competitors mathematically in with a chance of taking the medals.
Germany’s Phillipp Buhl clinched gold in the nerve racking race. He finished in third but had Tom Burton (AUS) to thank for him taking gold after he finished in between Buhl and Matt Wearn (AUS). Wearn needed to make up one more spot to pick up gold but Burton held him off on the run to the finish ensuring he missed out by a single point, resulting in silver.
After racing Buhl said, “For myself, the discard in the second race [a 28] made it hard for me to get a medal but I managed to stay consistent through the week and in with a chance for the Medal Race. It turned out to be a gold one which is incredibly surprising.
“The World Cup in Weymouth has been better than ever of course for me. It’s been nice weather with sun and wind, and not too cold like other years. It’s been a good advert for the event and the venue.”
Tonci Stipanovic (CRO) had led overnight but struggled in the Medal Race, taking a seventh to complete the podium.
Pavlos Kontides (CYP) had work to do to push into the podium spots and could only sail his own game and rely on the results. He took the Medal Race victory but ended up three points shy of Stipanovic.
49erFX
Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze (BRA) took a stylish gold in the 49erFX by taking the Medal Race victory.
The Brazilians, World #1 and 2014 ISAF Rolex World Sailors of the Year, trailed overnight leaders Alex Maloney and Molly Meech (NZL) heading into the Medal Race. They concentrated all their efforts on themselves, sailing their own race from the front.
Not worrying about the pack behind them they took the bullet by 39 seconds and had an anxious wait after they took the bullet. Victory was confirmed when Maloney and Meech crossed the line in ninth.
On the day Kunze said, “We could have finished anywhere from first to fourth today depending on the positions of the Medal Race. We thought we had to put about four or five boats between us and the Kiwis and we weren’t sure at the end if we had done it and we were just waiting for them to finish before we realised.
“Both us and the Kiwis had a good and pretty consistent week. We are really happy.”
Maloney and Meech picked up silver and Maloney was left frustrated after racing, “We just didn’t get the shift right today and we couldn’t stay with our competitors which was a bit of a mistake and we just let the Brazilians get away from us.
“It was a pretty nice week sailing in Weymouth, we got some pretty good races in but we had a disappointing Medal Race and we can learn lot from it.”
Spain’s Tamara Echegoyen and Berta Betanzos (ESP) completed the podium.
Starting the day with an 18 point cushion, New Zealand’s Peter Burling and Blair Tuke had a number of options of how they could tactically approach the Medal Race.
The Kiwi’s decided that staying close to their nearest rivals was the best way to go as Burling explained, “We had a little bit to do, but we had a little bit of a points gap on second so the game plan was to try and stay close to them, and we managed to put together a relatively solid result.”
Their chosen tactics worked, and their closest rivals were fellow countrymen and training partners Marcus Hansen and Josh Porebski who finished a place behind in seventh.
Burling was ‘stoked’ with the result and the gold medal, but was even happier that they had their mates standing next to them on the podium.
Taking the bullet and sealing bronze were Great Britain’s John Pink and Stuart Bithell.
Next up for the competitors is ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao which takes place from 14-20 September 2015.
Editors Notes
Video
Medal Races will be live from ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth and Portland on Sunday 14 June from 11:00 local time.
URL – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ8hlJyeqxk
Embed –
From 11:00 BST to 15:30 BST (10:00 UTC to 14:30 UTC) on Sunday 14 June, live Medal Races from ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth and Portland will be broadcast worldwide on YouTube.
In addition, the Medal Races will be live on ESPN3 in the USA, BBC Red Button and online in Great Britain, Sky in New Zealand and Neo Sports in India.
The ISAF Sailing World Cup is continuously striving to evolve and adapt to make the Olympic class races better for its competitors and spectators.
In Weymouth and Portland, ISAF have introduced some changes and are trialling others to ensure that the races are the best they can be through greater communication out on the water with the athletes.
Something that is being trialled is the use of radios between competitors and race officials. This has been in use already in big boat events such as the Farr 40 and Melges Class Worlds, but the trial introduction into the 470 class at the ISAF Sailing World Cup could be the first step to introducing the concept to all the Olympic classes.
The use of radios has been introduced on the request of coaches and came to fruition through ISAF’s cooperation with the Event organisers. Put into action on day two in Weymouth and Portland it has allowed the race committee to communicate better with all boats and help with the starting procedures.
Head of ISAF Sailing World Cup John Craig said, “This is an idea is to increase communications prior to racing between the race committee and athletes.
“Once the race has started it will enable all competitors in that race to know who started early which has significant impact on the tactics used in that race.
“This type of communication to competitors has been utilised significantly in other areas of the sport, particularly in big boat sailing, but it is a first time introduction to the Sailing World Cup.”
The hope for Craig and everyone involved in the Event is that this extra communication will prevent any possible confusion.
In advance of their first use, Germany’s Philipp Autenrieth thought that the introduction of radios would be a good thing saying, “It’s quite nice to have the radios, especially for general recalls, and it has worked for big boats so why not the Olympic classes.”
Philipp’s thoughts were confirmed by Australian Mat Belcher who said, “The radios were really great actually, especially pre-race. It was really good to have the information like nothing on the course, time delays and things like that.
“They said a couple of times it was all clear which was good to know I thought.
“The weight of the radios didn’t matter either and it was really clear. It was on my crew’s life jacket and he didn’t notice it really, and anything I couldn’t hear he would just relay to me.”
Belcher thought it was such a good idea that he even suggested using them for more sailor information other than just for the starting procedures, “Maybe they could even take it further, like dropping pumping flag would have been quite interesting or we are moving the mark to the right ten degrees, that kind of verbal information would have been helpful.”
The other change that has been introduced to all the classes at Weymouth and Portland are the numerical flag system for race starts.
It is quite simply a numbered flag system which gives competitors a countdown to the start of the races. An orange flag gives a three minute warning that the race officials are going to be beginning the countdown. A white flag with the number five indicates five minutes to the start, a blue with three indicates three minutes, a red two, a yellow one and finally a green to go.
Autenrieth believes the flag system has worked and is a good change from traditional flag system, “The flags are good, it definitely makes it easier for us, the public and the media.”
The public and the media were also factors in the changes being made to the Sailing World Cup. The changes aim to make the start easier to follow for everyone and will help stop confusion and will give the sailors a greater chance to focus on their tactics and race strategy which should make for stronger races.
Video
Medal Races will be live from ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth and Portland on Sunday 14 June from 11:00 local time.
URL – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ8hlJyeqxk
Embed –
It was a frustrating day for the competitors at ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth and Portland with a mischievous breeze dancing across the British waters.
Constantly changing, a sailable breeze never truly materialised. The Race Committee team on the Men’s 470 and Men’s RS:X race courses managed to get one race apiece away but the remaining classes were left frustrated with no racing.
The young French team of Guillaume Pirouelle and Valentin Sipan managed to take the Men’s 470 race victory with an astute performance. They took the lead from the off and at one point had opened up a lead in excess of two minutes.
A chasing pack closed the gap and passed the French team but they held on tight to seal the bullet. “It was quite light and shifty,” explained Pirouelle. “We didn’t know what would happen but we managed to get a few things right. We had quite a good start. We tacked immediately to take a right shift and after that we stayed focus on the race.
“It’s quite complicated for us because it’s only our third year in the 470. It’s a big event for us as well because we’re racing against the big sailors and we have to sail well at all times.”
Taking a bullet in a fleet that features the world’s leading Men’s 470 sailors such as Mat Belcher and Will Ryan (AUS), Luke Patience and Elliot Willis (GBR) and Sime Fantela and Igor Marenic (CRO) does not come around that often.
Pirouelle was pleased to finish ahead of them but knows there are a lot of hours of hard work ahead to reach their level, “It’s amazing to see them and sail with them. They are very good and I hope we will be like them in the next few years. Tomorrow I think it will be more windy. We are quite good in strong wind. We have to sail fast and we will see what happens in the different conditions.”
The French team sit 16th overall and just ten points off the Medal Race positions. Three Men’s 470 are scheduled for Saturday 13 June with plenty of points to play for.
New Zealand’s Paul Snow Hansen and Daniel Willcox followed behind the French pair by 38 seconds to take second and remain in the hunt for top honours. They sit second, nine points off leaders Stu McNay and Dave Hughes (USA).
Those around them used up their drop but for the Kiwis, a disastrous result on the third day of competition could have dented their chances as Willcox explained following a large bite of a fully loaded chicken wrap after racing, “The first race of the regatta we were black flagged so since then we used our discard up and have had to keep our consistency and keep some good results under our belt. We’ve managed to do that and we look to do that going forward as well.”
The Kiwis worked their way up the fleet throughout the race, moving up the ranks from 12th to second. Willcox continued, “It was a pretty tricky race and very changeable from the start to finish. We kind of had a trend to the right, like the forecast model said and we had to deal with the right shift with the pressure as well.
“We did a pretty good job. There were lots of snakes and ladders throughout the race so we were keeping our boat point towards the mark and doing the simple things right and it paid off quite well so we’re happy.”
Americans McNay and Hughes recorded a 17th, which they use as their drop. They continue to lead on nine points followed by the Kiwis on 16 and Mat Belcher and Will Ryan on 20.
Nick Dempsey (GBR) took the bullet in the Men’s RS:X race and as a result moves up to top spot. Tom Squires drops down from first overall to second following a sixth, which he discards.
Mattia Camboni (ITA) retains third overall but Brazil’s Ricardo Santos remains hot on his heels and is just two points off.
Three Men’s RS:X races are scheduled for the penultimate day of competition.
The action is scheduled to commence at 10:30 local time on Saturday 13 June for the penultimate day of the competition.
Video
Medal Races will be live from ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth and Portland on Sunday 14 June from 11:00 local time.
URL – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ8hlJyeqxk
Embed –
There were a few morning nerves amongst some of the competitors at ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth and Portland with the forecasted 30 knots never materialising ensuring a beautiful day of racing.
A north easterly breeze, not shy of a shift or two, came in at 14-17 knots ensuring another day of strong competition with a full complement of racing completed.
At the midway stage of the fleet racing, the leaderboards are starting to shake up and give an early indication as to who will come away with the ISAF Sailing World Cup medals, a share of the prize fund as well as an Abu Dhabi Final qualification spot.
Live Medal Races on Sunday – that will be available to view from 11:00 local time here – will bring the competition to a close.
Alex Maloney and Molly Meech (NZL) were the stand out performers in the 49erFX, taking a pair of bullets and a second.
The Kiwis move up from second to first overall and have a slender advantage over World #1 pair Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze (BRA).
“We had a really good day today. Everything kind of felt easy and we were going quite fast and that always helps,” smiled Meech. “It was quite good racing and everyone was going really fast. If you made a mistake you were going to get passed but if you didn’t, then you were always going to pass people.”
In advance of the docking out a few of the 49erFX sailors had helmets at the ready in anticipation of big breeze but things turned out a little differently as Meech explained, “Most of the weather forecasts today said we were expecting 30 knots. I know for our fleet most of the girls don’t handle that stuff so well so we were all nervous heading out. In the end it turned out to be a glamour day with 12 knots and really nice waves. It was perfect.”
Maloney and Meech are amongst the leading competitors in the 49erFX and have the potential and know how to medal at each event. Most recently they finished seventh at World Cup Hyeres and have been working hard to get back on the podium, “We’ve got a few things to work on for the rest of this regatta. Our starts have been a focus for us and things are starting to come together. We’ll look to push on from that and try to get a great result from this regatta.”
Grael and Kunze, 2014 ISAF Rolex World Sailors of the Year, are snapping at the heels of the Kiwis and trail by three points. They took the day’s other race victory and coupled with a second and a third remain firmly in the hunt.
Overnight leaders Maiken Foght Schütt and Anne-Julie Schütt (DEN) slip to third overall following a 6-(8)-4 scoreline.
Six fleet races remain in advance of Sunday’s Live Medal Races so anything can and will happen.
Victor Bergstrom and Victor Vasternas (SWE) have amassed three bullets from six races in the 49er and subsequently lead. They took the first two race victories on the second day and discard their 12th to sit on 23 points.
Marcus Hansen and Josh Porebski (NZL) claimed the days other race victory and are second overall on 26 points. Their compatriots Peter Burling and Blair Tuke (NZL) are third overall on 30 points.
The Women’s 470 also feature a couple of Kiwi girls topping the billing after a steady day of racing. Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie (NZL) lead the way by a single point over Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark (GBR) following a second and a fourth, which they discard.
“It was an okay day,” explained Aleh. “We weren’t really that happy with it as there were a few missed opportunities. The results are okay still but we’re still not that happy.”
After their opening day double bullets the Kiwis posted a second and fourth. “An okay day” for them, an outstanding day for others. But when you’re Olympic gold medallists racing on the same waters as your glory, standards remain high.
Aleh continued, “It’s great to be back here. It’s been three years since we’ve been here and it’s not changed that much. It’s nice to be back and everything’s really familiar. We spent so much time here last time that it’s like another home.
“I guess Weymouth is a lot like New Zealand. There’s the cold breeze and the cold water. It’s a lot like Takapuna where we sail at home. We’re all quite comfortable here. It’s been offshore for the last couple of days and we’ve always found that Weymouth is like home and we fit into it pretty easily.”
London 2012 Olympic silver medallists Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark (GBR) sit in second overall following a sixth, which they discard, and a bullet. Tina Mrak and Veronika Macarol (SLO) remain in third overall.
In the Men’s 470 Stu McNay and Dave Hughes (USA) and Mat Belcher and Will Ryan (AUS) shared first and second in both of the day’s races. The Americans took the first bullet followed by the Aussies whilst the roles were reversed for the day’s other race.
The Americans lead on five points followed by the Australians on 10 points. Paul Snow-Hansen and Daniel Willcox (NZL) are third on 14 points.
Finn
Giles Scott (GBR) was back on the money in the Finn, doing what he does best, winning sailboat races.
He opened the day with a second and hit back with a bullet to move into first overall. “We’ve had two very similar days now with 10-15 knots and it’s very very physical racing,” commented Scott on the competition.
“I think everyone is feeling pretty tired today. But today for me was a bit better than yesterday. I managed to come away with a 1 and a 2, so I can’t really grumble.”
The Finn fleet features 24-boats in Weymouth and Portland and with the Rio 2016 Olympic fleet comprising of one less it’s the perfect opportunity to race in an Olympic sized pack with an exceptional calibre of competitors, “We have 24 boats, so it surprising how everything seems to be close up and everyone is super punchy on the start line. So you have to watch that a little bit.
“Of course everyone here is quick so it is very easy to find yourself on the back foot and not so many people behind you. But with that said it makes the racing super good. I think in one of the races today the whole fleet was round in 30 seconds. It’s tight street fighting really.”
Jonathan Lobert (FRA) took the days other race victory and coupled with a third he sits second overall, two points off Scott. Josh Junior (NZL) is pushed from first to third by the British and French racers.
Men’s and Women’s RS:X
In the Women’s RS:X, Great Britain’s Isobel Hamilton stays ahead of the field following another consistent day on the water. From the day’s three races she notched up three second place finishes.
Maintaining the British 1-2 is Bryony Shaw who is two points behind her compatriot.
But while Shaw had another good day with a 3-3-1, Italy’s Flavia Tartaglini moved up to joint second on 12 points with two bullets and a fourth place finish.
London 2012 Olympic silver medallist Tuuli Petaja-Siren drops down to fourth on 16 points.
In the Men’s RS:X Tom Squires (GBR) moved a point ahead in the battle of the Brits with a 1-2-4 scoreline. Squires is above fellow Briton Nick Dempsey who was on a 6-5 on the day until a win in the last race improved his fortunes.
Italy’s Mattia Camboni stays in third position whilst Brazil’s Ricardo Santos had a much better day, taking first place in the second race to go with his 2-3 finishes. The Brazilian sits in fourth.
Jason Waterhouse and Lisa Darmanin (AUS) had a strong day in the Nacra 17 posting a 7-1-5 scoreline. They lead on 19 points.
Switzerland’s Matias Buhler and Nathalie Brugger are second on 21 points followed by Thomas Zajac and Tanja Frank (AUT), who claimed the final race victory of the day.
Darren Bundock and Nina Curtis (AUS) claimed the days other race honours and are fourth overall.
Laser and Laser Radial
It would seem that Marit Bouwmeester (NED) is taking the experience she has gained from the London 2012 Olympics in Weymouth and Portland and applying it to the fullest effect taking both bullets.
Those two wins have kept Bouwmeester’s score down to three points with an unbeaten run of four from four races so far this World Cup.
Her nearest challenger is Belgium’s Evi Van Acker who finishes the day in second overall on nine points after a 9-4 finish.
Ireland’s Annalise Murphy dropped to sixth with an eighth and a discarded 16th. Murphy’s third place is now held by Great Britain’s Alison Young on ten points following a strong 4-2 day to help move her up the leader board.
In the Laser, New Zealand’s Andy Maloney is still in top spot despite a sixth and an 18th. He drops his 18th and remains at the top of the pile with nine points.
Jesper Stalheim of Sweden had a good day moving up from fourth to second with a 2-10, dropping his 14th from the opening day. His 13 points sits him alongside Germany’s Philipp Buhl on the same points tally. The German finished with a 7-3 scoreline for the day.
Sitting just behind on 14 points is Charlie Buckingham (USA). The bullets went to New Zealand’s Michael Bullot and Australia’s Matthew Wearn.
In the Sonar, double bullets for Australia’s Colin Harrison, Jonathan Harris and Russell Boaden move them to the top of the leaderboard with four points ahead of Norway’s Aleksander Wang-Hansen, Marie Solberg and Per Eugen Kristiansen on six.
The Norwegians are just one point in front of Great Britain’s John Robertson, Hannah Stodel and Steve Thomas who lay in third on seven points following a fourth and second place finish.
In the SKUD18 nothing separates Marco Gualandris and Marta Zanetti (ITA) and Alexandra Rickham and Niki Birrell (GBR) who each take a bullet and second, yet again mirroring the opening day results. They both sit on four points with Will Street and Megan Pascoe (GBR) third overall on nine.
London 2012 Paralympic gold medallist Helena Lucas (GBR) controlled the 2.4mR again with four wins from four races following her two bullets today.
Sitting behind and taking four consecutive second places is Antonio Squizzato of Italy on six points.
Malaysia’s Al Mustakim Matrin remains third overall with a third place finish and a discarded fifth.
Racing resumes at 11:00 local time on Friday 12 June.
Video
Medal Races will be live from ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth and Portland on Sunday 14 June from 11:00 local time.
URL – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ8hlJyeqxk
Embed –
2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup
Melbourne – 7-14 December 2014
Miami – 25-31 January 2015
Hyères – 20-26 April 2015
Weymouth and Portland – 8-14 June 2015
Qingdao – 14-20 September 2015
2015 Final Abu Dhabi – 27 October to 1 November 2015
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