Nacra 17 Europeans - The low-down from Cammas and de Turckheim

by Groupama Sailing Team on 13 Jul 2014 The Nacra 17 European Championship Medal Race was contested today and Spanish sailors Iker Martinez and Tara Pacheco took the crown ahead of the Italians Bissaro – Sicouri and the French Besson – Riou. Franck Cammas and Sophie de Turckheim give us the low-down on their part in the championship, which culminated in a thirteenth place overall and saw them rank number two in the France Elite.

The aims: 'We came here to La Grande Motte without any particular aims in terms of results, but with the hope that we'd be able to race against the best in the world with breezy conditions. In reality things exceeded our expectations with the Tramontana, which varied between 15 and 30 knots. It was very sporty, but we're beginning to get into the swing of things and we've found the trigger with regards upwind speed. We now have some sound automatic reflexes and we're increasingly at ease and hence more confident. It's very positive,' explains the skipper of Groupama who, pretty much immediately after racing, was already rushing to catch a plane to Brittany so as to cheer on the crew of Groupama 34, which is competing in the Tour de France à la Voile.

The points to work on: 'In the breezy conditions, we're still lacking a bit of consistency, particularly in the transition phases like the tack changes, the gybes or the leeward mark roundings. It's slightly annoying that in the space of a few seconds, you can lose the metres that you gave your all to gain on the previous tack. We also need to be more consistent at the starts. It's a point we've made a lot of progress on, but it's not perfect yet', comments Sophie, after bringing the Nacra 17 back to port on her own, Franck making a swift exit on a rib so he could get on his way.

The strengths: 'Tactically, this championship was interesting, because the wind was varying a great deal in strength and direction. That enabled us to re-establish our position after a lacklustre situation by incorporating some sound tactical choices. We won the only race contested in a medium wind. Franck and I get on really well on the water. We discuss ideas a lot and we share the same manner of racing, without ever being extreme in our choices,' adds Sophie.

The overseas contingent: 'There aren't really any new faces in the series. However, there's a lot of jockeying for position at the front of the pack. Here, Iker Martinez took the win, whilst Darren Bundock, the Australian, finished below twentieth place. When you're familiar with his experience and his list of achievements, you understand that the level of the fleet has increased considerably in what is still a young series. It's absolutely out of the question to rest on our laurels as we're regularly finding new tweaks, which are enabling us to go even quicker,' continues Sophie on Groupama.

The French Team: 'There's a fantastic atmosphere amongst the group. We chat about things freely without any ulterior motive and I think we frighten those teams from overseas a bit. Within the team, there is always someone to give you a boost, whatever the conditions. It's a real strength for us, even though we know there will only be one crew selected to compete in the Olympic Games. That's the rules and everyone knows it,' Sophie adds. She'll take a little time to rest and recuperate now before taking off for Rio on 27 July.

The Rio Test Event: 'Two years prior to each Olympiad, the host country gathers together all the athletes. In the Nacra 17, there are two crews per nation. Franck and I are going with Billy and Marie. It's going to be a kind of dress rehearsal with a smaller fleet than in these European Championships. I think that Iker Martinez for Spain and Bissaro for the Italians are choosing to overlook it so as to prepare themselves as best they can for the World Championships in Santander in September. That's not our choice because, together with the Fédération Française de Voile (French Sailing Federation), we believe it's important to discover the race zone. As such, we'll be there with our coach, Franck Citeau, and we'll be going all out to win,' concludes Sophie, before heading over to the prize-giving and passing on her thanks to La Grande Motte Yacht Club, host of these European Championships with the support of the French Sailing Federation.

1. Martinez Iker - Pacheco Tara With 23 Points
2. Bissaro Vittorio - Sicouri Silvia With 42 Points
3. Besson Billy - Riou Marie With 46 Points
4. Norregaard Allan - Just Line With 59 Points
5. Waterhouse Jason - Darmanin Lisa With 62 Points
6. Wilson Pipa - Gimson John With 67 Points
7. Groeneveld Renee - Krol Steven With 69 Points
8. Zajac Thomas - Frank Tanja With 70 Points
9. Bahler Matias - Brugger Nathalie With 73 Points
10. Van Der Velden Nicole - Visser Thijs With 80 Points
11. Lange Santiago - Carranza Saroli Cecilia
12. Mc Nicol Euan - Whitty Lucinda
13. Cammas Franck - De Turckheim Sophie
14. Vaireaux Moana - Audinet Manon