2015 Finn Silver Cup - Day 2, a historic day

by Robert Deaves on 2 Jul 2015 The second day of the 2015 Finn Silver Cup was an historic day for Finn sailing in Argentina as Facundo Olezza (ARG) moved to the top of the leader board after four races in Valencia. Lars Johan Brodtkorp (NOR) moves up to second while Andre Hojen Christiansen (DEN) remains in third.

The wind was lighter than the first day and there was even a 30 minute postponement on shore to wait for the wind to settle. It was also a day of mistakes for some with two front runners overnight picking up letter scores, which though not disastrous at this stage allows no room for further error in the 11 race one discard series.

Nenad Bugarin (CRO) won the opening race from regatta leader Ondrei Teply (CZE) and Andre Hojen Christiansen (DEN). Then Max Koklhoff (GER) pulled out a huge lead on the fleet to win race four. Fabian Pic (FRA) continued his good form with a second while Lars Johan Brodtkorp (NOR) crossed in third.

Koklhoff said, “Of course I am happy with my performance today. But we still have seven races to go and everything can happen, so I will try to keep my fast mode switched on for the rest of the regatta.”

Race four produced some big changes at the top. Teply threw away a clear overall lead after failing to fully complete a 720 degree penalty following a Rule 42 flagging for pumping, while Stig Steinfurth (DEN) picked up a DSQ after a start line infringement. However there is no discard yet, and with so many letter scores, – four in the top 10 alone – that will dramatically change the landscape when the discard comes in after the next race.

Facundo said, “I felt pretty good with my speed upwind and downwind, and I was more conservative than usual because the wind was not clear at all, especially in the second race. I got a yellow flag in the last race so unfortunately I went from third to seventh. I am quite happy with my results and consistency. I hope I can keep on this way, but it’s a long way to go and anything can happen.”

After four races and only two months of Finn sailing, Olezza find himself leading the Junior World Championships. He might struggle to stay in the top five when the discard comes in but for the moment the young Argentinean is sailing really well and is enjoying the moment. He says his performance has been boosted by his colleagues at the Dinghy Academy offering better gear for him to use. Sailors have lent him a new hull and a mast to use at the Silver Cup and so far it is paying off. He is very happy with the speed improvement.

Racing in Valencia continues until Sunday, with seven more races scheduled to decide the title.

Results after four races

1 ARG 48 Facundo Olezza 26
2 NOR 9 Lars Johan Brodtkorb 27
3 DEN 24 Andre Hojen Christiansen 31
4 RUS 6 Arkadiy Kistanov 34
5 CZE 5 Ondrej Teply 35
6 USA 91 Luke Muller 36
7 GER 25 Max Koklhoff 40
8 GBR 96 Hector Simpson 40
9 CRO 52 Nenad Bugarin 42
10 DEN 31 Stig Steinfurth 42