52 Super Series Royal Cup Ibiza - Azzurra moves up to second place

by Azzura Sailing Team on 5 Jul 2013 On Day 3 of the 52 Super Series in Ibiza Azzurra has moved up to second place thanks to excellent placement in today’s races: second, first and third. Tomorrow will see the coastal race and Azzurra is just two points from Quantum, the current leader.

Shifty and light winds did not prevent Azzurra from winning her first regatta here in Ibiza. She crowned an excellent day with second and third place finishes that have the team satisfied and see the boat placed just 2 points from the current leader, Quantum Racing. Azzurra placed second in the first race after an excellent start right off the Committee boat. A hard fight with Ran lasted the duration of the race. An unexpected wind shift on the port side of the first upwind beat gave Quantum an advantage that she held on to during the rest of the race.

Azzurra triumphed in the second race: after a start that was perfect and right on the pin the boat that represents the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda held on to her position skillfully. Ran was in second place followed by the American boat Rio, while Quantum closed in fourth place.

The wind was slightly stronger during the third race, but it remained shifty. Azzurra got an excellent start right off the Committee boat together with the French boat Paprec, Quantum was half a length behind but upwind. This allowed them to take advantage of a puff that put them ahead of the rest of the fleet. Azzurra held on to her second place for the duration of the regatta when, just before the finish, Provezza arrived from the extreme left corner of the course. Ran sailed the same angle and while Provezza passed Azzurra, the Italian team managed to hold off Ran and finish third.

On the sites www.azzurra.it and www.52superseries.com you will find Virtual Eye video with commentary in English while on the Azzurra Facebook page and on her Twitter account you’ll find daily posts and updates posted directly from the regatta field.

Quotes of the day:
Guillermo Parada, Skipper: 'It has been a good day for us: three races in conditions that are still very challenging. It has been tough for the whole team because to be consistent you need to take risks all the time, the risk is in being conservative. In this race you can’t go to the middle, you have to pick a corner and have faith in your decision. We were able to manage three good races and we’re now second overall, only 2 points behind Quantum. We’re looking forward to tomorrow’s costal race which will be challenging because wind conditions are still forecast as very, very light, but we’re here ready to fight.'

Vasco Vascotto, Tactician: 'This is proving to be a very difficult event, like I said it would be before it started. But today we have no regrets. I’m only sorry that in the third race, even though we got a good start and were covering Quantum, a puff let them get past us and into first place. But that’s sailing, the wind in these conditions isn’t the same for everyone. But we’re just two points from the lead and we were actually tied for the lead after the second race this morning. We’re feeling tough and competitive, tomorrow’s costal race could have something good for us in its cards.'

Standings after Day three
1 Quantum Racing, USA, Doug DeVos 16 pts (1,5,4,1,4,1)
2 Azzurra, ITA, Alberto Roemmers, 18pts (5,2,5,2,1,3)
3 Gladiator, GBR, Tony Langley 21pts (2,4,1,3,5,6)
4 Rán Racing, SWE, Niklas Zennström 22pts (3,3,6,4,2,4)
5 Provezza, TUR, Ergin Imre, 30pts, (6,8,3,5,6,2)
6 Interlodge, USA, Austin and Gwen Fragomen, 35 pts (4,1,8,7,8,7)
7 Rio, USA Manouch Moshayedi, 36pts, (8,7,2,8,3,8)
8 Paprec, FRA, Jean-Luc Petithuguenin 38pts, (7,6,7,6,7,5)