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Five medals for France, new race and all the latest sailing news

Welcome to this week's addition of Sail-World.com's European newsletter.

What a week with the third event in the ISAF World Sailing Cup, the Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre, sailed on the Bay of Palma. France won five medals, well done to all the competitors. We have reports and some great pictures from the event, courtesy of photographers Claire Matches and Richard Langdon.

The World Match Racing Tour kicks off it's 2010 season with Match Race France later this week, Russian Mikhail Mouratov and his wife Olga White are competing at the Dragon Pre-Worlds in Australia, a new race for the Multi 50s the Vendée Saint-Petersburg has been created and Marc Guillemot, the skipper of Safran was crowned 2009 IMOCA world champion and the ISAF World Sailing Rankings for March have been released, with France topping the country list.

In international news, the storm battered Clipper fleet is arriving in San Francisco, we have Velux 5 Oceans news and the RORC Easter Challenge wrapped up, with TeamOrigin and Rán, among others, winning their divisions; reports and loads of great pictures from that event. For a change of pace and weather, the BVI Spring Sailing Festival and Spring Regatta is underway, our coverage includes images from photographer Ingrid Abery.

Of course there is more sailing news and we hope you enjoy this week's edition of our newsletter.

Sail-World.com team

Minoprio gets ready for start of World Match Racing Tour 2010 Bob Wallace, New Zealand skipper Adam Minoprio and his BlackMatch racing crew start the defence of their World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) title this coming week with Match Race France running from April 6-11 at Yacht Club Pointe Rouge in Marseille. Minoprio is mindful of the 'wild cards'. As a young skipper himself, the ISAF Match Racing World Champion 2009 appreciates the power of the WMRT for international mat... [more] Share this story

RORC Easter Challenge - Stunning Solent conditions for final day Louay Habib, RORC Easter Challenge Final Day's report. Bright sunshine and decent wind gave the competitors a day to remember. Niklas Zennstrom's Farr 45, Rán, came out on top in a titanic struggle with Anthony O'Leary's Ker 39, Antix in the IRC division.... [more] Share this story

Images from Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre by Claire Matches Sail-World.com, Photographer Claire Matches has sent these action images the recent Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre.... [more] Share this story

International Dragon Pre-Worlds Regatta - Closing in on the leaders Peter Campbell, Tasmanian champion Nick Rogers and his crew of Leigh Behrens and Simon Burrows have closed in on the Russian and German sailors who had dominated the first two days of the International Dragon Pre-Worlds Regatta on Melbourne's Port Phillip... [more] Share this story

ISAF World Match Racing Tour 2010 - YANMAR Racing aims for the top YANMAR Racing Media, While Adam Minoprio and his Emirates Team New Zealand crew skipped away with his Monsoon Cup double points victory to take the 2009 ISAF World Match Racing Championship, the group behind were close and the ten event 2010 championship is wide open.... [more] Share this story

BVI Spring Regatta: Day two, and the wind decided it would fill in Linda Phillips / Caribbean Racing, It was one of those mornings when sails look more like hanging laundry than anything else. Wind conditions improved as the second day of racing for the BVI Spring Regatta wore on. Presley King, is a local sage when it comes to predicting the winds in the BVI .... 'Looking for a little more wind. As soon as the moon raise up, it should get more. The moon will raise up after 11.' What!!?... [more] Share this story

RORC Easter Challenge - A change of pace Louay Habib, RORC Easter Challenge - After yesterday's lively weather, the Solent seemed almost benign, as a southeasterly breeze of about 10-15 knots welcomed the competitors to the starting area, just east of the Brambles Bank.... [more] Share this story

Clipper 09-10: Singapore finish, California and escorts make progress Clipper Ventures PLC, Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht race Leg 7 Qindgao to Singapore. Easter Saturday has dawned bright and cold in San Francisco. Uniquely Singapore has crossed the finish line and the team is now making best speed towards the iconic span of the Golden Gate Bridge and the cold beers that await them at the Golden Gate Yacht Club.... [more] Share this story

BVI Spring Regatta Day one - A slow start but a hot finish Linda Phillips, BVI Spring Regatta - Only on the SOL Racing Course was there any rain of consequence and the fleet started the day soaking wet. By the time the A class left the gates for the first race, the rain quit and before long, everyone and everything dried out.... [more] Share this story

BVI Spring Regatta images from Ingrid Abery Sail-World.com, Photographer Ingrid Abery presents this gallery of images from the BVI Spring Regatta... [more] Share this story

ISAF release World Sailing Rankings for 31 March 2010 ISAF, The ISAF World Sailing Rankings for 31 March 2010 have been released.... [more] Share this story

RORC Easter Challenge day one is a Solent sunsplash Louay Habib, RORC Easter Challenge - As if by magic the sun came out and the wind steadied in the southwest. Niklas Zennström's Farr 45 Rán was unstoppable downwind, extending his lead over the opposition. Niklas steered the boat all day in difficult conditions and should be congratulated on a great performance.... [more] Share this story

Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre - Medal race to Wright Robert Deaves, Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre - Ed Wright wins Finns in Palma after thrilling medal race.... [more] Share this story

Clipper 09-10: Spirit of Australia to receive redress Clipper Ventures PLC, Clipper 09-10 Round the World race: The gap between Qingdao and Jamaica Lightning Bolt at the finish line was less than 18 hours. Uniquely Singapore is expected to finish tomorrow. Spirit of Australia has formally requested redress of their average points for all races to date, equating to ten points.... [more] Share this story

Images from Palma: Final day by Richard Langdon Richard Langdon, Top international photographer, Richard Langdon (GBR) was at the Princess Sofia Regatta, Palma and provided this gallery of images from the final day in which Britain and France won five medals each.... [more] Share this story

Princess Sofia: France and Great Britain win five medals each in Palma Neus Jordi - Prensa Sofía, France and Great Britain led the new edition of the Sofia Mapfre with five medals for each country. Besides, the French returned home with two golds, one in 470 men and the other in 49er. Spain and The Netherlands also won four medals.... [more] Share this story

Dragon pre-worlds: Husband and wife do battle Peter Campbell, Russian husband and wife sailors Mikhail Muratov and Olga White, each skippering their own boat, are sharing the overall lead after day one of the International Dragon class Pre-Worlds regatta on Melbourne's Port Phillip.... [more] Share this story

Clipper RTW: Images as Cape Breton Island wins Leg 7 Erik Simonson, Erik Simonson presents a gallery of images as Cape Breton Island sails the last few miles to the finish in the San Francisco on Leg 7 of the Clipper Round the World Race.... [more] Share this story

Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre images by Richard Langdon Richard Langdon images and Sail-World.com, Photographer Richard Langdon presents this gallery of images from the Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre... [more] Share this story

Finn Focus at Palma - Gaspic takes narrow lead into medal race Robert Deaves, Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre. Changeable and shifting winds plagued the fleets on the final qualification day with the Finns only managing two more races. Regatta leader Rafa Trujillo (ESP) struggled across the finish line in 12th place to lose his overall lead for the first time. And things only got worse for him in race seven. He finished the day in fourth place overall.... [more] Share this story

Excitement guaranteed for the Medal Races at the Sofia Mapfre Neus Jordi - Prensa Sofía, Another day of changing winds in the bay of Palma decided the top 10 sailors that will sail the medal race. Sailors were faced again with difficult weather conditions in the bay of Palma. NW conditions, 8 to 12 knots, and many wind shifts put all competitors to the test.... [more] Share this story

Match Race France - Skipper Line Up Released WMRT.com, The World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) is the premium global match racing series, culminating in crowning the ISAF Match Racing World Champion at the end of 10 international events. This year's Tour will be starting next week in Marseille with ‘Match Race France' running from 6 – 11 April at Yacht Club Pointe Rouge.... [more] Share this story

TeamOrigin sailors on the Solent for RORC Easter Regatta les, What a difference a few weeks can make – just over 10 days ago, TeamOrigin were racing in the warm and sunny waters of the Hauraki Gulf for the Louis Vuitton Auckland regatta and yesterday the team were to be found on the High Street of Cowes, Isle of Wight, UK – battling against the driving rain and 40 knot winds!... [more] Share this story

Clipper 09-10 Qingdao will reach San Francisco today Clipper Ventures Plc, For another of the crews competing in the Clipper 2009-10 Round the World Yacht Race, the trials of the North Pacific are almost at an end. Qingdao, who ventured furthest north of all the teams, is expected to cross the finish line later today, 5,600 miles and 31 days after leaving Qingdao, China.... [more] Share this story

Steve Ravussin in Geneva for the Teamwork 6.50 christening Jean Philippe Jobé, Steve Ravussin, the well-known Swiss navigator who was on Groupama 3 for their round-the-world Jules Verne record, was at the SNG to christen the mini 6.50 Teamwork. Teamwork will participate, skippered by local navigator Etienne David, in the next edition of the Mini Transat, now called the Transat 6.50 Charente Maritime/Bahia.... [more] Share this story

Clipper 09-10: Fuel transfer to California completed Clipper Ventures PLC, Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht race - Spirit of Australia and Hull & Humber complete fuel transfer to California. All of the crews have proved their extremely high levels of seamanship on this, the longest of the 14 individual races of the Clipper 09-10 Race. Uniquely Singapore's skipper, Jim Dobie, has been reflecting on what they have learned during the last 30 days of racing.... [more] Share this story

Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre Finn class - Closing in on Trujillo Robert Deaves, Rafa Trujillo (ESP) remains at the top of the Finn fleet after three intense races were completed on Wednesday at the Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre. The first race, with great sailing conditions up to 15 knots was won by Jonathan Lobert (FRA). Paoletti Michele (ITA) sailed well to place second, with another good finish for regatta leader Rafa Trujillo (ESP) in third.... [more] Share this story

Princess Sofia Trophy - Changing winds bring changes in Palma Neus Jordi - Prensa Sofía, With only two days left to the end of the event, all classes sailed today in the knowledge that there is a tight battle for the top three places across the fleet.. The weather conditions divided the day in two halves. The morning began with north westerlies winds at 5 knots and at around 2 pm, the wind dropped and then came back lighter from the west.... [more] Share this story

A new Multi 50 race - Vendée to Saint-Petersburg announced Liliane Fretté Communication, A new race reserved for Multi 50s has been created: the Vendée Saint-Petersburg. While most races see the competitors heading off to the west to cross the Atlantic, Vendée has come up with something new offering a brand new route to the Multi 50s, (50-foot trimarans), with the Atlantic, the English Channel, the North Sea and the Baltic ahead of them.... [more] Share this story

Marc Guillemot 2009 IMOCA champion Vendee Globe, Marc Guillemot, the skipper of Safran was crowned 2009 IMOCA world champion after finishing ahead of Michel Desjoyeaux and Armel Le Cléac'h in the annual rankings.... [more] Share this story

Sail-World.com - Contributors Guidelines Richard Gladwell, Sail-World.com, Guidelines for sailors writing articles for publication on Sail-World.com Our website encompasses all forms of sailing, including cruising. Whether its racing in yachts, skiffs or dinghies, regattas, twilights or ocean races, there is always a story waiting to be told Sail-World is happy to receive your articles. Be it profiles of people and boats, tuning, tactics, techniques, safety and seamans... [more] Share this story

Auckland, the City of Sails, to host Volvo Ocean Race for eighth time Volvo Ocean Race Media, Auckland, New Zealand, is back in the Volvo Ocean Race after a gap of 10 years. The city, which has fielded some of the world's best sailors in the Volvo Ocean Race, last hosted the event in 2001-02. It will stage the leg four finish from Sanya in China and the start of leg five, which will take the fleet into the Southern Ocean once again, round the infamous Cape Horn and up to a finish in Itaj... [more] Share this story

Volvo Ocean Race announcement: Live from Auckland + full Audio Richard Gladwell, Sail-World is coming to you live from the Viaduct Basin ahead of the announcement of the Auckland stopover for the Volvo Ocean Race. We hope to present a live commentary on what is happening.... [more] Share this story

Clipper 09-10 - Cape Breton Island takes line honours in San Francisco Clipper Ventures, Just before midday local time and with the sun breaking through the clouds to herald the yacht's arrival, the eagle of Cape Breton Island came swooping under the Golden Gate Bridge as the Canadian entry arrived victorious in to San Francisco and claimed their second line honours of the 35,000-mile Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht Rac... [more] Share this story

The GP42 Series on their way Sabina Mollart-Rogerson, It's 42 days to go for the launch of the Portugal Trophy, Cascais, the first stage of the 2010 Audi MedCup Circuit. All the pre-registered teams are in their final stages of preparing for the season, with two committed to compete in the Palma Vela regatta (April 14-18) in order to check sails and the changes made to their boats during the winter.... [more] Share this story

Volvo Ocean Race - Speculation rife on Auckland stopover Richard Gladwell, Speculation is rife around the Auckland waterfront, on the expected announcement of the final stopover in the Volvo Ocean Race. Media have been invited to a function today where it is expected that some announcement will be made on the back of the statement from the Minister of Economic Development, Gerry Brownlee, last Friday that the Governement would be contributing NZD1.5 million to the stopov... [more] Share this story

Clipper 09-10: Cape Breton Island crosses race 7 finish line Clipper Ventures, Canadian entry Cape Breton Island has crossed the Race 7 finish line. Skipper Jan Ridd has confirmed to Clipper Race Director, Joff Bailey, he and his crew crossed the finish line at 14:25 UTC.... [more] Share this story

Images from Day 3 of the Princess Sofia Trophy Regatta Nico Martinez, Top international photographer, Nico Martinez provides this gallery of images from the third day of racing in the big breeze (30kts plus) at the princess Sofia Regatta, in Palma Mallorjca, ESP... [more] Share this story

Extreme conditions dominate Day 3 at Princess Sofia Trophy Neus Jordi, Finally, after a morning with up to 30 knots of wind and big waves, only the Women's Match Race and the RS:X Men and Women sailed in the afternoon. The remaining classes participating at the 41 Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofía Mapfre, event of the ISAF Sailing World Cup, could not sail after being postponed ashore.... [more] Share this story

New York Yacht Club to host America's Cup 12 Metre Era Reunion Michael Levitt, New York Yacht Club Commodore David K. Elwell Jr. announced today that the club will host a new event this summer, the America's Cup 12 Metre Era Reunion, September 16th to 19th at Harbour Court, NYYC's on-the-water clubhouse in Newport. During the 12 Metre era (1958-1987), over 83 12 Metre teams competed as contenders or defenders for the 10 America's Cup matches... [more] Share this story

Light conditions on Day 2 at Princess Sofia Trophy, Palma ISAF, Another long day on the water with light and shifty conditions kept most classes on the water until dusk at the Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía Mapfre on the bay of Palma. After four races in the 470 Men's class, Panagotis KAMBOURIDIS and Gerasimos OROLOGAS (GRE) take the overall lead with a win and a fifth taking a two point lead over Croatian's current World Champion duo Sime FANTELA and Igor MA... [more] Share this story

America's Cup: Nitro's Wingsail Trimming Primer - Part 2 RG, Sail-World's Richard Gladwell interviewed Noel (Nitro) Drennan, on the Sail-World stand at the Auckland International Boat Show. In this second part of a two part story, we look at the what happened on the first leg of that now-famous first race; jibs and gennikers with wingsails; trimming without engines instead of grinders; and what it is like to go back to Version 5 America's cuppers... [more] Share this story

Mini Pavois 2010 - Q & A with Eric Mas Véronique Largeau, We are now one month from the start of the Mini Pavois 2010, it is interesting to consider the possible weather conditions for this 800 mile race.... [more] Share this story

Sydney Yachts moving forward Sydney Yachts, Sydney Yachts is now operating under its own brand following the closure of Azzura Marine's Nowra facility, with a new team comprising several familiar faces.... [more] Share this story

Voiles de Saint Barth - Titouan Lamazou designs the official poster Sabina Mollart-Rogerson, The winner of the first Vendée Globe designed a work fitting in completely with his favourite themes, the eternal woman, the sea and beautiful yachts, all in tones that mix together in perfect harmony the modernity of contemporary yachts and the elegance of the gaff rigs of yesteryear.... [more] Share this story

Images from Palma: Princess Sofia Trophy - Day 2 Nico Martinez, Top international photographer, Nico Martinez presents a gallery from the second day of the Princess Sofia Trophy regatta being sailed in Palma, Spain - the third leg of the ISAF World Sailing Cup... [more] Share this story

Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre - Trujillo leads Finns Robert Deaves, Rafael Trujillo (ESP) the Spanish sliver medalist from 2004 and the 2007 World Champion sits on top of the 53 boat Finn fleet after day one at the Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre in Palma... [more] Share this story

Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía Mapfre - Trujillo leads Finn class Neus Jordi and Sail-World.com, Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía Mapfre. After 'a difficult day' and with the help of the wind, Spanish sailor Rafa Trujillo took the overall lead in the Finn class standings, with a second and third place in the two races sailed today. For Peer Moberg, just behind Trujillo in the overall results, it has been 'a difficult day' marked by the wind shifts.... [more] Share this story

Velux 5 Oceans Race youngest competitor signs on Tim Kelly, 2010 Velux 5 Oceans - Nineteen-year-old Oscar Mead will line up against some of the world's top sailors for the 30,000-mile race which starts in France in October.... [more] Share this story

Melges 32 Audi Sailing Series - 'Fantastica' deemed the law in force International Melges 32 Class Association, Lanfranco Cirillo on Fantastica has victoriously won the first event of the 2010 Audi Melges 32 Sailing Series, which ended today with only one race in Lerici, Italy.... [more] Share this story

Formula Windsurfing - Thrilling race ends 2010 Worlds in Argentina Formula Windsurfing, The Governor of Mendoza joined the Race Officer, Antonio Lamadrid, on the starting boat for the last race of the 2010 Worlds on Lake Potrerillos. He was then treated to a thrilling, and fitting, finale to this years championship. The wind built throughout the race, and once again delivered a challenging spectacle.... [more] Share this story