Gilmour secures third Match Race Germany

by Sean McNeill on 6 Jun 2006 Aussie adds the event title to the Tour and World championships he won yesterday.

It was a weekend of three-peats for Peter Gilmour.

Gilmour and the PST crew of Rod Dawson, Jan Reblin, Christian Scherrer and Yasuhiro Yaji wrapped a banner weekend by winning the skipper’s third consecutive championship at Match Race Germany, Stage 7 of the 2005-’06 World Match Racing Tour. Yaji is the only one who has crewed for all three victories.

The PST crew defeated Jesper Bank’s United Internet Team Germany crew 2-1 in a final shortened by lack of wind. They finished with a 15-4 record and won 4,800€ (approximately $6,200) of the 20,000€ (approx. $25,000) prize purse. Gilmour also beat Bank in last year’s final, 3-2.

“It’s a good result,” said Gilmour. “Having Yaji and rod was key. We picked up Christian and Jan late, and they fit in really well. They did a nice job. It was fun sailing with them.”

Bank, skipper of Germany’s first challenge syndicate for the America’s Cup, finished with a 14-5 record and won 2,800€ (approx. $3,600). Bank’s crew included Henrik Blakskjaer, Thomas Jacobsen, Mike Mottl and Jan Schoepe.

“I want to congratulate Peter,” said Bank. “He sailed really well. He managed the racecourse very well. He deserved the first choice upwind. It was a fantastic final.”

Gilmour yesterday won his third consecutive World Tour championship and fourth career ISAF Match Racing World Championship. That netted the 46-year-old skipper from Perth, Western Australia, a BMW X3 3.0i (valued at $45,000) from Tour partner BMW AG, and a $30,000 bonus from the World Tour.

The World Tour and ISAF recently joined forces to award the match-racing world championship together with the Tour championship. Besides winning the past two Tour championships, Gilmour previously won the ISAF Worlds in 1990, ’97 and ’98.

“I take each race as it comes. Right now I’m just looking forward to Elba,” said Gilmour of the final Tour stage. “They are significant milestones to compare against likes of Russell Coutts and Chris Dickson, outstanding match-race sailors. I guess it’s just setting the benchmark ever higher. Those in the future have a lot more to strive for.”

In the final the breeze was from the southeast around five knots. It was compressed against the shoreline, which made it imperative to win the pin end and get to the left side.

Gilmour put on a clinic in the pre-starts, winning the pin end and first cross in all three races. He lost the third flight because Bank had found a patch of pressure on the right side. When they met the second time Gilmour had to dip Bank. Bank was able to sail away and win the race to make the score 2-1.

The final series was scheduled as first to three points, but the wind died after the third flight and the 4:30 pm time limit arrived an hour later. And Gilmour had won his third championship.

“It’s a bit hard to smile when you just come from the water being second. But yes, we had a good week,” said Bank. “On Lake Constance you have to know that races can be canceled because of a lack of wind. This did not happen for the entire series, but on the final day. My team even had the advantage of either winning or achieving a tie to win overall. So 2:1 for Peter speaks for itself.”

“I felt very confident that we’d be able to start well,” Gilmour said. “Although Jesper sails very well, we felt we’d be able to keep the heat on enough to win against them.”

Gilmour believes that Bank had added pressure on him. Sailing an older, slower boat Team Germany placed 11th at the two Louis Vuitton regattas last month in Spain, and Gilmour feels that his competitor bore the added burden of a good showing in front of the German public.

“It’s interesting to see the pressure on the Cup teams, especially on the Tour,” Gilmour said. “Teams take great comfort from coming back to check in that they’re on the pace. However, the stress and tension that they’re under is quite visible and obvious. That’s something that for someone like me can sit back and use to my advantage. You push them against the wall and they aren’t ready to respond because the pressure’s already up.

In the Petite Final, Ian Williams of Great Britain defeated Staffan Lindberg of Finland 2-1. With the score tied 1-1 Lindberg led the final match by more than one minute at one point, but had a penalty to clear at the finish.

With the winds light Lindberg’s turn was slow and that allowed Williams the chance to get back in the race. He narrowly beat Lindberg.

Although Gilmour has won the Tour championship, Lindberg, Bank and Williams all moved up in the standings. Lindberg went to second from third, Bank into a tie for third from a tie for eighth, and Williams into sole possession of fifth from seventh.

The World Tour Partner and Official Car is BMW AG (Munich, Germany). World Tour sponsors include Sebago (Rockford, Mich.), the Official Footwear Supplier, Travel Places (West Sussex, England), the Official Travel Partner, and Musto (Essex, England), the Official Clothing Supplier.

For more information on the World Match Racing Tour, its competitors and events, please visit the official World Tour Web site, www.WorldMatchRacingTour.com. World Match Racing Tour television programs may be viewed on demand by clicking on the television icon on the home page of the Web site.