The best was kept for the end at the Opti Worlds with the weather being ideal at the last day of the Championship.
A sunny and clear sky, with a breeze of 10 knots was the perfect combination for the conclusion of the event.
Two races sailed for all groups with several general recalls and black flags. Yokoyama Elisa Yukie and Neo Samuel JiunJie from Singapore had their own battle for first place and the rest of the fleet did not seem to be important to them. They both scored a bullet and had only one point difference when going to the final race. Right behind them was their compatriot Goh Jessica Kai Ling that also scored a bullet and was only one point behind second.
All were to be judged in the final race except for one thing, Singapore had secured all the podium places and left no chances for other countries to claim one. Bart Lambriexfrom Netherlands had an equally good performance scoring a sixth and a first place and managed to break Singapore’s domination, throwing LohJiayi in fifth place overall and Lambriex claimed fourth.
Yokoyama and Neo continued their flawless performances, scoring another bullet each and meaning that Yokoyama is the new Optimist World Champion for 2012. Neo was only one point behind him in second place and Goh, after a bad performance in the last race, took the third place overall.
Sweden’s Nevhagen and Jarudd took sixth and eighth place respectively and went between USA’s Shestopalov and Muller that finished seventh and ninth. The top ten completed Janezic from Slovenia.
A wonderful Closing Ceremony followed,with the organizers giving thanks to all participants and volunteers in a ceremony hosted on the beach! Surely, a unique Championship to be remembered, for the 50th anniversary of the OptiWorlds and the first time that a nation claimed all three podium places.
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