European RS-X and RS-One Windsurfing Championships - Action aplenty

by Coralie Rassinoux on 8 Jul 2013 At the European RS:X and RS:One Windsurfing Championships, it has been a week of hard racing and mental prowess at the Crocodiles de L’Elorn Club in Brest. Near 300 competitors had gathered up here hoping to bring the European title home.

This was no easy feat for any of the champions as the level of all the fleets were very high and most of the windsurfers have had to give it their whole until the finish of the last race. The weather conditions kept them on their toes as the wind was shifty and there was no room for mistake. Everyone was on edge ashore to find out who would come out first in the event’s ranking and in the European championship itself.

RS:X Men: Happy day for Greece as Byron Kokkalanis brings the European Champion title home with an eight point-lead on delighted Shahar Zubari from Israel who managed to hold on to the silver medal despite a very tenacious Pierre Le Coq who in the end settled with bronze. The common thread between the men on the podium was the large smile on their faces as medals were quite an achievement after the challenges of this week.

In the overall Open competition, the podium is the same with Britain’s Olympic medallist Nick Dempsey in fourth. Fifth placed Louis Giard becomes the U21 Class Champion.

RS:X Women: And the winner is….. France! If there was a title hardly won this week, it was the Women European title. All was to play this morning as Charline Picon, British Olympic medallist Bryony Shaw and Spain’s Blanca Manchon took to the water. Finishing third, fifth and first of the three medal races, Charline Picon managed a final 3-point lead in front of Britain’s Bryony Shaw and kept Spain’s Blanca Manchon nine points away.

In the overall Open competition, the ranking gives Bryony Shaw (GB) winner, followed by Charline Picon (FR) second, Blanca Manchon third (SP), Maayan Davidovich (ISR), fourth and Natalia Kosinska (NZ) fifth. Kamila Smektala from Poland wins the U21 Class Champion title.

RS:X Youth Boys: In the 2013 Open Youth European Windsurfing Championship, Argentinian Bautista Saubidet-Brikner who’s won five races out of 14 over the week logically wins the competition. Poland’s Radoslaw Furmanski takes silver only one point ahead of Bronze medallist, Chun Ting Lee from Hong-Kong.

Artion Javadav from Belarus wins the U17 Class Champion title.

RS:X Youth Girls: The 2013 Open Youth European Windsurfing Championship has been closely fought by the girls with two races within the race. Gold and silver medals were one point apart when the day started and it is Israel’s Hadar Heller who takes gold home with Britain’s Noelle Finch taking silver. Saskia Sills and her sister Imogen Sills were also one point apart this morning so there was no sisterly love on the water for bronze. Saskia won two of the three medal races thus getting on the podium.

Shahar Tibi from Israel wins the U17 Class Champion title.

RS:One: The RS:One Men and Women raced in the afternoon enjoying slightly stronger winds and giving France two more European champions.

In the women competition, Lucie Pianazza won seven races out of 13 and logically takes gold. Singapore’s Audrey Yong takes silver and bronze goes to Anne-Claire Girard from France.

It was an epic day for the men competing today for the title. With a fall at the start of the very last race, Frenchman Hugo Mollard-Tanguy almost saw his hard work of the week disappear as there are no discards in RS:One. But thanks to an incredible comeback and his fourth place in race 13, he managed to save gold and become the 2013 RS:One European Champion with a stunning 15-point lead over Maxime Abiven. Racing in his home waters, Abiven managed silver by just one point leaving Tanguy Turpin with the bronze.

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