Perfect conditions for Medal Race selections and first Gold

by Corinne Rolland-McKenzie on 10 Apr 2009
The 2.4m fleet at the western end of the bay was the first to enjoy the wind and started their final racing in the morning. Thierry Schmitter of the Netherlands won the event convincingly after scoring top three results. Andre Rademaker , also Netherlands, was second, while the two British female sailors Helena Lucas and Megan Pascoe were respectively third and fourth on equal points.

After the heavy rain and the lack of winds experienced on the last two days, the sun and wind were widely acclaimed by sailors and racing officials. The four racing committees made the most of these perfect conditions to add another 38 races to the programme.

Today was also the last opportunities to catch up on some precious points to enter the top ten, key to the Medal Race!

The Medal Race will just be a formality for French pair of Nicolas Charbonnier and Baptiste Meyer. A second and a first victory in the last day of the final stage bring them out of reach for their opponents. They secure the event title and 20 points towards the ISAF Sailing World Cup ranking on their first event together.

'We have worked a bit more on the boat tuning which resulted in greater speed. We had some good start and went where we wanted, the rest came together.', explained Charbonnier 'It is surely the first time I have won the event before the Medal race! We will go out to enjoy the racing and have fun!'
Silver and Bronze medals will be open to the top 10.

In the Women division Ingrid Petitjean and Nadège Douroux (FRA) conserve their lead going into the Medal Race. They are only threatened by two teams for the regatta title: early leaders Sylvia Vogl and Carolina Flatscher (AUT) and Spanish Pacheco/Betanzos, in second and third position respectively.

Beijing Gold medallist, Anna Tunnicliffe (USA) and team mate, early regatta leader Paige Railey (USA) got off a bad start today after scoring top 40 results in the first race. These mixed results relegate Railey in second and Tunnicliffe in 5th, out of medal contention.

Spain’s Olympic representative and 2008 Silver medallist in the Youth World’s Susana Romero made the most of today’s windy conditions to grab the lead of the regatta. Only the top four will be fighting tomorrow’s for the medal including 3rd and 4th overall: Veronika Fenclova (CZE), last race’s winner and Tina Mihelic (CRO).

Other Spanish to enter the Medal race in leading position is Andalucian Blanca Manchon. After winning two races today in the RS:X class, the Andalucian has secured a medal. With a first and a third in the first two ISAF World Cup events, Manchon will add some top points to her 38 points leading World Cup score. Miaimi OCR winner, Marina Alabau (ESP) and Flavia Tartaglini (ITA) will provide fierce competition for the title.

In the Men division, the Dutch Dorian van Rijsselberge and Olympic representative Casper Bouman, won all the races. Two victories for van Rijsselberg increase his lead at the top of the RS:X class, but one bullet was not enough to bring Bouman into the Medal race. The Dutch improves his position to 11th, three points short of the top 10!

The top five will start tomorrow with a chance for Gold, and the top seven in contention for a medal!

It will be a dual for Gold in the 49er Medal Race between Pietro and Gianfranco Sibello (ITA) and John Pink and Simon Hiscocks (GBR), who held over 20 points lead over the rest of the fleet! The top 5 will race for medals while the others will compete for ISAF World Cup points.

Despite scoring mixed results, Skandia team GBR, Nick Thompson takes the control of the Laser fleet and can not drop out of the top three tomorrow. He will be challenged by Daniel Mihelic (CRO) who made an impressive recovery today from 17th to second overall after taking two bullets and placing 5th, and Mike Bullot from New Zealand. Early leader Tonci Stipanovic (CRO) collected two high scores to place in fourth position overall.

The greatest performance for the British team was realised in the Finn class. 2005 ISAF Youth World Champion in the Laser, Giles Scott, won both races today, followed closely across the finish line by Andrew Mills. Scott, takes the lead from Rafael Trujillo (ESP) in fourth overall. The 21 years old is one of four British Finn sailors selected for the Medal Race.

'These are the first races I win at this level in the Finn' declared Scott. 'I had good starts, good speed and made gains especially downwind.' Andrew Mills is placed in second place, one point from Ed Wright while Mark Andrews is placed 8th overall.

British Finn coach Matt Howards explains his sailor’s good results: 'They have trained a lot all winter and we had a week per month in Palma. They worked so hard they deserve to do well. Their attitude is becoming more professional with more attention to details.'

The top five which also includes young Finnish Tapio Nirkko, can pretend to the top position. Rafa Trujillo and Ed Wright after collecting top scores in Miami will be consolidating their ISAF World Cup standings.

An ex-Finn sailor is leading in the Star class. Greek sailor Aimilios Papathanasiou has teamed up with ex Finn coach for his debut in the Star Class. The Princesa Sofia Mapfre trophy is the first regatta for the Greek team. A third and two bullets bring the newcomers into the lead of the 12 Stars fleet. Unlike most classes, the Star event title is opened tomorrow to the top 7 teams.

ISAF World Cup - Leading positions, Palma Results:

2.4mR (Event FINAL)
1. Thierry Schmitter, NED (13pts)
2. Andre Rademaker, NED (17pts)
3. Helena Lucas, GBR (25pts)

49er (after 10 races)
1. Pietro Sibello-Gianfranco Sibello, ITA (35pts)
2. John Pink-Rick Peacock, GBR (46pts)
3. Dave Evans-Simon Hiscocks (67pts)

Finn (after 7 races)
1. Giles Scott, GBR (18pts)
3. Andrew Mills (26pts)
3. Ed Wright, GBR (27pts)

470 Men (after 8 races)
1. Nicolas Charbonnier-Baptiste Meyer, FRA (20pts)
2. Panagiotis Mantis-Pavloa Kagialis, GRE (47pts)
3. Gideon Kliger-Udi Gal, ISR (50pts)

470 Women (after 9 races)
1. Ingrid Petitjean-Nadege Douroux, FRA (23pts)
2. Sylvia Vogl-Carolina Flatscher, AUT (31pts)
3. Tara Pacheco-Berta Betanzos, ESP (38pts)

RS:X Men (after 8 races)
1. Dorian van Rijsselberge, NED (15pts)
2. Fabian Heidegger, ITA (24pts)
3. Ricardo Santos, BRA (27pts)

RS:X Women (after 8 races)
1. Blanca Manchon, ESP (10pts)
2. Marina Alabau, ESP (20pts)
3. Flavia Tartaglini, ITA (23pts)

Laser (after 8 races)
1. Nick Thompson, GBR (40pts)
2. Daniel Mihelic, CRO (52pts)
3. Mike Bullot, NZL (58pts)

Laser Radial (after 8 races)
1. Susana Romero, ESP (23pts)
2. Paige Railey, USA (17pts)
3. Veronika Fenclova, CZE (46pts)

From 12AM, follow the Medal Race live for the 49ers, Finn, 470 Men and Women online with individual boat tracking at:
http://www.tractrac.com/trofeoprincesasofia