Ainslie sees red against BlackMatch in Korea Match Cup

by BlackMatch Racing Media on 5 Jun 2009
BlackMatch Racing reports on Day 2 of the Korea Match Cup

Hello from BlackMatch on day two of Korea Match Cup,

Firstly we would like to mention that if anyone is keen to see a live feed to the racing, there is full coverage (onboard cameras, virtual spectator and commentary) on this link http://www.vidzapper.net/live/iframes/matchcup2009/ , there are also highlights of all the days action. The racing is extremely close and makes for great viewing, so we hope as many of you as possible get an opportunity to check this out.

Perfect sailing conditions in Korea today, set a magnificent scene for some great action on the water. 12 flights were completed in a very nice 8-10 knot onshore breeze, however BlackMatch were only involved in three. We managed wins over last weeks Germany Match Champion Ben Ainslie and local hope Byeong Ki Park, while our loss came in strange circumstances against rival Torvar Mirsky.

In a heated pre-start against Ainslie, we were in control when the double gold Olympian tacked off for the boat end of the start line. Sensing that they were early and below the lay-line Adam pounced in an attacking move and we tacked with him towards the boat end. The Brit tacked back in an attempt to clear us for a clean start but failed to complete his tack and was handed a penalty. It didn’t take long for the umpires to discuss the seriousness of the infringement and they were handed a ‘Red Flag’ which meant they had to take their penalty immediately, effectively game over as we sailed well to defend our lead.

Yet another heated pre-start against Torvar Mirsky saw the Australian come away with a slight advantage off the start line. We fought back hard up the first beat and closed within striking distance, getting into a great position for a lee-bow tack nearing the top mark, however a spectator boat fully laden with local enthusiasts got very close to the action and effectively prevented us from getting to Torvar. Perhaps our strong language and gestures were mistaken as they kept smiling, waving and snapping pictures but this is part of the game and we are happier something like this happened early on in the event.

The round robin should be completed tomorrow and we are involved in 6 very important matches. The race is on to see the top 8 quarterfinalists decided and it looks like a minimum of 6 wins will be needed to proceed. With 3 wins and 6 remaining races there is added pressure but we are looking forward to the challenge. For all media coverage on this event please visit www.worldmatchracingtour.com .

BlackMatch would like to again thank their sponsors FedEx Express and Line 7 New Zealand. For this regatta we have brand new crew gear supplied by Ross Munro from Line 7, it looks amazing and we would like to say a special thank you to Ross and his team. We would also like to thank our yacht club the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron and Emirates Team New Zealand, as without their support we would not have this opportunity.