Laser Master World Championships - Bott leads Apprentice Class

by Event Media on 5 Sep 2009
Laser Master World Championships report. If there was a perfect day for sailing, it was Friday on St. Margaret’s Bay just outside Halifax, NS.

For the 300 athletes from 27 countries competing in the 2009 Nautel Laser Master World Championships, the day provided ideal conditions for racing. Under sunny skies and with a steady breeze of 16 to 18 knots, it was a day to test endurance, skill and strength.

The Masters is divided by age and type of sail used on the Laser, a four metre single handed, single sail dinghy.

For the Radial rig; in the Apprentice class (35 to 44 years old) after nine races, Australian Richard Bott is in first, New Zealander Scott Leith in second and Australian Grant Willmott is third.

For the Master division (45 to 54 years old) with nine races complete, Brazilian Carlos Eduardo Wanderley remains in first, followed by Greg Adams of Australia in second, and Joao of Ramos of Brazil in third. Nigel Heath is the top Canadian in fifth spot.

In the Grand Master fleet (55 to 64 years old); Australian Peter Heywood is in first with Michael Pridham and Ian Rawet both of Great Britain in second and third.

For the Great Grand Masters (65 years old and up); American Peter Seidenberg continues to lead, with Australian Kerry Waraker in second and Michael Kinnear of Great Britain in third. Canada’s Johan Van Rossem is ninth in the field of 41 athletes.

In the Standard rig (a slightly larger sail and mast than the radial); the top three remain the same in the Apprentice division after 10 races (with one drop) – Adonis Bougiouris of Greece is in first, Australian Brett Beyer is in second and Orlando Gledhill of Great Britain remains in third.

For the Masters, gold fleet; Scott Ferguson of the US has a commanding lead over chief rival Arnoud Hummel of the Netherlands, while Ferguson’s club-mate Andrew Pimental of the US is in third. Canadian Andy Roy is in sixth.

Robert Muru of Canada has taken over the lead in the silver Masters fleet, with Kevin Currier of Ireland in second and Jan Larkens of the United Arab Emirates.

Wolfgang Gerz of Germany continues to dominate the Grand Master Standard fleet, Mark Bethwaite of Australia is in second and Alan Keen of South Africa is back in third.

The Laser Master World Championship concludes Saturday, ending three weeks of world class sailing on St. Margaret’s Bay. The Laser Worlds began on August 19th with the World Seniors, a closed event for the best sailors in the world and an Olympic qualifying event. Then it continued with the Laser Masters Worlds open to athletes 35 years of age and older.

[Sorry, this content could not be displayed]
[Sorry, this content could not be displayed]
[Sorry, this content could not be displayed]

Results: http://can09.laserinternational.org/index.php/component/content/article/15-content/80