Flurry of silvers brings British medal haul to five at Princess Sofia Trophy
by Will Carson, RYA 8 Apr 2018 04:19 AEST
30 March - 7 April 2018
Hannah Mills and Eilidh McIntyre (470 W) in action at the Princess Sofia Trophy © Tomas Moya / Sailing Energy / Trofeo Princesa Sofia Iberostar
The British Sailing Team bagged a quartet of silver medals on Saturday to add to the haul started by Giles Scott's early Finn class victory at the Princess Sofia Trophy.
Runner-up spots went to Alison Young in the Laser Radial, Dylan Fletcher and Stuart Bithell in the 49er, women's 470 duo Hannah Mills and Eilidh McIntyre and Nacra 17 pair Ben Saxton and Nicola Boniface as the week-long regatta concluded in trademark tricky Palma conditions.
It is a timely boost for the British Sailing Team as it gears up to the next round of the World Cup Series in Hyeres, France, later this month, followed by the biggest test of the year – the Hempel Sailing World Championships in Aarhus, Denmark, in August.
Rio 216 champion Scott went into the Finn medal race – a double points-scoring clash for the top ten sailors – with an unassailable 29-point lead and the gold already secure.
He sealed the deal by finishing fifth to notch up his third back-to-back victory since returning to international competition six months ago.
In the women's 470, Olympic champion Hannah Mills and Eilidh McIntyre narrowly missed out on gold by two points to Japan's Ai Kondo Yoshida and Miho Yoshioka.
"The conditions out there were wacky but we got a good start and went round the top mark in third but at the downwind mark it got light and the fleet converged," Mills said.
"We stuck with the Japanese team and thought on the last leg that we'd be able to get a boat in between us but we couldn't.
"It was a fun race and a good test for us. I feel like we've sailed well this week but there's a few obvious things we need to work on.
"We've got plenty to build on, and a silver from Palma where it's always tricky is awesome."
Young rounded off her week with a second in the Laser Radial medal race to secure the silver medal.
"It's pleasing to finish second in Palma," she said. "At times I've raced really well this week but also made some significant errors, but overall it's nice to see some good progress after a solid winter training working with my coach Penny Clark and a good training group."
Fletcher and Bithell took to the water in pole position in the 49er fleet but with only a slim five-point jump on Argentinian rivals Yago and Klaus Lange.
What looked like a dream start turned into a nightmare when they were found to be over the line as the gun sounded, forcing them to turn back and restart.
Relegated to the back of the fleet, current world champions Fletcher and Bithell picked their way back to seventh but it wasn't enough to prevent the Langes from snatching the top spot.
"Being early to the start obviously compromised our position, and we had to start the race from last," Fletcher said.
"We knew we had to get back to seventh to secure the silver medal, which ultimately we did although it wasn't easy. We had a lot of adversity to deal with in today's race but we came away with second.
"We're disappointed not to win, but it's not a bad result from what's been a tricky week. We've had loads of good performances here in Palma so we can build on that and come away with gold in Hyeres."
Reigning Nacra 17 world champion Saxton was almost forced to miss the regatta entirely when crew Katie Dabson suffered an injury in training two days before the opening day.
Thankfully experienced multihull sailor Boniface was able to fly to Palma just in time for the first race – and the duo went on to win five of the 16 races.
"It was a real rollercoaster of a week but it's ended on a high," Saxton said. "When Katie got injured it looked like we wouldn't be able to compete, and then Nikki managed to get here just in time.
"We won numerous races and sailed really well in very challenging conditions. This result gives me great confidence because this is the first event since Rio where 95 per cent of the fleet has been racing and we've shown we can perform at the top level."
Boniface added: "I'd only just got home from another trip when I got the call to come out to Palma. I basically repacked and went straight back to the airport! It's been a really fun week and I've learned lots. I'm really glad I got on the plane."
In the men's 470 Luke Patience and Chris Grube finished fifth overall, Kieran Martin came eighth in the men's RS:X while Emma Wilson finished seventh in the women's RS:X.
Sophie Weguelin and Sophie Ainsworth took eighth in the 49er FX, two places ahead of Charlotte Dobson and Saskia Tidey in tenth.
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