Allianz Championship for 29er and Optimist - Day 2
by Laurence Bouchet 19 Oct 2018 05:56 PDT
18-21 October 2018
Perfect conditions, that's just what we had today on the water here at the SRC: sun and wind!
29ers
Six races were held today with a stable Southerly wind around 10 knots. The morning fog gave way to a beautiful sunny day. The two Australian teams took control of the racing with two first places each.
When we asked the coaches, "what is the best technique to overtake others?". They answered, "Training!". Sailing, as all sports, need hours of experience.
For Caledonians, the fight is hard. Yesterday after two races, the teams of Corentin Goulon / Valentin Alakiletoa and Camille Goulié / Mahina Dauris were respectively second and third.
Today, everything was possible! Gaining in experience and tiredness, the rankings have changed. The 29er has only be sailed in New Caledonia for a year, but the sailing team is improving rapidly. Our coaches Felipe Minier and Jean Marie Dauris are confident.
Optimists
Australians, Fijians and Caledonians are the next international champions who are fighting right now on the White Coast. Aurel Martin, French Championship runner-up in 2018 is leading the general ranking despite the fact that New Zealand and Australian racers are close to him.
The second Caledonian is Romain Lecoyer (fifth on the general ranking) and the third Raphael Bouzigues (seventh at the general ranking).
Aurel, the current New Caledonian champion thinks, "The level is high this year. The racers are fast and we need to have a good start to keep the leadership in any race."
Nine girls are enrolled this year. The fist of them is the Australian Isabella Bruce (12th), the second Adelaide O'Donoghue (14th) and third place is for Juliette Babey (20th). The coach Mathieu Loiseau is really happy to see the level this year "They're going fast!".
The green fleet (beginners) ran five races today. A good atmosphere and nice fight for these 11 who are sailing in their first races. They are between 8 and 11 years old and are already sailing like champions!