iQFOiL International Games Act 1 Lanzarote - Day 1
by Bart Salemans 25 Jan 2022 12:13 PST
24-29 January 2022
Close racing at the start for the women on day 1 of the iQFoil International Games Act 1 at Lanzarote © Sailing Energy
Over a hundred iQFOiL athletes enjoyed some marvellous conditions in Lanzarote today at the start of the International Games Act 1. With 9 till 20 knots from the shore, a clear blue sky, and sun the race committee managed to race five races.
After these five course races, it is Dutchmen Luuc van Opzeeland and Spanish Pilar La Madrid who are leading the overall standings.
Madrid (ESP) Beautiful day with five races
Pilar La Madrid (ESP) was more than happy when she arrived at the shore at the end of the day. With five bullets out of five races, there was no one coming close to Madrid on the first day. Madrid: "I'm super tired. It was beautiful, we had done five races. It was super fun and yes I like it when it's windy."
Van Opzeeland (NED) "I started off strong"
Luuc van Opzeeland (NED) is leading the fleet at the men. Van Opzeeland: "It was a good day, with more wind than expected. I started off strong with two seconds and a third. I won the fourth race and got second in the fifth. I'm up there all the time but in the end, you want to win all of them. So hopefully we can change that tomorrow. I think it went well; I believe I was the most consistent today. For now, I'm just curious what the results of the others and the overall standings will be.
Right behind Luuc van Opzeeland (NED) is in second place his fellow countryman Huig Jan Tak (NED). Frenchman Nicolas Goyard is currently third, despite winning three races.
Results and overall standings after day 1:
iQFOiL International Games
The event started on Tuesday, January 25, with for the Olympic windsurfing class followers a new format. Next to the windward-leeward races, there is a Sprint Slalom and a marathon race, counting for double points. The final on Saturday, January 29, also guarantees a lot of spectacles since it will be sailed according to a knock-out system. In the Quarter-Final, the number fourth till the tenth of the overall ranking will race. With only the number one and two of that race, proceeding to the Semi-Finals. In that Semi-Final they battle it out together with the number two and three of the overall ranking for the last two spots in the Grand Final. In the Grand Final, in addition to the numbers, one and two from the semi-finals, the leader in the overall standings will race. The finish order in the Grand Final will be decisive for the distribution of the medals.
This event in Lanzarote is the opening act of a series of nine events in total this year. With regattas to be held in famous places like Cadiz (ESP), Travemunde (GER), and Torbole (ITA).
Find out more at iqfoilclass.org/ig2022lanzarote