470 European Championship in San Remo, Italy about to start
by Andy Rice 14 May 2023 19:19 AEST
14-20 May 2023
470 Europeans in San Remo © Int. 470 Class / Nikos Alevromytis
Sixty-seven international teams from 26 nations are ready to contest the 470 European Championship in San Remo, Italy, from 14 to 20 May. With little more than a year to the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, and many teams already in the middle of selection trials to represent their nation on the Olympic stage, the competition is set to be fierce.
Will the sailing conditions in the northern Mediterranean suit the strong Italian squad about to race on home waters? There is certainly plenty of Italian talent on display with five Italian teams entered. However there is an even bigger German contingent - nine teams in total - including the reigning World Champions Luise Wanser & Philipp Autenrieth (GER).
Also showing world-class form in recent weeks are the husband and wife duo, Malte & Anastasiya Winkel (GER), who were third at last month's Semaine Olympique Française Hyères further along the Northern Mediterranean coast, while Simon Diesch & Anna Markfort (GER) were fifth at the same event.
France always fields a strong squad for this regatta, the French having recorded the most medal wins at this event in the almost 60-year history of the 470 European Championships. Double Olympic medallist Camille Lecointre (FRA) continues to show good progress with former men's world champion Jérémie Mion on the trapeze, and Hippolyte Machetti & Aloise Retornaz (FRA) have also been posting top 10 results in major events this season.
The most consistent performers from the early 2023 season are Jordi Xammar & Nora Brugman (ESP) from Spain, with victories at the Lanzarote International Regatta and Semaine Olympique Française Hyères, and runners-up at the Trofeo Princesa Sofia in Palma in early April. This Spanish team were also the silver medallists from last year's European and World Championships, so their familiarity with the podium make Xammar & Brugman the favourites for the title in San Remo.
Never to be discounted are the defending European Champions from Sweden, Anton Dahlberg & Lovisa Karlsson (SWE). Since winning last year's title in Turkey, however, the Swedes have struggled to repeat the same form. A sixth place in Hyères suggests Dahlberg and Karlsson are not too far away from getting back to their best, although there are plenty of other teams who also have serious aspirations for a top three in Italy.
Winners at the Trofeo Princesa Sofia in Palma a few weeks ago were Keijo Okada & Miho Yoshioka (JPN), one of a number of non-European teams set to compete in San Remo. Other nations from farther afield include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, India and the USA. Four-time Olympic representative Stu McNay (USA) is back campaigning in a 470 with new teammate Lara Dallman-Weiss, who also represented USA in the women's 470 at Tokyo 2020.
Sunday 14 May is practice race day and the end of registration and measurement. The first race of the Championship is scheduled for 1200 hours local time on Monday 15 May.
Find out more at 2023europeans.470.org