35th Palamós Optimist Trophy Day 1
by Jaume Soler 13 Feb 11:32 PST
13-16 February 2025
The 35th Palamós International Optimist Trophy-18 Nations started this Thursday with the celebration of the first two races and ended with the shared leadership of the European Optimist champion, the Croatian Vita Erceg (DRCS) and the Balearic Stijn Oosterhaven (CN Arenal) as first overall leaders tied at 3 points. The third place is occupied by the Polish Milosz Ciechanowicz (ENERGA Gizycka Grupa Regatowa).
The first day of a regatta like the Palamós International Optimist Trophy, which has 550 participants, serves for the favorites to begin to mark territory for the following days, where the passage to the Final Series will be decided. In this case Erceg and Oosterhaven matched results, a first and a second for the Spaniard who sailed in the green group and vice versa for the Croatian who sailed in the white group, so that provisionally the European champion leads having won the last race.
From there the third position is occupied by Ciechanowicz, who with a 2-3 is placed two points off the lead. The fourth and fifth places are for two Spaniards, Alejandro Valero (RCR Alicante) who scored a 2-4 in the red group and Dani Capa (CN S'Estanyol) with a 5-2, so they do not lose sight of the podium positions, after this first day of racing.
The European bronze medalist, the Italian Jesper Karlsen (Fraglia Vela Riva) is provisionally in ninth place after a 6-2.
The wind blew lightly between 6-7 from the northeast that came in after noon after a first postponement, and from then on, two starts could be given in each of the five groups and a third for the yellow group, the rest returned to land due to the progressive decrease of the wind.
This Friday will start the groups that are missing the third test and will begin the second day of Preliminary Phase that will lead to the Final Phase, to be held on Saturday and Sunday.
Full results can be found here.