| MEDEMBLIK, THE NETHERLANDS-(22-5-2003) Today’s sailing conditions were close to perfect
with 12 to 17 knots wind. The top three of the Tornado and Finn
classifications have changed today. The British team Mcmillan/Bulkeley and
the Frenchmen Backes/Voiron entered the top three in the Tornado and World
Champion in the Finn, Ben Ainslie, climbed up to first position overall.
Yngling team Hin/Samama/Buis from the Netherlands also entered the top three
in second place.
Finn
The Finn sailors completed two races today and World Champion Ben Ainslie
won both of them in his group, which brought him in first position overall.
Mateusz Kusznierewicz from Poland, second in the ISAF World Ranking and
winner of the SPA Regatta in 1999 and 2001, crossed the finish line in
second and first position today and climbed from a fourth to a second
ranking overall. Kusznierewicz: “Normally we sail in one fleet, but at the
SPA Regatta the competitors are split up in groups. That requires a
different strategy, but I like it. It is funny to me that I will meet Ben
Ainsly at the finals and not earlier.” After tomorrow’s races the fleet will
be split up into a gold and silver fleet.
Tornado
Sven Karsenbarg and Mischa Heemskerk from the Netherlands had a bad start
today. In the first race at the windward mark, the Swedish team
Wallen/Westerdahl did not give them the right of way and hit their rudder.
It broke and the Dutch team had to retire. They borrowed a new one and
completed the second and third race with an unbalanced rudder. The jury
decided that today’s results of team Karsenbarg/Heemskerk will be replaced
by an average of the results of Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. According to
Karsenbarg it was hard sailing on the Tornado course, due to shifty winds.
The British team McMillan/Bulkeley had a good day with two second and one
first position, which resulted in a second place overall, followed by the
European Champions Backes/Voiron from France.
From the racing areas
According to the 470 race officer Michiel Poulie, today’s wind shifts had a
great influence on the results. That is why the leading teams showed
defensive sailing, said Poulie. He noticed close competition and a high
level of sailing. At the first upwind mark, the fleet is still together and
up-wind speed of the teams is almost similar. The Dutch brothers Sven and
Kalle Coster are still in first position overall and in the women fleet the
leading position has been taken over by the Swedish team Torgersson/Vendela.
Champions Cup
Every evening the Champions Cup is to be sailed in front of the harbour of
Regatta Center Medemblik. It is a daily knock-out competition with the best
competitors in every class of that day. They strive in little so-called
“battleboats” for the honour of the day and off course the Champions Cup
itself, completed with a cheque of 440 Euros. Today after a tough
competition, 470 sailor Paul Foerster from the USA won from Tornado sailor
Leigh McMillan from Great Britain.
Results
Mistral Men:
1. Jon-Paul Tobin, NZL, 3 pts
2. Ricardo Dos Santos, BRA, 7 pts
3. Zhou Yuanguo, CHN, 7 pts
4. Marcos Galvan, ARG, 7 pts
Mistral Women:
1. Lise Vidal, FRA, 4 pts
2. Lee Lai Shan, HKG, 10 pts
3. Yin Jian, CHN, 11 pts
470 Women:
1. Therese Torgersson/Zachrisson Vendela, SWE, 18 pts
2. Nike Kornecki, ISR, 24 pts
3. Marcelien de Koning/Lobke Berkhout, NED, 24 pts
470 Men:
1. Sven Coster/Kalle Coster, NED, 8 pts
2. Paul Foerster, USA, 12 pts
3. Alvaro Marinho/Miguel Nunes, POR, 13 pts
Tornado:
1. Sven Karsenbarg/Mischa Heemskerk, NED, 9 pts
2. Leigh Mcmillan/Mark Bulkely, GBR, 12 pts
3. Olivier Backes/Laurent Voiron, FRA, 21 pts
49-er:
1. Paul Brotherton, GBR, 12 pts
2. Chris Draper, GBR, 14 pts
3. Peter Hansen/Soren Hansen, 15 pts
Star:
1. Ian Percy/Steve Mitchel, GBR, 9 pts
2. Peter Bromby/Lee White, BER, 13 pts
3. Mark Reynolds/Magnus Liljedahl, USA, 15 pts
Yngling :
1. Shirly Robertson/Sarah Webb/Sarah Ayton, GBR, 4 pts
2. Janneke Hin/Margriet Samama/Hanne Buis, NED, 12 pts
3. Carol Cronin/Liz Filter/Bridget Hallawell, USA, 13 pts
Laser:
1. Robert Scheidt, BRA, 7 pts
2. Paul Goodison, GBR, 8 pts
3. Irec Suneson, SWE, 12 pts
Finn:
1. Ben Ainslie, GBR, 3 pts
2. Mateusz Kusznierewicz, POL, 5 pts
3. Emilios Papathanasiou, GRE, 6 pts
Europe:
1. Sari Multala, FIN, 15 pts
2. Wiebke Schoder, GER, 16 pts
3. Siren Sundy, NOR, 18 pts
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