LAREDO, SPAIN-(19-7-2003) Team GBR sailors Chris Draper and Olympic silver medallist
Simon Hiscocks have won the silver medal at the 49er European championships,
matching their result at this event last year.
Draper and Hiscocks led the event throughout the week in a mixture of
conditions, but with a further four races to sail on the last day there was
all to play for and anything could happen.
In light conditions Draper and Hiscocks scored an 8,11,8,15, which was
enough to prevent the Spanish pairing of Iker Martinez and Xabier Fernandez
from defending their European title, but meant that their training partners
Marcus Baur and Max Groy of Germany overtook them and won the gold medal
along with the European title.
Fellow British sailor Paul Brotherton and crew Mark Asquith sailed a
brilliant final day winning two of the four races, to make a huge jump up
the fleet from fourteenth place overall to finally finish fourth. RYA
Development Squad sailors Stevie Morrison and Ben Rhodes finished in tenth
place overall with team mates Alister Richardson and Peter Greenhalgh
fifteenth.
Draper commented, `We went into today with the same mindset as treating it
as any other race day. Unfortunately we didn't get off the start line as
well as we could have done and therefore made a bit more work for ourselves.
We are still really pleased to have come second and to continue to be so
consistent at the regattas this year, you can't win them all but there are
definitely some things we will take away from this regatta to work on.`
Overall results
1, Marcus Baur/Max Groy, GER (1,5,1,2,6,3,2,6,5,2,9,(12),5,(10),3,5) 55 pts
2, Chris Draper/Simon Hiscocks, GBR (3,3,2,1,1,2,4,2,6,(DSQ),7,9,8,11,8,15)
67 pts
3, Iker Martinez de Lizarduy/Xabier Fernandez, ESP
(3,3,(16),3,4,1,1,7,2,9,(17),3,1,5,11,21) 69 pts
Other GBR
4, Paul Brotherton/Mark Asquith (5,1,(BFD),4,3,7,5,9,9,(21),14,13,2,1,5,1)
79 pts
10, Stevie Morrison/Ben Rhodes (13,2,6,2,1,2,14,13,7,(22),4,(18),10,13,4,18)
108 pts
15, Alister Richardson/Peter Greenhalgh
(15,3,5,5,8,7,7,(DSQ),13,10,(23),4,11,9,12,12) 121 pts
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