| ATHENS-(22-8-2002) Just one day before the end of the Pre-Olympic Sailing Test Event, the ‘golden’ twin Greek pair in the 470 class, Sofia Bekatorou and Emilia Tsoulfa, has secured first place in the final standings. In the three races that took place today, the two champions held steady positions among the first ten competitors, which enabled them to maintain a comfortable lead over the rest. As they pointed out in their statements, maintaining a steady, good performance constituted their major advantage in this great event. They said their next goal is the World Championship which is taking place in a few days in Sardinia.
Bekatorou and Tsoulfa remain unbeaten over the past two years. In 2001 they won the gold medal in the European and the World Championship, while in 2002 they took first place in the Eurolymps, in the cities of Hyeres, Spa, Barcelona, Madrid and Athens. Right now they are in first place in the world standings.
In the first-to-last day of the competition a total of 27 races were held, in 10 boat classes. The largest number, four, were staged in the 49er class, while another four have been scheduled for tomorrow. Norwegians Christopher Sundby and Frode Bovim are leading the standings, while an excellent appearance was also made by the Greek crew of Thanasis Pachoumas and Vasilis Portosalte who won first place in two of the four races. They hold 12th place in the general standings. “We are very pleased with our performances. The hard work we did this year is beginning to show. We have been competing in this class since 1999 and our main aim is to win one of the top six positions in the 2004 Olympic Games”.
Nikos Kaklamanakis has also secured the gold medal in the Mistral class. He came fifth in the two races today but maintains a safe lead over New Zealander James Wells in second place.
In the men’s 470 class the lead is held by Johan Molund and Martin Andersson of Sweden. “We are becoming familiar with the racing course and are preparing for the Olympic Games, where we want to find ourselves in peak form”, they said. “The top athletes are participating in this event, while for us the next key goal is the World Championship in Sardinia”.
Andreas Kosmatopoulos and Kostas Trigonis are in 6th place in the general standings.
Ben Ainslie, the British ‘athlete-phenomenon’, continues to leave an impressive trail in the Finn class. A gold medallist in the 2000 Olympic Games in the Laser category, he now appears to be the favourite for another gold medal. It will be his third major success this year after the gold medal in the World Cup in Athens and the European Championship in Turkey. A very good appearance was also made by 23-year old Alexandros Dragoutis of Greece, who came 7th and 3rd respectively in today’s two races.
The very last day will determine the winner of the gold medal in the Europe class. A mere three points separate the first three contestants. Brain Solenne of France has 18 points, followed by Virginia Kravarioti of Greece with 19 points and Nonika Oikonomopoulou with 21. “We’ve made a good start for 2004. These races constitute a good test in all sectors,” said Oikonomopoulou.
In the Tornado class the lead is held by Australians Roman Hagara and Hans Peter Steinacher. In the 8th race Paschalides and Garefis of Greece took 8th place, but they were then disqualified in the next race and now hold eighth place in the general standings.
In the Yngling, first place is held by the American crew of Hannah Swett – Joan Touchette – Melissa Rurdy. In the Laser class, Daniel Birgmark of Sweden has already secured first place.
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