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4 July 2004, 06:15 pm

South African Leads The Field In The Laser Euro Cup

Warnemunde Week

Warnemunde

With two race wins, Gareth <a href=/bio.html#RSAGB1><B>BLANCKENBERG</A></B> from South Africa is in the lead at the end of the first day of the Laser Euro Cup at the 67th Warnemuende Week.

The 24 year old sailor, who will represent his country at the Olympic Games, is improving after his eighth place at Kieler Woche. Mathias RIECK from Warnemuender Sailing Club, is also in the hunt, crossing the finishing line just behind Blanckenberg in the second race. In the first race of the day he finished sixth: "Immediately after the start I was in 20th place, due to a capsize. Then I had to get through to the front", he recalled. Alexander SCHLONSKI, Rieck´s training partner, is in fourth place.

While for Rieck Warnemuende Week represents a chance to prove his medal prospects in Athens and get a ticket to the Olympic Games, Blanckenberg is treating this principally as training. In the 111 strong start list there are two further Olympic competitors: Giedrius GUZYS from Lithuania and Allan JULIE from the Seychelles. On Tuesday, the last official day of the Euro Cup, Blanckenberg flies to Athens, in order to take part in the Greek Championships in the Olympic sailing area. After that he will be seen again in Warnemuende at the Laser European Championships, 16 to 24 July.

In the other classes the first day also went well. In the 420s the crew of Mathew BELCHER and Rike ZIEGELMAYER, representing Australia, scored two first places.

There were 37 yachts at the start in the Pokal regatta. After a front had passed through there was some damage to the fleet and so only one race was held today.

Full results are available on the event website at the address below.

Event Media (As Amended By ISAF News Editor)

Isaf TV

The Men's 470 lead went to and fro all week but Sime Fantela and Igor Marenic (CRO) held their nerve to add a gold medal to their two silvers from the 2013-2014 ISAF Sailing World Cup series. Silver went to Anton Dahlberg and Fredrik Bergstrom (SWE) whilst Mat Belcher and Will Ryan (AUS) took bronze.

Female ISAF Rolex World Sailors of the Year Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie (NZL) won the Women's 470 Medal Race and with it gold as they made it three consecutive 200-point regatta wins in a row.
France's Camille Lecointre and Hélène Defrance had held the lead in the Women's 470 for the large part of the week but came undone on the final day as a sixth knocked them off gold medal position. They were made to settle for silver whilst bronze went to Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark (GBR).

Billy Besson and Marie Riou went into the Nacra 17 Medal Race with an unassailable 22 point lead and the gold medal sewn up. ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami gold medallists Vittorio Bissaro and Silvia Sicouri (ITA) added a World Cup silver to their collection having finished in fifth. Bronze went to Darren Bundock and Nina Curtis (AUS).

Gold fleet racing got underway in six Olympic events at ISAF Sailing World Cup Mallorca. We caught up with three of the leaders and got race highlights from all of the day's proceedings. View results from Mallorca on the ISAF Sailing World Cup website here http://www.sailing.org/worldcup/results/index.php

The 2011 World Champion Giles Scott (GBR) made a successful come from behind victory on Saturday to take home the gold medal. Scott finished nine seconds behind Luke Lawrence (USA) for second place. Overnight leader Oliver Tweddell (AUS) slipped up with an eighth place finish Saturday after leading by nine points.