Consolidation For Fleet Leaders

Leaden skies and a shifty southerly breeze (8-15 knots) greeted the seven fleets for the fourth day of racing at the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship, Gydnia, Poland.

It was a day of consolidation for the fleet leaders. Overall, France lead the race to lift the Volvo Trophy but with Great Britain only 16 points behind, after today’s racing, the battle remains wide open.

Double-Handed Dinghy Girls – 9 Races, 1 Discard
Perth, Australia duo, Elise RECHICHI and Tessa PARKINSON have continued their form, and placed enjoyed a first and a second today, to extend their lead at the front of the 420 Girls fleet by 18 points. Rechichi commented, “We only made one mistake today and that was to head towards the wrong buoy in the second race. If we get one more top 15 finish, we’ll win our Class.” And of course successfully defend their ISAF Youth Sailing World Championship title and add valuable points to Australia’s attempt to retain the Nations’ Trophy.

Behind this pairing, the second and third placed crews remain the same after a further two races, with Lydia KOPPIN and Kristina KUMMER(GER) ahead of Emmanuelle ROL and Sophie-Anne THILO (SUI).

Double-Handed Dinghy Boys – 9 Races, 1 Discard
Nathan OUTTERIDGE and Iain JENSON (AUS) faired equally well as their female team mates in the in the Boys 420 fleet. A first and a second has put them virtually out of reach of second placed French pair, Thomas and Mathieu RAHIER, with the gap between them opening to 20 points. A 4,1 put a smile on the faces of Jonathan MCGOVERN and Stuart BITHELL (GBR) and propelled them into the bronze medal position, ousting the Brazilian pairing of Thomas SUMNER and Mark PINEDA down to sixth. Consistent sailing from Chin TEO WEE and Terence KOH (SIN) has put them just one point adrift of the Brits and with all to play for in the final three races.

Multihull Open – 9 Races, 1 Discard
Until today, the top three in the Hobie 16 fleet had between them secured the top three places in each of the seven races, and each had every chance of securing the gold medal. However, today may have been the turning point and with the leading crew of Tom PHILIPS and Jonathan COOK not putting a foot wrong to finish 1,1, have secured themselves a 4 point margin. Whilst this may sound small, the chasing second and third placed crews cannot risk any more places out of the top three, without offering the gold medal on a plate to the British duo.

Juan MAEGLI and Jason HESS, both 18 and representing Guatemala are in third position, and more accustomed to lake racing in 25C. They admitted that they were struggling with the cold and their spinnaker, and Maegli commented, “This is the first time that we’ve used a spinnaker and it has been hard work to get used to it. I knew that Tom would be tough competition having sailed against him at the Hobie Worlds where I finished fourth.”

The Guatemalans will be fighting it out for the medal colour with the second placed Julien VILLION and Marting BARTAILLE (FRA).

Single-Handed Dinghy Girls – 9 Races, 1 Discard
Sarah STEYAERT (FRA) retains her top notch in the Girls Laser fleet. As with the Boys fleet, the competition is hotting up for second and third place between Paige RAILEY (USA) and Charlotte DOBSON (GBR). Both Paige and Charlotte already carry double figure results, against Sarah’s run of top 10 places including four bullets, and will now need to sail consistently to hold their medal positions.

Single-Handed Dinghy Boys – 9 Races, 1 Discard
Similar to the girls, the top three members of the Boys Laser fleet remain unchanged with Nick THOMPSON (GBR) remaining in pole position. Simon MORGAN (AUS) and Simon GROTELUSCHEN (GER) lie in second and third respectively but the Australian muscled into second place today. With these two just a point apart, the next three races will be crucial.

Windsurfer Girls – 9 Races, 1 Discard
Untouchable – that is the only way the performance of Zofia KLEPACKA (POL) can be described. Imagine having to discard a first place, which is exactly what Zofia has done today, with 8 bullets and a second in the 9 races held to date, one of those firsts had to go as the second discard came into play today. The gold is not quite yet Zofia’s, but after tomorrow’s race 10, it is highly likely that hers will be the first gold claimed at the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship. A fantastic boost as Zofia prepares to represent her nation in Athens in 30 days time.

The second and third placed sailors remain the same after today’s racing, although chasing hard is Germany’s Wiebke SRADNICK who has closed the points gap with 2 third places.

Windsurfer Boys – 9 Races, 1 Discard
A return to form, sees local sailor Kamil LEWANDOWSKI (18) post two wins today, and make a return to lead the fleet, 14 points ahead of his nearest rival Frederico ESPOSITO of Italy. Ousted from his place a the front of the fleet Richard POTTER (GBR) lies in third.

Three races remain to be sailed in each fleet at the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship, which will be raced over the next two days.

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