May 27, 2007
3 minutes reading time
Shock Exit For World Leader
It was a surprising early departure for the current World Tour leader and world #1 Ian WILLIAMS (GBR) on day three of the ISAF Grade WC Match Race German, stage 7 of the 2006-07 World Match Racing Tour.
It was a surprising early departure for the current World Tour leader and world #1 Ian WILLIAMS (GBR) on day three of the ISAF Grade WC Match Race German, stage 7 of the 2006-07 World Match Racing Tour.
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Langenargen, Germany famous for beautiful scenery on the cross borders of Southern Germany, Austria, and Switzerland is the most picturesque little town dominated by its own castle. Saturday morning saw the most beautiful breeze and racing got under way as scheduled. The hotshots were ready and Mathieu RICHARD (FRA) of Saba Sailing team went on to beat his fellow country man America’s Cup skipper Sébastien COL (FRA) of Areva Challenge. Both won four races in Group A1’s Round Robin but RICHARD won the tiebreaker to take the lead. Local favourite Marcus WIESER (GER) took the win from Shosholoza‘s Paolo CIAN (ITA) to lead Group A2.
It was a surprising early departure for the current World Tour leader WILLIAMS. ‘It was not the conditions that dictated us leaving so early in the game we were simply not on our usual winning form,’ said WILLIAMS. WILLIAMS is always very strong in the starting box but with the conditions being so light, this was less of an advantage. Joining WILLIAMS in elimination were Bjorn HANSEN (SWE), Carsten KEMMLING (GER) and Wearn Haw TAN (SIN) of China Team.
Eight crews (the top four from Group A1 and A2) qualified for the quarter-finals. The Quarter-Final Round, a seven-flight round robin, featured crews led by skippers RICHARD, COL, Evgeniy NEUGODNIKOV (RUS) and Eric MONNIN (SUI) from Group A1. WIESER, CIAN , Staffan LINDBERG (FIN) and Michael HESTBEAK (DEN) qualified from Group A2.
Round Robin Standings
Group A1
(5/5 Flights)
1. Sébastien COL (FRA), 4-1
2. Eric MONNIN (SUI), 3-1
3. Mathieu RICHARD (FRA), 4-1
4. Eugeniy NEUGODNIKOV (RUS), 3-2
5. Carsten KEMMLING (GER), 1-4
6. Wearn Haw TAN (SIN), 0-5
Group A2
(5/5 Flights)
1. Paolo CIAN (ITA), 4-1
2. Markus WIESER (GER), 4-1
3. Staffan LINDBERG (FIN), 2-3
4. Björn HANSEN (SWE), 2-3
5. Michael HESTBEAK (DEN), 2-3
6. Ian WILLIAMS (GBR), 1-4
ISAF Match Racing World Championship Standings
(After Stage 6)
| Pos | Skipper | Nation | ISAF World Match Race Ranking | Team | Pts |
| 1 | Ian WILLIAMS | GBR | 4 | Team Pindar | 62 |
| 2 | Mathieu RICHARD | FRA | 6 | Saba Sailing Team | 50 |
| 3 | Jesper BANK | DEN | 57 | United Internet Team Germ | 45 |
| 4 | Paolo CIAN | ITA | 2 | Team Viano Mercedes Benz | 41 |
| 5 | Ed BAIRD | USA | 22 | Alinghi | 40 |
| 6 | Peter HOLMBERG | ISV | 75 | Alinghi | 37 |
| 7 | Peter GILMOUR | AUS | 3 | PST | 35 |
| 8 | Sébastien COL | FRA | 1 | Areva Challenge | 33 |
World Match Racing Tour Schedule
(2006-2007 Season)
| Stage | Event | Venue | Date |
| Stage 1 | Portugal Match Cup | Cascais, Portugal | 18-23 July 2006 |
| Stage 2 | Danish Open | Copenhagen, Denmark | 9-13 August 2006 |
| Stage 3 | St. Moritz Match Race | St Moritz, Switzerland | 15-20 August 2006 |
| Stage 4 | Bermuda Gold Cup | Hamilton, Bermuda | 10-15 October 2006 |
| Stage 5 | Allianz Cup | San Francisco, USA | 24-29 October |
| Stage 6 | Monsoon Cup | Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia | 28 November-3 December 2006 |
| Stage 7 | Match Race Germany | Langenargen, Germany | 23-28 May 2007 |
| Stage 8 | GKSS Match Race | Marstrand, Sweden | 2-8 July 2007 |
| Stage 9 | Portugal Match Cup | Cascais, Portugal | 24-25 July 2007 |
| Stage 10 | Danish Open | Copenhagen, Denmark | 8-12 August 2007 |
| Stage 11 | St. Moritz Match Race | St Moritz, Switzerland | 14-19 August 2007 |
| Stage 12 | Latium Match Cup | Fiumicino, Italy | 11-16 September 2007 |
| Stage 13 | Locman Cup – Elba Island | Porto Azzurro, Elba Island, Italy | 25-30 September 2007 |
| Stage 14 | Bermuda Gold Cup | Hamilton, Bermuda | 9-14 October 2007 |
| Stage 15 | Brasil Sailing Cup | Angra dos Reis, Brazil | 23-28 October 2007 |
| Stage 16 | Monsoon Cup | Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia | 28 November-2 December 2007 |
The World Match Racing Tour is an ISAF Special Event. Skippers earn points towards the World Championship at the nine events of the World Tour and the highest scoring skipper at the end of the season is the ISAF Match Racing World Champion.
The World Tour Partner and Official Car is BMW AG (Munich, Germany). World Tour sponsors include Sebago (Rockford, USA), the Official Footwear Supplier, Travel Places (West Sussex, Great Britain), the Official Travel Partner and Wedgwood (Cheshire, Great Britain) the Official Trophy Supplier.
For more information on the World Match Racing Tour, its competitors and events, visit the official World Tour website – www.WorldMatchRacingTour.com. World Match Racing Tour television programmes may be viewed on demand by clicking on the television icon on the home page of the website.
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