Fischer and Péquin get their groove back in the Bay of Palma

Making the most of brisk, shifty offshore breezes up to 17kts on the fourth day of racing, ideal conditions for the pair, Fischer and Péquin ended the day 24 points clear at the top of the 49er standings.

“We sailed really well today. We tried to keep sailing on the good shift and in the good pressure as well. If you just sailed the shift, it was not enough to pass boats. It was very tricky today. But overall, I think we are sailing well, we are sailing fast and working well together on the boat, it is nice to sail like this. I think we are in a good position now,” Péquin explains.

The French duo seem on track to win the class as they did in 2022, but are being pursued hard by the new German partnership 19-year-old Richard Schultheis and Fabien Rieger in second. In the 49erFX the GBR duo Freya Black and Saskia Tidey still lead after a 6,7,3,9 today.

In the ILCA 7 class Brit Micky Beckett had his leading margin trimmed by compatriot Elliot Hanson. Beckett is on course for his fourth consecutive Palma win, standing 11 points clear of Hanson. Top scorer in the ILCA 7 today was the Netherlands Duo Bos who won Race 7 whilst Cyprus double silver medallist Pavlos Kontides won the second race.

“It was windy and offshore. The gap has narrowed a bit to Elliot, but I am really enjoying it, though my legs are tired. I like the sailing here, it always, always demands an ability to sail well in all conditions from the windy stuff to the light, erratic stuff and that suits me. I am good at everything rather than outstanding in one area,”  said Beckett.

Like Beckett, Hungary’s 2023 ILCA 6 World Champion Maria Erdi is at home on the Bay of Palma having also won the ILCA 6 class last year. She took the class lead today after winning the first race.

So, too, did Max Maeder, Singapore’s Olympic bronze medallist. The defending Sofía champion in the Men’s Formula Kite returned to the top of the rankings, notching three first places and a second to leave Austria’s gold medallist Valentin Bontus trailing by 19 points.

In the Women’s Formula Kite China’s athletes remain very impressive in the breeze, holding all three top positions, Wan Li leading.

German 470 Olympians Simon Diesch and Anna Markfort are another duo bouncing back hard after a sub-par Marseille performance. They pipped GBR’s series leaders Martin Wrigley and Bettina Harris at the finish line to win the first breezy race today, following it up with sixth in the second race, and now just nine points behind the Brits with one more day of fleet racing to go.

Italy’s Gianluigi Ugolini and Maria Giubilei have a five points margin at the head of the Nacra 17 fleet.

The iQFOiL windsurfing athletes have been getting to grips with their new, smaller rigs this season. The women are now using 7.3 square metre sails compared with 8.0 square metres in the Paris 2024 cycle.

British athlete Emma Wilson was already going fast on the older equipment, winding up a very successful Paris cycle with an Olympic bronze medal. But she’s enjoying the smaller rig even more.

With scores of 2,2,1,1, Wilson further extends her lead in the competition. She sits on 19 points compared with China’s Zheng Yan in second on 41 points, and New Zealand’s Veerle Ten Have in third on 55 points.

Today belonged to Australian Grae Morris as he surged to scores of 1,1,11,3 in the strong breeze to take a 34-point lead over Italy’s Nicola Renna in second place. Just a point behind Renna in third is Johan Søe from Norway.

The 54 Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by FERGUS Hotels is jointly organised by the Club Nàutic S’Arenal, the Club Marítimo San Antonio de la Playa, the Real Club Náutico de Palma, the Real Federación Española de Vela and the Federación Balear de Vela, with the support of World Sailing, and is co-financed by the Govern de les Illes Balears’ Sustainable Tourism Tax fund.

More information at www.trofeoprincesasofia.org

The event is part of the Sailing Grand Slam 2025, along with the Semaine Olympique Française, the Dutch Water Week, the Kieler Woche and the Long Beach Olympic Classes Regatta.

More information at www.sailinggrandslam.com