ISAF Match Race Rankings - 5 December 2012

For the 11th ISAF Match Race Rankings Release in a row, Ian Williams (GBR) and Anna Tunnicliffe (USA) hold top spot in the Open and Women’s Rankings.

Open Rankings

Whilst Great Britain’s Ian Williams retains the World #1 spot once again there were no threats to his spot as a number of ISAF Grade 3 regattas were sailed in November. This has seen some movement throughout the rankings with some slight shuffling in the top ten.

Will Tiller’s winning performance at the New Zealand Match Racing Championships in Auckland moves him up to World #5. The 23-year-old has rapidly worked his way up the rankings and overtakes compatriot Laurie Jury to become the highest ranked Kiwi match racer in the rankings. However with Jury racing at the climax of the Alpari World Match Racing Tour, the Monsoon Cup, a good performance will see him overtake Tiller.

It was a busy November for another New Zealander as Chris Steele competed in not one, not two, but three regattas. Starting off at the New Caledonia Match Race the Kiwi walked away with gold round his neck. Three days later the 19-year-old took to the water in Auckland alongside Tiller and finished sixth. He rounded off his month with a trip to Sydney, Australia for the Musto International Youth Match Racing Championships and added a second gold to his collection. Counting just five events on the Open Rankings, Steele climbs from World #97 to World #60, a personal best.

Although Henrique Haddad (BRA) is aiming for a Brazilian Men’s 470 spot at the Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition the Brazilian has made an impression on the Open Rankings this month moving from World #130 to World #51. Haddad took gold at Match Race Brasil in Rio and soon after picked up silver at the Porto Alegre Match Race Cup. The former World #22 finished 11th at the Argo Gold Cup in Bermuda in October which boosted him up in the previous rankings release on 31 October.

Denmark’s Rasmus Viltoft took gold at the Danish Match Racing Championship in Skovshoved which sees the Dane break back into the top 25 having last held a place there in September 2011.

November Match Race Champion Olli-Pekka Lumijärvi (FIN) moves up 42 places to World #41 and Baptise Choquenet (FRA) is another one of this month’s big movers after the Frenchman won gold at Championnat de France Espoirs de Match Racing in La Rochelle, France. Choquenet climbs up to World #67 from World #105.

Click here for the Open Rankings.

Women’s Rankings

There were no graded women’s match racing regatta in this month however there are some small changes as skippers can only count regattas over a 24-month period.

Ekaterina Skudina (RUS) moves up from World #7 to World #5 as Sally Barkow (USA) and Silja Lehtinen (FIN) slip to World #6 and #7 respectively.

Having racked up a number of good results at ISAF Grade 3, 4 and 5 over the last 24 months, Noora Tams (FIN) has progressed into the top #25 for the first time. Another Finnish match racer, Anna-Maria Nikula, is on the up and counting four regattas she sits at World #59, a big climb from World #94.

Click here for the Women’s Rankings

Highlights from the opening two days of ISAF Sailing World Cup Melbourne.

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