IODA 2014 Optimist Asian Team Racing Championship - Overall
by Icarus Sailing Media 4 Apr 2014 09:32 BST
3-4 April 2014
Welcome back to Bahrain and the decisive day for the title of the Optimist Asian Team Racing Champion. The difficulty for the remaining teams had stepped up a level because weather conditions were really challenging - strong winds with gusts up to 20 knots. So all the teams paid extra attention to the details of tuning their boats and sails for another demanding day, leaving the shore ready to fight.
The race course was set close to the shore and the first battle began on time. The stronger winds gave an advantage to the heavier crews, so the lighter crews had to draw even more on stamina, mental toughness and tactics.
The first battle was between the powerhouse of Optimist racing, Singapore, and the skilful team of Thailand. Singapore is the title holder and beat Thailand in 2012, while Thailand won in 2011. So both teams had history, and both were determined to win this year. Eventually, Singapore prevailed after a tough battle on the water.
Japan rolled out a very good team who managed to disqualify the 2nd team of Singapore preventing a civil war of 2 Singaporean teams. Although Japan fought hard in the next round they didn't manage to overcome the obstacle of the 1stSingapore team, but they were happy enough to win the bronze medal.
The Singaporean 1st team, under the directions of their top coach Fernando Alegre, was determined to continue their run of wins in this competition, but they had a rather solid object in their path, which was the formidable team from China. In the final sail-off the menu was full of action as both teams gave their best and transformed the race into a chess game. Close battles, moments full of tension and great performances lead to a spectacular outcome with China outfoxing Singapore to raise the flag and take victory. Champions of 2014!
Tomorrow the forecast is pretty much the same so all the sailors will enjoy three more fast races as the championship is returning to the individual format. More action in our next report!