PA Consulting Allen RS Feva Worlds in Travemünde, Germany - Day 1
by Frances Peters 20 Jul 2015 22:45 BST
18-24 July 2015
After the excitement of the Opening Ceremony last night and a few days of preparation, team games and soaking up the atmosphere, sailors arrived this morning to sunshine and a steady 10-15 knots on the race course.
After gathering around the tent to be briefed for the day and collecting their GPS trackers, sailors eagerly took to the water.
The breeze and chop in race 1 provided a challenge for some. European Champions, Jack Lewis and Lucas Marshall rose to the challenge, kicking off their series with a first place in their fleet. Swedish team, Oscar Anderson and Rebecca H Flohr also showed the fleet how it was done, taking away a 2nd place in their fleet, not far ahead of the Kiwi team, Hamish McLaren and Henry McLachlan who took 4th.
Meanwhile after a strong performance at the European Championships this year, narrowly missing out on the podium, Italians Nicolo Codeghini and Edoardo Gamba picked up where they left off, throwing in a 4th place in their fleet. Hot on their heels were Simonas Jersovas and Vejas Strelciunas of Lithuania.
The second race brought lighter and less stable winds. The change in conditions meant more manageable winds were often followed by big and sudden gusts that often caught boats off guard. Changing modes quickly and thinking ahead became the order of the day and Lithuanians Jersovas&Strelciunas had it down to a tee, taking a bullet in their race.
Another race and another Italian team showing the way around the track; Mattia Zinetti and Davide Carbonelli posted a 2nd in their fleet, while Anderson&Flohr took 3rd.
In a dying breeze, the third and final race of the day became a test of patience and resilience with big changes in position occuring around the race track. Lewis & Marshall (GBR) took the gun to finish the day with a perfect score leaving them at the top of the leader board going into day 2.
Meanwhile Jersovas & Strelciunas of Lithuania finished their day on a high, posting a 3rd position and leaving them in 4th place overall. Behind by just one point going into day 2 are the Swedish team, Anderson & Flohr, who also had a consistent day, rounding off with a 2nd position to leave them in 5th overall.
McLaren & McLachlan (NZL) had a strong day, posting a 4th position in the final race, only let down by the middle race the pair lie ready to pounce just outside of the top 10.
Tomorrow will be the second and final day of the qualifying series, after which the fleet will be split into gold, silver and bronze fleet in order of ranking. The points are close after a tricky day, so it's all to play for.
Full results and analysis from SAP.