Gurnard Sailing Club team at Italiana Cup Match Racing
by Mike Martin 16 Sep 2009 09:50 BST
Gurnard Girls Team in action during the Italiana Cup (bow to stern; Rose Ely, Natalie Gill, Hannah Shields, Shannon Tate, Sophie French (helm)) © Mike Martin
The Italiana Cup is an annual international keel-boat match racing event for under 18s held at Rapallo, near Porto Fino, Italy. This year the competition included entries from 10 teams from the hosts Italy plus Canada, Spain, France – and Gurnard, Isle of Wight.
Participation in last year’s event provided some tough lessons in the art of match-racing, and a determination to provide a better prepared entry in 2009.
A successful fund-raising supper and some vital donations from members provided the wherewithal to enter the event, and Gurnard SC selected 2 teams (girls and boys) for the trip. Under the tutelage of local sailors and top-level match racing tuition from Cordelia Ellis, both teams put in a ton of practice before setting off, including gaining third place in an under 21 RYA event at Queen Mary Reservoir in London. The UKSA in Cowes made their practice boats and facilities available to the teams during the practice stages, which was another major factor in the teams’ success.
After arriving in Rapallo, settling in and sampling the local ice cream the sailors prepared for their first day’s action on the water.
All teams sailed a round robin to decide the semi-finalists. The Gurnard boys team came out top, lifting a handsome cup for the Rapallo Challenge. They were then allowed to choose their opponents for the semi-final from the other top teams and after a close 3 boat series, proceeded into the finals to face the Spanish team of five girls. After another close series they sailed a superb race to come out on top to win another trophy – the ISAF Cup.
There was a brief interlude but very soon the boys were in yet another series of races against the best Italian team for the Italiana Cup. Despite beating their opponents on two previous occasions, they were unable to make it three in a row but had already proved themselves to be top competitors by winning 2 of the 3 trophies available.
The girls team, despite being very young and inexperienced, acquitted themselves well with several narrow defeats and finally the victory they deserved. They were given special mention by the organisers as the team who had improved the most and were supported by all the other competing teams (and most of the officials!) throughout the competition.
Cordelia Ellis’ on-the-water support and coaching in both Cowes and Rapallo was greatly appreciated by both teams, who came away from an excellent event with the determination to take on the world and win next time.