Sea Dubai RC44 Gold Cup - Overall

Day 5 of the Sea Dubai RC44 Gold Cup © Ashraf Al Amra

Day 5 of the Sea Dubai RC44 Gold Cup © Ashraf Al Amra

Fantastic finale for the home team

Sea Dubai kept the best till last and proved what they can do and how well they can do it today. It was promising from the start; the wind came in early sending a great buzz around the event village and down to the dock. Racing started on time with the wind blowing 12 – 15 knots from the land.

The first race started in a choppy sea with Sea Dubai seventh at the top mark but the team sailed a great race catching up and over taking three boats to finish third behind No Way Back. In the second race the team came sixth behind No Way Back again after starting out in fifth place, dropping to seventh and then passing Katusha to get a sixth place.

But the piece de resistance was the last race; on home ground the home team raced a superb race that left the rest of the fleet standing. They made a good start, second across the line behind Team Aqua and stayed in second place for the next two marks, then the fleet divided, Sea Dubai went wide out to sea playing the tide and current, going high and reaching the top mark for the second time in first place. From there the team continued to sail their own race, holding their line and nerve with confidence and finished very proudly ahead of the rest of the fleet in front of a happy home crowd.

‘The last race was obviously a good race for the team and I think the best way I can put it is that it signifies how we’d like to start next year, on a really good note,’ said Hartwell Jordan, the Sea Dubai mainsheet trimmer. ‘I went out today full of fight, wanting to win and believing we could. Saeed Harib, Managing Director of Dubai International Marine Club, our owner, gave us a really good pep talk last night, he believes in us and told us that he’s sure we can win and go on winning.’

The team were all full of fight today and the final race was good, the team spirit on the boat across the victory line was the best,’ said Yousef Lahej, fleet race skipper. ‘It was a really great finish to a great regatta in our home town and namesake,’ said Markus Wieser, tactician and match race skipper.

The Gold Cup ended today and the boats will now be stored in Dubai International Marine Club for the winter and some of the teams will make the most of the fantastic winter conditions to train here. The 2010 RC44 Championship Tour will hold its first round in the Maktoum Sailing Trophy on February 21st.

Overall Results: