EUROSAF Youth Sailing Europeans in Aarhus, Denmark - Day 3
by John Friend, EUROSAF 9 Aug 2012 10:51 BST
6-10 August 2012
Wednesday saw more strong winds, well over 20 knots at times, but the gusts were a little less fierce than on Tuesday. Sailors from Denmark are leading both the boys and girls Laser Radial class, the two largest fleets, with a total of fifty nine boats competing. Celine Carlsen is leading the girls fleet, closely followed by Joyee Florida (ITA) and Lena Haverland (GER) third. Tobias Hemdorff leads the boys fleet, with Henrik Begby (NOR) second and Michael Beckett (GBR) third.
Danish sailors also lead the 29er fleet, with Frederick Melson and Markus Nielsen in first place, followed by Jakob Meggendorfer and Andreas Spranger (GER) second and Joakim Salskov-Iversen crewed by Christopher Falholt, also from Denmark, in third. Italian sailors are dominating the 420 class, with Ruggiero Di Luggo and Davide Russo placed first in the boys discipline and Clara Addari and Arianna Perini first in the girls. Davide Marrella and Francesco Rossi (ITA) are second, with Pierre Garreta and Eliot Michal (FRA) third in the boys and Mathilde Doyen (ITA) second and Simay Aslan and Beste Kaynakc (TUR) third in the girls event.
The windsurfers, sailing in the RS:X class, continue to be dominated by British sailors, with Saskia Sills, fresh from winning the Four Star Pizza ISAF Youth Sailing World Championship in Ireland leading the girls fleet and Joe Bennett with three bullets in Wednesday's racing, the boys fleet. Noelle Finch (GBR) is lying second and Melanie Jariel (FRA) third in the girls fleet, with Mattia Camboni (ITA) second and Martin Olmeta (FRA) third in the boys fleet.
Competition for the Nations' Cup: Team Trophy is also intensifying. After seven races have been completed in the Laser Radial and 420 classes, and nine in the RS:X and 29er, the scores are very close. The leading nation is currently Italy with 38 points, followed by Denmark and Great Britain equal on 37 points. France are fourth with 33 points and Germany and Norway equal on 27.
According to Ellie Cumpsty (GBR) sailor in the Laser Radial fleet, the conditions on Wednesday were "a bit scary at times, particularly sailing down wind. It was breezy and choppy, with rain to begin with and shifty winds, but the sun came out later on and the racing was very enjoyable. This is my first experience of a multi-class international championship" Ellie continued " and I am thoroughly enjoying the racing and the social aspects of the event. I have made several new friends, who I hope to meet and compete against again in years to come". Ellie still qualifies for youth sailing competitions for another three years, so what a fantastic experience for her and others of her age group, being able to experience this level of competition so early in their sailing careers.
The forecast today is for lighter winds and somewhat sunnier conditions, giving those who favour less wind an opportunity to show their paces. "With heavier winds in the first half of the week and lighter conditions in the second half, we should have a well-balanced championship" said Thomas Capitani Nielsen Director of Sailing Aarhus. " We are pleased with the way things have gone" he continued "and with the excellent behaviour of the sailors, both on and off the water".
Today, the last day of fleet racing, will see the Sailboards and 29er sailing three races, while the 420 and Laser Radials sail two. Racing concludes tomorrow Friday, with medal races being sailed for the first time in international youth completion. The medals races will follow a different format to those of other international competition, one pioneered by EUROSAF during their High Performance Grand Prix regatta sailed in Murcia last year. More news on this tomorrow.
For more information go to www.sailing-aarhus.dk/eurosafyouthsailing/ and for a range of photographs www.flickr.com/photos/sailingaarhus/7733762636/
Follow the racing from 11am each day with TracTrac.