EUROSAF Match Racing Europeans at Monte Real Club de Yates Preview
by John Friend, EUROSAF 28 Sep 2012 13:01 BST
5-9 October 2012
London Olympic Games Match Racing Gold Medallist, Támara Echegoyen from Spain, will be competing in the EUROSAF Match Racing, Open European Championship, with a crew which includes a number of America's Cup sailors.
Between 5th and 9th October, at the Monte Real Club de Yates, Bayona, Spain, twelve of the top match race sailing teams (according to the ISAF ranking list), will be competing in the Open Match Racing Championship of Europe. This is an annual event, arranged by the European Sailing Federation (EUROSAF) in conjunction with sailing clubs from their member countries. In 2012 the Championship is being organised by Monte Real Club de Yates, in association with EUROSAF and the Spanish Sailing Federation (RFEV), and in collaboration with Turismo Rias Baixas, Bayona Town Council (Concello de Baiona), Sperry Top Sider and Valiant.
Twelve teams from ten different countries will be competing in this match racing regatta. This includes French skipper Pierre Antoine Morvan (ranked 3rd in the world by ISAF), Mads Ebler from Denmark (10th) and the Spanish skipper Támara Echegoyen, who won the gold medal in the women's match racing event at the recent London Olympics. America's Cup sailors Victor Mariño, Marcos Iglesias and Quique Cameselle will be racing with Támara, so she should provide strong competition to the other teams. Teams from Great Britain, Sweden, Hungary, Slovenia, Estonia, Italy and Portugal make up the other competitors, all of whom will be trying to win the coveted Piraterne Trophy, awarded to the winning skipper, along with the EUROSAF championship gold medals presented to all the crew members of the winning team.
The competition programme will consist of a full round-robin, in which all the teams will race against each other. This will be followed by quarter-final and semi-final knock-out series and then the petit final and final. Racing commences on Friday 6th October, with the first race at 10.00 each day. The prize-giving and medal ceremony will be held approximately one hour after the final race on Tuesday 9th October.
There will be a press conference 45 minutes after racing finishes each day of the championship.
Further information will be posted at www.mrcyb.es/noticia.php?idNoticia=240