British Team at World Cup Series Enoshima - Day 2
by British Sailing Team Media 12 Sep 2018 13:59 BST
11-16 September 2018
Emma Wilson in the RS:X on Day 2 at World Cup Series Enoshima © Sailing Energy / World Sailing
The British Sailing Team continued its assault on the World Cup Series Enoshima leaderboards on Wednesday as veteran sailors and young guns alike came to the fore.
Nineteen-year-old windsurfer Emma Wilson jumped into the bronze medal position at the halfway stage of the RS:X competition on the back of a trio of top ten results including a race win.
James Peters and Fynn Sterritt shot to the top of the 49er standings while Elliot Hanson leads in the Laser class.
And two-time Olympian Ali Young demonstrated her skill and experience as she became the new leader in the Laser Radial thanks to a second and a fourth.
The results see the Brits go into day three leading in four of the ten Olympic classes, with sailors in the top ten in each class.
With an offshore breeze of 10 to 14 knots blowing through the Olympic waters of Enoshima Bay, the British Sailing Team began the second day of World Cup Series Enoshima looking to capitalise on a strong opener.
Wilson, from Christchurch, Dorset, laid down an early marker a win in the opening women's RS:X race, demonstrating the form that saw her win bronze at the class European Championships last month.
Impressive speed downwind and canny tactics saw the three-time youth world champion bank two more scores inside the top ten.
"I'll certainly take third at the halfway point of the regatta – I'm really happy with my performance so far," Wilson said. "But I've learned this year that your position doesn't really matter until the final day, so I'll just try to keep things simple and take each day as it comes."
Young who represented Team GB at London 2012 and Rio 2016, began the day in seventh but consistent results boosted her into pole position with a one-point lead and three more days of fleet racing remaining.
In the 49er, British crews occupy the top two spots going into day three after James Peters and Fynn Sterritt leapfrogged teammates Dylan Fletcher and Stuart Bithell into first with a win and two more top ten finishes.
"We've just been fairly consistent and that's seems to be the trick in these really shifty and gusty conditions," Peters said. "We've managed to get no score outside of the top ten and we're top of the leaderboard so we're happy."
Hanson pulled the same move on fellow Brit Michael Beckett, overtaking him by a point to sit as the overnight leader, while Giles Scott remains top in the Finn class.
And in the 49er FX Charlotte Dobson and Saskia Tidey moved into third overall with a 4, 5, 18.
"The conditions over the last two days have been difficult and the challenge has been to stay consistent," Tidey said.
"There's still a long way to go so right now it's just about sticking to processes and seeing what tomorrow brings."
World Cup Series Enoshima runs until September 16, with medals decided on the last two days of competition.
Follow all the action on the British Sailing Team's Facebook, Twitter and Instagram – and post your messages to the team using the hashtag #rulethewaves. The medal races will be streamed live at britishsailingteam.com.