World Match Racing Tour ACI Cup at Rivinj, Croatia - Day 1

Rain dampens opening of 20th ACI Cup

One flight is conducted late in the day after a lengthy postponement

Five skippers are tied at 1-0 after one flight of racing was completed on Day 1 of the 20th anniversary ACI Adris Match Race Cup, Stage 6 of the 2005-’06 World Match Racing Tour.

Paolo Cian, Bjorn Hansen, Ian Williams Johnie Berntsson and Staffan Lindberg won their matches against, respectively, Dario Kliba, Mathieu Richard, Evgeniy Neugodnikov, Philippe Presti and Pierre-Antoine Morvan.

The event’s 11th crew, led by defending ACI Cup champion Peter Gilmour, had a bye in the round.

Racing was postponed for the majority of the day due to heavy rains that sapped Rovinj of all wind. The rain let up in the middle of the day and the race committee sent the crews to the racecourse just off Rovinj Harbor, but the rain quickly returned and the postponement was reissued.

The teams finally returned to the water around 4:30 pm for the lone flight, which was sailed in a shifty 5-knot easterly wind.

“We managed to stay relaxed for the better part of the day,” said Williams of Great Britain, whose looking to a good finish to score points and move into the World Tour’s Championship 8. “It was tough to get up for one race, but a win’s a win and we’ll take it.”

Racing is scheduled to resume tomorrow at 10:00 am.

The World Tour is sanctioned by ISAF, sailing’s world governing body. BMW is a Partner of the World Tour and the Official Car. World Tour sponsors include Sebago (Rockford, Mich.), the Official Footwear Supplier, Travel Places (West Sussex, England), the Official Travel Partner, and Musto (Essex, England), the Official Clothing Supplier.

For more information on the World Match Racing Tour, its competitors and events, please visit the official World Tour Web site, www.WorldMatchRacingTour.com. World Match Racing Tour television programs may be viewed on demand by clicking on the television icon on the home page of the Web site.

2006 ACI Cup Provisional Standings (after 1 of 22 scheduled flights)

1. Johnie Berntsson (SWE) Team Semcon, 1-0
(Crew: Johan Bäckman, Johan Karlsson, Björn Lundgren, Martin Strömberg)
T. Paolo Cian (ITA) Team Viano Mercedes Benz, 1-0
(Crew: Ian Ainslie, Nando Colaninno, Pierlugi Fornelli, Salvatore Pavoni)
T. Björn Hansen (SWE) Team Hansen, 1-0
(Crew: Mathias Bredin, Mathias Hermansson, Pontus Meijer, Johan Qviberg)
T. Staffan Lindberg (FIN) Alandia Sailing Team, 1-0
(Crew: Nils Bjerkås, Niklas Carlzon, Peter Krull, Emil Wiberg)
T. Ian Williams (GBR) Williams Sail Racing, 1-0
(Crew: Jesper Feldt, Wade Morgan, Mal Parker, Mark Williams)
6. Peter Gilmour (AUS) PST, 0-0
(Crew: Rod Dawson, Thierry Douillard, Kazuhiko Sofuku, Yasuhiro Yaji)
7. Dario Kliba (CRO) Croatia One, 0-1
(Crew: Slaven Celiã, Hrvoje Koðtiã, Nikola Prlenda, Benèiã Murizio)
T. Pierre-Antoine Morvan (FRA) Extreme Team Morbihan, 0-1
(Crew: Vincent Biarnes, Devan Le Bihan, Mathieu Renault, Erwann Taulois)
T. Evgeny Neugodnikov (RUS) Lord of the Sail, 0-1
(Crew: Alexander Ekimov, Oleg Krivov, Nikolay Kornev, Maxim Taranov)
T. Philippe Presti (FRA) Luna Rossa, 0-1
(Crew: Paolo Bassani, Tom Burnham, Ben Durham, Andy Fethers)
T. Mathieu Richard (FRA) Saba Sailing Team, 0-1
(Crew: Greg Evrard, Olivier Herledant, Jean Philippe Saliou, Yannick Simon)