Please select your home edition
Edition
Trinidad and Tobago - Sail Service Stay

Lanzarote International Regatta - Day 8

by Andy Rice 17 Feb 2023 20:25 GMT 9-17 February 2023

Tibi leads the Israeli charge in iQFOiL women

The Israeli squad have dominated the iQFOiL women's racing all week. Tricky breeze on the race course meant the medal series couldn't go ahead. So Israel took all three spots on the podium, with Shahar Tibi (ISR) on the top step. In second and third respectively were Sharon Kantor (ISR) and Maya Morris (ISR).

"I would liked to have done more racing today but our format means we didn't complete enough races to run a medal series," said Tibi. "Anyway, I am very happy to win, and it's a great result to see Israel take all the spots on the podium. We have been working very hard as a squad, back home and here in Lanzarote.

This place provides perfect conditions, all kinds of waves, some waves that I don't think you can find anywhere else in the world. Nearly every day is sailable and we have had a good time training and racing here."

iQFOiL Men: Mestre makes a late charge for gold

It proved to be a much more dramatic and unexpected outcome in the men's iQFOiL fleet. Sam Sills (GBR) had won the leader's yellow bib since day one, but the winner-takes-all format of racing favoured by the iQFOiL often throws up surprise victories at the end of competition. Sills fractionally misjudged his approach to the start while France's Adrien Mestre (FRA) was fast out of the gate and went on to snatch the gold medal.

"It's an amazing feeling," smiled Mestre, who had climbed from fourth place at the start of the day. "We have this final format where the winner takes all, so I knew I had a chance. I told myself, 'don't think, just be yourself, and go.' I'm really happy that it happened for me. It's an amazing feeling." Having already been here a month, Mestre is staying on a while longer. "I want to train here in Lanzarote before the other races begin in Europe."

Luuc Van Opzeeland (NED) took second place while Sills, who had reigned supreme all week, had to be satisfied with third.

Nacra 17: French beat Argentina and New Zealand

Billy Besson & Noa Ancian (FRA) won Nacra 17 gold with Argentina and New Zealand taking silver and bronze. "That was my first medal race in my career," said Ancian, sailing with the vastly experienced Besson. "To win gold here today feels amazing. We've been here training for two months and it's a great way to finish our time in Lanzarote."

It was a close battle for second overall, eventually won by Mateo Majdalani & Eugenia Bosco (ARG) who beat Micah Wilkinson & Erica Dawson (NZL) by a single point.

This evening the winners stood on the podium in Marina Rubicón as the sun set over the Canary Islands. Tomorrow some will fly home, others will rest up or even carry on with the training programme in these ever-challenging waters.

And so ends eight days of dramatic competition which delivered all forms of waves and weather. It's why even more of the world's best Olympic sailors will be back in 2024 for Lanzarote International Regatta.

* This international event, organised by Marina Rubicón with the support of the Royal Canarian Sailing Federation has been possible thanks to the institutional sponsorship of Promotur Turismo de Canarias with the financing of the REACTEU Fund and Tourism of the Cabildo de Lanzarote through the sports product European Sports Destination (managed by SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote), as well as the public collaboration of the Yaiza City Council and the private entities Dinghycoach, Naviera Armas & Cabrera Medina (Cicar).

Overall Results: (top three in each class)

Nacra 17 (after 8 races)

1. Besson/Ancian (FRA), 17 points
2. Majdalani/ Bosco (ARG), 33 points
3. Wilkinson/ Dawson (NZL), 34 points

iQFOiL Women (after 7 races)

1. Shahar Tibi (ISR), 23 points
2. Sharon Kantor (ISR), 23 points
3. Maya Morris (ISR), 45 points

iQFOiL Men (after 9 races)

1. Adrien Mestre (FRA), 44 points
2. Luuc Van Opzeeland (NED), 47 points
3. Sam Sills (GBR), 12 points

Full results can be found here.

Related Articles

49er & 49erFX Worlds in Lanzarote - The Recap
The event marked a significant chapter for the men's 49er double class and the women's 49erFX After the successful conclusion of the iQFOiL Worlds, Marina Rubicón came back, hosting a new Olympic class world championship under the umbrella of the Lanzarote International Regatta, delivering a stunning playing field for six days of competition. Posted on 2 Apr
Lanzarote International Regatta Day 7
The wind was there, but it wouldn't play ball The sunshine was out and the northerly breeze was blowing, but the direction was all over the place on day seven of the Lanzarote International Regatta. Posted on 16 Feb 2023
Lanzarote International Regatta Day 6
Shifty Northerly Breeze brings a new Lanzarote Challenge The first northerly breeze of the week brought flatter water and shifty, offshore wind conditions. Compared with previous big wave days at Lanzarote International Regatta, day six was a completely different challenge. Posted on 16 Feb 2023
Lanzarote International Regatta Day 5
Kiwis lead Nacra 17s, Kantor & Sills top iQFOiL Tuesday was the start of part 2 of the Lanzarote International Regatta. After two days of the dusty Calima breeze from the Sahara, today the sunshine returned to the Canary Islands, and 10 to 14 knots of wind were blowing. Posted on 14 Feb 2023
Lanzarote International Regatta Day 4
Two British skiff golds and a Spanish 1-2 in the 470 Winds of 13 to 19 knots for three Medal Races in poor 'Calima' visibility. Last gasp victory for Xammar & Brugman in the 470 Victory for Great Britain in men's and women's skiff fleets. Posted on 14 Feb 2023
Lanzarote International Regatta Day 3
Not the wind, not the waves, but the Sahara Anton Dahlberg & Lovisa Karlsson (SWE) extended their lead in the 470 after winning another big wave, big wind race on day three of the Lanzarote International Regatta. Posted on 13 Feb 2023
Lanzarote International Regatta Day 2
“Defo the Biggest Wave of My Life!” Big wind and huge, steep swell set a massive physical challenge for the three Olympic fleets on day two of the Lanzarote International Regatta in the Canary Islands. Posted on 11 Feb 2023
Lanzarote International Regatta Day 1
Young Austrians take early 49er lead Four teams are tied at the top of the 470 rankings after day one of the Lanzarote International Regatta in the Canary Islands. A young Austrian team, Keanu Prettner & Jakob Flachberger (AUT), made their mark on a world-class 49er fleet. Posted on 11 Feb 2023
Lanzarote ready to test top Olympians
More than 360 of the world's best ready to race on the Atlantic Ocean More than 360 of the world's best sailors are ready to compete at the Lanzarote International Regatta, which takes place in the south of the Canary Island from 9 to 17 February. Posted on 10 Feb 2023
Lanzarote International Regatta preview
More than 350 sailors from 39 nationalities set to compete The Canary Island hosts a new event for Olympic sailing classes from February 9 to 17, an event that keeps growing, setting a new record number of entries and adding four new classes to the Lanzarote start line. Posted on 7 Feb 2023