Disappointment and determination for Irish sailors at Princess Sofia Trophy on day 5
by Treasa Cox 7 Apr 22:33 BST
3-8 April 2023
Gold fleet racing ended today at the Princess Sofia World Cup of Sailing regatta (Friday 7th April 2023) with no Irish crews through to medal race finals for the first time in several editions.
Despite a small improvement in form for Robert Dickson (Howth Yacht Club) and Seán Waddilove (Skerries Sailing Club) in the 49er skiff class, there was no return to their winning form of Wednesday that might have reversed their final 20th place overall.
In the single-handed classes where three Irish sailors had reached Gold fleet, impressive boat-speed alone was insufficient to lift Carlow's Finn Lynch (National Yacht Club) into the top ten for the medal race in the ILCA 7 class and he ended the series in 25th overall.
Ewan McMahon (Howth Yacht Club) ended in 37th place in the 184-boat class though he was quite pleased with some of his work over the event and has identified areas he can improve on in the coming months.
His sister Eve McMahon who achieved Gold fleet on this, her first World Cup of Sailing regatta was still disappointed with 35th in her 107-strong ILCA 6 event, buoyed by her triple Gold medals from the conclusion to her junior career just last summer.
For the coaches, debriefing the sailors and working on several fixable issues is the next priority.
"The result is not what we want for sure, especially as for the past four years we've always been battling for a medal here in Palma," commented Vasilij Zbogar, Laser coach with Irish Sailing. "Recovery from the Europeans two weeks ago wasn't managed well enough so we need to adapt for the next time."
Finn Lynch's hand injury still hasn't healed fully but his boat-speed is clearly very good and he showed this week that he can recover from a bad starting position in the fleet really well.
"It's really hard sailing, very close and really small things make the difference like being 100% rested, 100% focused."
In terms of Eve McMahon's potential, her results understate her actual performance. "What she's doing in the boat she's doing really well, she just needs to make it more automated," said Rory Fitzpatrick, Irish Sailing's Head Coach. "Eve's doing these things very well but she just needs more time to dial it in."
Meanwhile, extra practice for light airs conditions is on the cards for the 49er sailors as their performance in Wednesday's windier conditions is clearly linked to their result.
"There were some really good positives like having good days and leading the regatta," said Matt McGovern, Irish Sailing's 49er coach commenting on Dickson and Waddiloves' week. "The crux is executing the starts well and also boat-speed in the light stuff - if we don't start well then we don't have the boat-speed to recover and get back on plan."
The next event in the World Cup of Sailing is French Olympic Week in Hyerés from 23rd to 29th April for all classes.