Please select your home edition
Edition
Crewsaver 2021 Safetyline LEADERBOARD

Exciting Medal Races in prospect at Kiel Week

by Andreas Kling 20 Jun 2023 21:47 BST 17-25 June 2023
Enjoying Kiel Week by winning his first attempt ever: Michal Strumnik (Poland) in the OK Dinghy © Kiel Week / ChristianBeeck.de

As Kiel Week moved through the final phase on Tuesday (20 June) and another day of light to moderate, shifty challenging breezes, it was even more difficult to stay consistent over a long day of intense competition as the race management teams sought to deliver a full programme of races. While in the Nacra 17 class Italy's Margharita Porri and Stefano Dezulian are more or less assured of the Kiel gold medal key, tightly fought classes like the 470, 49er and the ILCA 7 which have a high calibre entry promise exciting medal races on Wednesday (21 June).

Among the first of the winners to be crowned at Kiel Week 2023 was International OK class debutant Michal Strumnik from Poland who at 40 years old is one of the 'youngsters' in the 35 strong class. "I have always wanted to come here, it's great that it's worked out so well" said Strumnik, who has chosen Kiel Week ahead of the World Championships which start shortly in England. "Unfortunately, I don't have enough time for the worlds. I'm planning to go to the European Championship in autumn on Lake Garda." In second Denmark's Thomas Gabs was at only his second Kiel Week. In 2021 he finished 21st, now he made a big leap. "I am very happy. There were not easy conditions with shifting winds and choppy waves. And the Polish guy was just too fast."

In the Nacra 17 class Italy's Margharita Porri and Stefano Dezulian already have the Kiel Week title well within their grasp after winning all four races today to earn a 17 points lead going into the Medal Race but the young duo want to finish with a flourish, looking for a big victory in the double points finale in which they expect to see more wind than has been seen all week so far.

"We are so happy. The goal here was to do well but we did not ever expect to get all firsts today for example as the conditions were so tricky." Smiled Porri who grew up racing on small lake outside of Milan. "Tomorrow my dream was actually to do more races as there should be more wind than we have had so far to understand better our speed as we have only had light winds. But the goal now is just to get another first in the medal race."

Porri has sailed many classes including the Open BIC, the RS Feva and the 29er in which she won the class here before, then Waszp, 49erFX and now the Nacra 17.

In the 49er class the Polish leaders Lukasz Pryzbtek and Jacek Piasecki are guaranteed a medal after counting a consistent 3,5,4 from Tuesday's four gold fleet races. They can only be denied gold by their second placed compatriots Dominik Buksak and Szymon Wierzbicki who are nine points behind. Canadians Arie Moffat and Ryan Wood moved up to third whilst the USA's Andrew Mollerus and Ian Macdiarmid, overnight leaders, dropped to 10th after they compounded a 26th with a BFD disqualification in the last race of the day.

"The conditions were very tricky today, sometimes the right was good, sometimes the left, so it was all about getting good starts and reading the wind well. We made good starts. This has been a tough regatta as it has been all light winds, usually we have strong westerly winds but, hey, it has been the same for everyone." Said helm Pryzbtek who has done more than ten Kiel Weeks and finished runner up here a couple of years ago.

The 470 Medal race will feature seven German crews battling for ultimate bragging rights on the Kiel fjord. The young outsiders Theres Dahnke and Matti Cipra hold a two points lead going into the medal showdown even if Malte and Anastaysia Winkel finished strongest with two wins on Tuesday.

The ILCA 7 class were racing into the evening to catch up on lost races.

The Medal races are all shown live during Wednesday on kieler-woche.de.

Other classes which finished on Tuesday were the 420s which saw Germans Lysander Winter and Constantin Bötsch win by five points. In the 2.4-metre Italy's Antonio Squizzato held off the challenge from second placed Ben van Cauwenbergh of Belgium with Germany's indomitable Heiko Kroeger in third.

Full results available here.

Related Articles

Introducing the Sailing Grand Slam
The new premier Olympic sailing series The world of Olympic sailing is set to reach new heights with the launch of the Sailing Grand Slam (SGS) - an international series that unites the sport's most iconic regattas and the regatta that will take place in the 2028 Olympic venue. Posted on 14 Nov
Kiel Week 2024: A sailing festival with all facets
285 extremely varied sailing races between light winds and stormy gusts The Kiel Week Regatta 2024 came to an end on Sunday after 285 extremely varied sailing races between light winds and stormy gusts. Posted on 1 Jul
Kiel Week: Dream races reward long wait for wind
Patience of all active participants and the regatta organisation was required The patience of all active participants and the regatta organisation was required on the penultimate day of Kiel Week 2024, when it took around five hours for a sailable sea breeze from the east to build up on all five courses on Saturday (29 June). Posted on 29 Jun
Wingfoiling without obstructive seaweed
Kiel Week is both traditional and modern Kiel Week is both traditional and modern. Wingfoilers celebrate their premiere at the 130th edition of the sailing regatta. Professionally coached youngsters demonstrate how the X-15 class gives them wings. Posted on 29 Jun
Kiel Week 2024: Strong gusts take their toll
Torn sails, broken masts and 16 injuries were the overall result of a tough day at sea On Friday (28 June), gusts of force six to seven caused problems for the Kiel Week athletes on all five regatta courses in eight international boat classes. Posted on 28 Jun
Kiel Week: Danish Dynamite and Samoa double start
The second half of Kiel Week marks the hour of the eight international classes Changing mood in Kiel-Schilksee: The second half of Kiel Week marks the hour of the eight international classes. High tension is guaranteed, as the regatta is the showdown between numerous world and European champions. Posted on 27 Jun
Thrilling medal race at Kiel Week
Last-gasp victory for Bernaz in a great afternoon of final races for five Olympic classes Jean-Baptiste Bernaz seized a last-chance victory in the final few metres of the ILCA 7 medal race at Kiel Week on Wednesday (26 June). Posted on 26 Jun
Kiel Week: Girls steer their way to top
Of both the 420 and 29er Eurocup podiums Denmark's Frederik Rask and Jakob Precht Jensen have a good grasp of the gold medal after winning the final two 49er gold fleet races on a sunny Tuesday afternoon (25 June) at Kiel Week in northern Germany. Posted on 25 Jun
Kiel Week: Schwachhofer/Stoltze dominate 49erFX
Sweeping to scores of 2,1,1 in the 28-boat fleet German team Katharina Schwachhofer and Elena Stoltze dominated day three of Kiel Week as the 49erFX crew swept to scores 2,1,1 in the 28-boat fleet. Posted on 24 Jun
Kiel Week 2024: Barwinska edges to top of ILCA 6
The Polish sailor made most sense of the tricky conditions There are few sailors capable of stringing together good performances across all weather conditions. Posted on 23 Jun