Dragon World Championships, Hornbæk, Denmark Overall

by Julian Isherwood 22 Jul 2001 20:12 BST

Malte Phillipp new Dragon World Champion

Germany’s Malte Phillipp sailed home a convincing victory Sunday in the bi-ennial 2001 Dragon World Championships, coming first in today’s race and first overall.

After just over 2 hours of sailing in moderate, 3-5 metres per second southwesterly winds, Phillipp and his crew of Torsten Imbeck and Enver Adakan finished Sunday’s race ahead of Denmark’s Frank Berg in second place and Holland’s Fred Imhoff in third place.

In the overall standings, Phillip came first, and thus wrested the Dragon title from Denmark’s Claus Høj Jensen. Second overall was another German crew skippered by Werner Fritz and third Denmark’s Frank Eriksen.

“Phillipp was a clear winner. He sailed a very good regatta and seemed like a winner from the start “ said Chairman of the Race Committee John Gunn. “It has been an exciting World Championship and, in the main, it seems to have gone extremely well“, he added.

“For the most part it has gone extremely well,” said Chairman of the Jury Lars Grande. “Some of the boats who didn’t do very well didn’t think so – but that may be for other reasons,” he said.

“In general it has been an extremely fair and sportsmanly regatta, with few protests. We are all very happy with the way things have gone,” said Grande.

The regatta was thankfully free of too many protests from participating boats: ”In all we received about 8 protests. They were easy to handle and the number of protests, given that this was a world championship regatta, was quite light,” said Gunn.

Sunday’s race, although relatively academic for Phillipp unless he had been black flagged on the final day, went off without incident.

“There is no doubt, Phillipp is an extremely good sailor,” said Principal Race Officer Christian Lerche. He added that the new World Champion had been consistent in his sailing. “It doesn’t matter what conditions were like out there on the water, he came in among the top group. An impressive performance,” he said.

He said Sunday’s final race of the regatta had been interesting to watch, with changeable southerlies particularly on the final leg changing positions throughout the field. “Malte Phillipp, for example, was able to capitalise on the luck of the wind and his ability to use the final leg to move up from a sixth place in the field to a first place,” Lerche said.

Phillipp received the Royal Hellenic Cup – the Epathion Vassileus - at a prize-giving ceremony in Hornbæk, which has hosted the 2001 Dragon Worlds. He will hold the trophy until the next World Championships, due to take place in Hobart, Tasmania in 2003.

Apart from the cup, Phillipp and his crew, as well as those in second and third places received gold, silver and bronze medals awarded by the International Dragon Association.

“We are extremely happy,” said Phillipp as he came into harbour after a week’s convincing and consistent sailing that gave him the gold medal. The 2001 Dragon Worlds have been dogged by weather problems, with little wind on several occasions, and a lot of current on others, giving highly technical races.

Denmark’s Frank Eriksen, who came in second, said he was happy with his position. “We started without any great hopes, and although we kept along with the Germans all along, we decided to sail our own race – and it seems to have paid off,” said Eriksen, who praised the Principal Race Officer.

“He had a difficult job, and there were several difficult situations, but he managed the race very well,” Eriksen said.

“It’s been a good regatta. The fact that there was too little wind on some occasions – well you know, that’s par for the course. All sailors have to be ready for too little wind as much as too much wind. That’s sailing for you,” said Hong Kong’s Phyllis Chang. Chang was uncertain whether she would be participating in the next Dragon Worlds.

Winds were light for Sunday’s course, like most of the other days of the 2001 Worlds. “We managed to hold seven races out of the seven we had planned, in Denmark, in July – that in itself is something of a feat. Sometimes the wind was on the border of what can be sailed in – but we sailed when we could, and most believe we made the right decisions,” said Lerche.

“It was a good race, but we went up the wrong side and lost what wind there was,” said one Australian crew. “But we’ve had a good regatta and ended up quite happy with our position,” he said.

Ireland’s Peter Bowering said there had been little doubt even from the first day, that Phillipp looked a champion. “He was up there from the start. The Germans split the field. It was a tough race, with a lot of flukey winds and a very high standard of sailing,” said Bowering, whose boat – skippered by John Lavery – came in an overall 12th position – one of only three boats in the top 15 that was not either German or Danish. Dutch Fred Imhoff came in overall fourth and British Martin Payne overall 11th.

Bowering said there had been some discussion among foreign sailors as to whether currents had been tidal or otherwise. “We now know that the currents were a question of water being sucked in and out of the Baltic Sea. That threw us a bit,” he said.

Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik, whose boat Nanoq was christened a week ago at the start of the regatta came in an overall 24th, while his father Prince Henrik, who was Protector of the 2001 Worlds, came in 74th overall. “I was satisfied with the race– and happy with my new boat,” said Crown Prince Frederik as Nanoq was being hoisted from the water.

Overall Results: (Olympic scoring)

Pos	Sail No	Helm	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	Pts
1	GER956	Malte Phillipp	1	2	3	BFD	3	8	1	28.4
2	GER947	Werner Fritz	3	18	26	2	5	4	7	63.7
3	DEN317	Frank Eriksen	36	13	23	1	1	6	5	69.7
4	NED247	Fred Imhoff	23	10	15	44	2	7	3	87.7
5	DEN66	Frank Berg	8	3	7	41	BFD	5	2	92.7
6	DEN298	Lars Jensen	16	8	1	10	38	16	15	95
7	GER933	Thomas Müller	15	20	5	14	7	13	14	103
8	GER842	Ortwin Semmerow	12	26	16	6	24	15	9	117.7
9	GER892	Achim Kadelbach	52	1	34	8	25	11	11	119
10	GER950	Harm Müller-Spreer	10	9	9	4	BFD	10	55	131
11	GBR656	Martin Payne	24	BFD	10	7	32	18	12	139
12	IRL157	John Lavery	13	19	11	20	15	27	34	141
13	DEN324	Jesper Bendix	5	5	29	25	21	25	27	142
14	DEN334	Claus Høj Jensen	7	27	52	28	17	3	28	142.7
15	GER928	Erich Hirt	9	14	28	30	33	1	DNF	144
16	CAN140	Hans Fogh	41	4	12	DNF	26	23	8	148
17	GER905	Michael Erhard	19	23	19	19	14	42	19	149
18	GER628	Michael Schattan	42	33	13	3	18	43	22	163.7
19	GER852	Udo Pflüger	11	6	45	65	23	14	31	165.7
20	GER795	Holger Tollmien	26	47	67	23	6	28	6	171.4
21	GER915	Marcus Brenneche	17	54	37	31	16	19	20	176
22	AUS167	Ian MacDiarmid	51	59	8	13	10	36	26	180
23	SWE320	Leif Carlsson	29	32	55	16	34	12	29	188
24	DEN336	HKH Kronprins Frederik	14	DNF	6	68	20	32	17	192.7
25	SWE194	Johan Palmquist	38	24	32	34	19	40	13	196
26	DEN318	Peter Holm	2	BFD	31	26	BFD	2	37	202
27	DEN333	Claus Olsen	34	17	60	29	40	29	23	208
28	DEN257	Mogens Nielsen	20	39	2	47	44	31	50	214
29	USA311	Jan Soderberg	50	30	21	52	57	17	10	216
30	FIN48	Erkki Koponen	44	22	20	9	30	57	BFD	218
31	HKG40	Karl J. Grebstad	65	51	63	21	9	37	4	219
32	GBR662	Rory Bowman	21	BFD	72	18	13	26	36	222
33	SWE311	Thomas Olrog	18	35	64	40	22	35	44	230
34	FIN50	Henrik Dahlman	6	BFD	4	22	BFD	9	DNF	230.7
35	AUS134	Carl Ryves	25	21	66	27	63	21	41	234
36	IRL167	Robin Hennessy	48	16	39	48	28	20	DNC	235
37	FRA300	Louis Urvois	27	34	25	55	BFD	39	24	240
38	DEN266	Ebbe Elmer	22	50	48	71	8	40	40	244
39	GER833	Dirk Schröder	49	12	22	36	61	33	DNF	249
40	GBR623	Patrick Gifford	45	11	62	42	4	DNF	51	249
41	GER909	Jens Helms	57	31	27	37	36	50	32	249
42	HKG38	Phyllis Chang	60	28	58	66	11	45	16	254
43	AUS179	Matthew Whitnall	46	38	36	62	35	30	35	256
44	DEN330	Peter Warrer	DSQ	25	14	72	45	44	39	275
45	FIN69	Timo Lampén	56	52	49	43	41	22	38	281
46	GER939	Walter Berhens	43	37	35	33	49	53	57	286
47	DEN3	Kim Christensen	7	15	68	35	55	DNF	DNC	294
48	DEN319	Henrik Jansen	4	BFD	65	DNF	12	24	DNC	295
49	NOR270	Terje Olsson	DNS	DNS	33	38	47	49	18	299
50	GER929	Wolfgang Rappel	30	BFD	53	56	46	38	42	301
51	DEN321	Peter Johansen	DNS	36	42	11	51	52	DNF	306
52	DEN233	Lars Broen	58	43	57	12	BFD	56	47	309
53	FIN53	Erkki Hintsanen	70	57	59	5	60	60	33	309
54	FIN74	Mikko Saarela	35	48	41	49	54	61	53	316
55	EST1	Jengeni Kazakov	53	DNE	DNF	59	29	41	25	321
56	NED278	Wilco Veerman	39	46	30	15	BFD	DNC	DNC	322
57	GER914	Peter Koch	40	44	61	46	BFD	46	49	322
58	SWE308	Thomas Rosén	55	BFD	17	17	43	DNF	DNC	324
59	AUS156	Trish Ford	DNS	42	74	32	37	57	54	332
60	SWE301	Björn Unger	54	41	56	64	39	48	59	333
61	DEN297	Jens Løppenthin	68	60	75	24	56	51	40	335
62	NOR267	Poul Mortensen	37	49	54	45	50	66	DNF	337
63	DEN305	Lars Pedersen	62	62	46	70	27	63	43	339
64	SWE306	Peter Hjörne	47	29	24	69	58	DNF	DNC	341
65	DEN248	Bernd Griese	DNF	63	71	53	42	34	46	345
66	SWE303	Hans-Åke Book	32	7	38	BFD	DNF	DNC	DNC	347
67	EST3	Rein Raud	63	53	43	61	59	47	48	347
68	NED316	Pieter Heerema	31	40	44	50	DNC	DNC	DNC	357
69	FIN71	Tuomas Rytikangas	61	56	47	54	52	65	58	364
70	FIN70	Timo Pajunen	59	55	50	BFD	BFD	67	21	366
71	DEN332	David Holm	28	BFD	18	51	BFD	DNF	DNC	367
72	EST2	Alexander Karboinov	DNS	58	69	57	48	54	56	378
73	SWE281	Per Skoglund	67	DNE	51	39	53	62	DNC	386
74	DEN313	HKH Prins Henrik	64	45	70	63	DNF	64	45	387
75	JPN46	Bocci A. Aoyama	66	61	DNF	60	64	55	52	394
76	SWE273	Esbjörn Bruske	69	BFD	73	67	62	57	30	394
77	NOR272	Henning Bull	DNF	DNS	40	58	31	DNF	DNC	399