TWO WAY TIES IN 470 MEN/MIXED AND 470 WOMEN

Neck and Neck Competition on Race Day 4 of 470 Junior Europeans

A two-way tie at the top of the 470 Men/Mixed leaderboard perfectly reflects the matching performance of Simon Sivitz Kosuta/Jas Farneti (ITA) and Kevin Peponnet/Baptiste Berthier (FRA) at the 2012 470 Junior European Championship.

They have been neck and neck through the qualification series, and with the first 3 races of the final series now completed these two look set to compete for the Championship title showdown. They are both on 24 points each, with Alex and George Kavas (GRE) still in fighting contention in third overall.

In the 470 Women event, before protest there was a “super tie break” with a three way tie between Ewa Szczesna/Irmina Mrozek Gliszczynska (POL), Maëlenn Lemaître/Aloïse Retornaz (FRA) and Annika Bochmann/Elisabeth Panuschka (GER) on 22 points each. The Polish had been in control since the start of the Championship, but it all changed today, when they were disqualified from race 9.

Racing took place in a very shifty breeze which ranged from 14-18 knots for races 7 and 8, easing off for race 9

470 Men/Mixed
Kevin Peponnet is the defending 470 Junior European Champion, claiming the title last year with his previous crew and recently teamed up with Baptiste Berthier ahead of this year’s Championship. The two having been training on Lake Garda for one week and appear to have established a match made in heaven, with all the ingredients in place for a successful Championship defence.

Great starts gave strength to their results today, as Peponnet explained, “The two first races were really good and we started really well on the right with the shift and everything was OK. We will see what happens tomorrow.”

“The wind in the first two races was about 18 knots, and then the last race was really weird. The wind came down and I don’t know we were a bit in difficulty, as we lost our boat speed and had a bad start,” said Peponnet reflecting on their 12th place finish in race 9.

They have motivation to ease any anxiety of the Championship, as Peponnet is one of several members of the French team who have been growing moustaches this week. He explained the motive, “With the other French, we try to sail without pressure and so we are having fun growing our moustaches!”

© Davide Turrini

Simon Sivitz Kosuta/Jas Farneti raced their discard in race 9 – finishing last in the entire fleet. The pair will be watching themselves tomorrow and cannot add any more double digit results to their scoreline, compared to the French who just carry a 12th place finish as their discard.

“We did a very bad last race and we now have our discard, so have to be very careful tomorrow. We tried before the start to go on the left where there was more wind, but then the pressure came to the right and everybody just went in front of us,” said Sivitz Kosuta on their last place finish in race 9.

Greece’s Kavas brothers were only just ahead of the Italians, finishing in 35th and with it giving themselves a 16 point deficit to the leaders with two races to go until Friday’s Medal Race.

The Race Committee scheduled three races today in anticipation of a forecast of light conditions for tomorrow, but Sivitz Kosuta was ever confident saying, “I don’t think there won’t be races, because on Garda every day comes some wind.”

© Davide Turrini

470 Men/Mixed –Top 10 Overall after 9 Races
1. Simon SIVITZ KOSUTA/Jas FARNETI – 24 pts
2. Kevin PEPONNET/Baptiste BERTHIER – 24 pts
3 Alexander KAVAS/George KAVAS – 40 pts
4. Mike WOOD/Hugh BRAYSHAW (GBR) – 42 pts
5. Magnus MASILGE/Moritz KLINGENBERG (GER) – 42 pts
6. Clément IKHLEF/Clément PEQUIN (FRA) – 45 pts
7. Benjamin BILDSTEIN/David HUSSL (AUT) – 58 pts
8. Sacha PELISSON/Nicolas ROSSI (FRA) – 67 pts
9. Max DECKERS/Duko BOS (NED) - 70 pts
10. Jan-Philipp HOFMANN/Paul KÜBEL (GER) – 76 pts

470 Women
No change in the top 10 after three more races in the 470 Women fleet, just a shuffling of the leaderboard. All change however for Ewa Szczesna/Irmina Mrozek Gliszczynska (POL) who had been leading from the start of the Championship, but after their disqualification in race 9 now sit behind the French and Germans who have been breathing right down their necks.

Ewa Szczesna/Irmina Mrozek Gliszczynska (POL) round mark ahead © Davide Turrini

“It is OK for me, I am not scared or anything. I will just fight more and try more,” said Szczesna, before knowing of the protest against her and subsequent drop to third. “Today’s wind was more tricky, with big shifts and big changes in pressure. It was hard. In the first race we didn’t start well, which is shown in the results. We were 10th – very bad. In the second race we were leading but in the last upwind the wind died and it was a lottery for us. In the last race we were second in the first mark, but then I don’t know what happened and we didn’t take the downwind well.”

The Polish were protested by Great Britain’s Anna Burnet/Flora Stewart for not giving sufficient room at the last mark before the finish, a protest which the International Jury determined as a disqualification.

Annika Bochmann/Elisabeth Panuschka (GER) had moved into first overall after a win in race 8, but were in second by race 9. With her previous crew, Bochmann won the 2011 470 Junior World Championships and placed second at the 2011 470 Junior European Championships, to name just a few of the titles she holds.

After what was a tiring race day of three races, Panuschka commented, "Today was close. We hadn’t been first in race 8, but in the last downwind of the inner loop we came really close together with the others, and were behind Poland with France in third. The upwind was quite shifty and gusty and we were so close together, and then in the last part of the upwind we saw there was no breeze on the right, so stayed left, while the others went right. We weren’t slow on the reaching or downwind, so it was then for us very good and we won.”

This result puts the Germans in second overall, behind the French.

“We are very happy with it,” said Great Britain’s Amy Seabright who put in the star performance of the day with crew Eilidh Mcintyre (GBR), securing two race wins. Despite delivering a solid top 10 scoreline so far, except a 15th in race 5, Seabright felt they had been racing too conservatively. “I think before we were sailing a bit conservative, and sailing like we would if it was an older fleet. We completely went for it today. We would hold out for shifts and be a bit more confident in what we were doing rather than looking at what everyone else was doing.”

The British pair are one of the rising teams of the British squad system and hold firm in fifth overall, sandwiched between teammates Joanna Freeman/Katie Tomsett in fourth and Anna Burnett/Flora Stewart behind them in sixth. Freeman/Tomsett are edging closer to the podium places and are on equal points with the Polish.

470 Women –Top 10 Overall after 9 Races
1. Maëlenn LEMAÎTRE/Aloïse RETORNAZ (FRA) – 22 pts
2. Annika BOCHMANN/Elisabeth PANUSCHKA (GER) – 22 pts
3. Ewa SZCZESNA/Irmina MROZEK GLISZCZYNSKA (POL) – 28 pts
4. Joanna FREEMAN/Katie TOMSETT (GBR) – 28 pts
5. Amy SEABRIGHT/Eilidh MCINTYRE (GBR) – 46 pts
6. Anna BURNET/Flora STEWART (GBR) - 48 pts
7. Roberta CAPUTO/Giulia PAOLILLO (ITA) - 65 pts
8. Linda FAHRNI/Maja SIEGENTHALER (SUI) – 66 pts
9. Sasha RYAN/Jaime RYAN (AUS) – 76 pts
10. Nadine BOHM/Karoline GOLTZER (GER) – 80 pts

Racing continues tomorrow, Thursday 16 August 2012, with two races scheduled for each fleet and a warning signal at 1300 hours for the 470 Men Gold, who will be the first fleet to take to the race track.

Results

Go to our Facebook Page for Championship Photo Galleries

Top Image: Simon Sivitz Kosuta/Jas Farneti (ITA) © Davide Turrini

15/8/2012 22:51