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(Photo
Courtesy: Andrea Francolini)
In the Blue group, Brad Funk (USA), who had been having a
fabulous regatta, dropped down the board. Funk, who finished
runner-up in the USA selections for the Beijing Games,
scored a third in Race 4 to be second placed behind Slingsby,
but then all came undone. "I got Black Flagged in Race
5 and then I went round a wrong mark in Race 6.
"I could have won all three races if I'd got it
right. I'm hoping we get two throw-outs (race drops). I'm
just happy to be in Australia. It's great," said Funk,
one of the most popular sailors in park said after
spiralling down the board into 24th overall.
The 'player of the day' award goes to Gustavo Lima from
Portugal. On the last reach in Race 6, sailing in the Blue
group, Lima was on the receiving end of a rocking penalty.
"That's it," we all thought, but no, Lima took his
720 degree penalty turn in style, and came back to win the
race in the final stages. Brilliant sailing!
The Championship got tough when winds reached 25 knots,
and up to 28 in the gusts, on big seas and swells off
Terrigal in Australia today, but Race Officials breathed a
sigh of relief as they managed to put three races to bed,
starting the first group shortly after 9.30am. They did an
excellent job.
Some sailors, however, did not enjoy conditions;
exhaustion bringing them back to the Terrigal Trojan Rugby
Club base. Andrey Quintero, trying to qualify Columbia for
the Games was amongst the casualties. "The winds, the
waves and the swell got so big; I just am not used to that.
I am back because I am very tired," the normally
smiling Quintero said.
Adil Mohammed from the United Arab Emirates told a
similar story. "Too much wind, so difficult, big waves,
too much gusts," said Mohammed who went on to say:
"I am a bit light - around 68 kilos - for these big
winds. I kept capsizing."
Zimbabwe's Patrick McCosh too, had trouble. "I
capsized in the second race. By the time I got afloat again,
the third race had started - and I would have been so far
behind, I pulled out. We just don't sail in these sorts of
conditions at home."
For Brazilian sailor Mateus Tavares, illness rather than
the conditions, brought him ashore. "My championship is
complicated. I did not do so well this morning in the first
race. I am not feeling very well. I am going to lie down and
see how I feel in the morning. If I am not well, then I will
go home to Brazil and get ready for our Olympic selection
series," he said.
Hosted by Gosford Sailing Club, the Championship results
are provisional pending protests and official confirmation.
For all information, photos and more go to:
http://aus08.laserinternational.org/ |
