Regatta Reports
QingDao International Regatta - Medal Race
By Lynn Fitzpatrick
Aug 14, 2007, 10:42

Race results

August 22, 2007: In the medal race, Robert Scheidt and Bruno Prada (BRA) won gold, after finishing second in the Star Medal Race behind Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson (GBR). The Brazilian duo add the test event title to the World Championship victory they recorded in Cascais in July and have really thrown down the gauntlet ahead of the Brazilian Star trials, where they will face Athens gold medallists Torben Grael and Marcelo Ferreira (BRA). Hamish Pepper and Carl Williams (NZL), the 2006 World Champions, won silver after finishing fourth in the Medal Race, while Xavier Rohart and Pascal Rambeau (FRA), 2005 World Champions, finished seventh in today’s race, failing from first to third overall and the bronze medal.

Racing details: The Medal races were scheduled to start at 1:00 pm within view of the lengthy, spectator and pedestrian-friendly breakwater at the QingDao venue. The weather forecast was more favorable for racing conditions that usual and slack current was at 1:00pm today. Everything looked promising for the biggest test for everybody involved in this regatta.

The breakwater is set up ideally for watching windward-leeward courses that run parallel to the prevailing wind direction. The Medal Round Courses were set up far enough away from the breakwater so that rebounding surf would not affect the courses. When sailors turned the corner out of the marina they were surprised by the heavy winds and the waves. Some sent their coaches back in to get their hiking boots, hiking shorts and spray tops. As the day went on the wind came up and the current started to rip in the opposite direction of the wind making for tall rollers that broke over spectator boats by the end of the day.

Sailors had to adjust everything for today’s sailing. Everyone tightened down their rigs and powered up for racing. Mental Attitudes also changed. Sailors focused on the medals at stake and were less concern about sunstroke and heat exhaustion. Spectators even wore jackets.

The Stars started about 4:00 pm with Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson (GBR) heading for the pin at the 1 minute horn. Hans Spitzhauer and Hans Nehammer (AUT), Flavio Marazzi and Rohart/Rambeau were toward the pin; Scheidt/Prada, Prof O’Connell and Ben Cooke (IRL) and Flavio Marazzi and Christen Christophe (SUI) were in the middle of the line; Freddy Loof and Anders Ekstrom (SWE), Kusnierewicz/Zycki, Pepper/Williams and Marc Pickel and Ingo Borkowski (GER) were up by the boat. Pepper/Williams tacked to port right by the boat and went hard to the right side of the course. Eventually, one other boat followed them to the right.

Percy/Simpson had established a definitive lead and as they approached the weather mark, their boat launched off a wave and was airborne except for the bulb of the keel. Spitzauer/Nehammer were about a boat-length behind. The fleet rounded within 30 seconds of the leaders. Scheidt/Prada, in fifth, made the bold move of gybing early on the top of a wave, surfing down the backside and passing Pepper/Williams who had been tied for second with them going into the day.

Most of the fleet approached the gate on the port gybe. Percy/Simpson took the low lane to the right gate and rounded first with Spitzhauer/Nehammer in second rounding the left gate. Scheidt/Prada were in 3rd and rounded the left gate while Pepper/Williams rounded the right gate in 4th place. Rohart/Rambeau rounded in 7th and Marazzi/Christoph were in last.

The top five positions remained unchanged around the second weather mark. The fleet played the left side of the course again down the run. After three legs, only a minute and a half separated the fleet. Percy/Simpson surfed the waves and planed through the finish line ahead of Scheidt/Prada, Spitzhauer/Nehammer, Pepper/Williams, Kusznierewicz/Zycki, O’Connell/Cooke, Rohart/Rambeau, Loof/Ekstrom, Marazzi/Christen, and Pickel/Borkowski in that order.

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August 21, 2007: The sun was bright and there were ripples on Fushan Bay this morning. The cumulous clouds built over land. The local forecast predicted 5 knots of breeze from 100 degrees at noon and the current to be slack.

As 13:00 approached, the Stars set off on a two-lap windward-leeward race as the breeze filled in at 130 degrees and 6 knots. It was a great day for Xavier Rohart and Pascal Rambeau (FRA), Robert Scheidt and Bruno Prada (BRA) and Flavio Marazzi/Christoph Christen (SUI). The French and the Swiss posted two finishes in the top three and the Brazilians had a 4, 1 for the day. The top three finishers in the first race crossed the line within 17 seconds of one another and in the second race the top six finished within a minute of each other in 7 knots of wind.

There was a major shake up on the first run of the first race, and Rohart/Rambeau catapulted from eighth to first. Scheidt/Prada remained in the basement, but got into gear up the second beat. By the end of the race, the Brazilians ground down the pack and wound up fourth.

Next race, Rohart/Rambeau led around the first weather mark and the bottom mark and then led the fleet to the right. There was a tremendous gap between them and Scheidt/Prada as they approached the 2nd windward mark on the starboard tack layline. They liked the right so much that they gybe set around the weather mark. But Scheidt/Prada leapfrogged ahead of the French to win with Marazzi/Christen third.

Watch out for Scheidt/Prada tomorrow, with the Brazilian Star World Champions hinting, "We have a special strategy for the medal race, but we can’t reveal it at this time!"

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August 20, 2007: Sailing waa again postponed until late in the afternoon due to lack of wind, but one race was then completed, won by Pepper/Williams who took over 1st place.

The Stars went off and the breeze built with cloud cover over land and clear skies over the water. Most of the fleet played the right side of the course with Leonidas Pelekanakis and Georgios Stilianos (GRE) tacking onto the starboard layline well in the lead and crossing Marc Pickel and Ingo Borkowski(GER).

Most of the Stars went to the right side of the course down the run while the Tornados ghosted up the right side of their course in the same racing area: a clear indication that the Stars and the Tornadoes were going to get in one race, at best, before sunset. Mateusz Kusznierewicz and Dominik Zycki (POL) took the low road at the end of the run. Xavier Rohart and Pascal Rambeau (FRA) gybed onto port below Hamish Pepper and Carl Williams(NZL) to round the right gate while Iain Percy and Andrew Ssimosin (GBR) and Robert Sscheidt and Bruno Prada (BRA) rounded the left gate.

At the end of the final run, Pepper and Williams coasted past the Tornados leeward mark towards the finish and took the gun. Spitzauer/Nehammer (AUT) were to the right and Kusznierewicz/Zycki were to the left, With a 9th place finish, Flavio Marazzi and Christoph Christen(SUI) fell from first to third in the regatta.

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August 19, 2007: Sailing did not take place again due to continuing very light wind (2 knots). Three races had been planned in an effort to make up for lost sailing days.

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August 18, 2007:The Stars waited for racing conditions until late in the day and only sailed one race. Flavio Marazzi and Christen Christoph (SUI) have now won two of the three races. While they were ahead of Hamish Pepper and Carl Williams (NZL) by less than a minute, there was a large gap between these two and the next three boats. Marazzi/Christoph now have a one point lead over Rohart/Rambeau.

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August 17, 2007: No Go on Day Three
All the boats were rigged up on shore and were ready to go, but the wind did not show for the third scheduled day of racing in Qingdao.

The race committee kept the sailors ashore sparing them exposure to the heat and humidity.

Sailors stayed in the air conditioned cafeteria, in their air conditioned and fitted out containers or under tents and umbrellas. The mid-afternoon’s cloud cover and cooler air was not enough to make the wind start to circulate.

At approximately 4:00 pm the race committee cancelled racing for all and venue was a ghost town by 4:30 pm.

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August 16, 2007: Big Gains and Big Smiles

Breeze on in Qingdao! Lumpy water and 6-8 knots of wind from the south east mad for a lot of smiling faces from sailors from all over the world at the 2007 Good Luck Beijing Sinopec International Regatta. Needless to say there were some big shifts out there and the current played a major issue at the starts and in calling lay lines. All classes sailed all of the races that were scheduled for the day.

Five Star world champion teams battled for the bullet in the first race of the series. The smart Swedes, Fredrik Look and Anders Ekstrom stole the lead from Ian Percy and Andrew Simpson (GBR) on the last leg of the race. There was quite a fleet inversion during the second race of the day for the Stars. The winner of the race was Flavio Marazzi and Christoph Christen (SUI) in their specially designed boat for these conditions. While Marazzi/Christen led all of the way around the course, the boat that gained the most on the run was this year’s world champion team of Robert Scheidt and Bruno Prada (BRA). They finished second in the race and recovered from a 9th around the last mark. Putting in a strong performance in both races, as is their norm, was Xavier Rohart and Pascal Rambeau (FRA). They lead the Star Class with a 3, 3.

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August 17, 2007: The Tallest, the Oldest and the One Who has been to the Most Olympics

Marc Pickel (GER) tallest (l), John Dane (USA),oldest (c), Peter Bromby (BER) (r) most times representing his country in a sailing event.

At 6’5” Marc Pickel (GER) is the tallest sailor at the regatta. John Dane (USA) did his first Olympic campaign in 1968. That was before all of the participants in the Laser, Laser Radial, Finn, 470 Men, 470 Women and 49er were born. 1968 was the year that one RS:X Men and two Tornado sailors were born. There are very few in the Tornado, Star and Yngling Classes that were born before 1968. Peter Bromby (BER) sailed the Star at the Barcelona, Savannah, Sydney and Athens games. (Peter is one of the few at the regatta who was born before John did his first Olympic campaign.)

In the United States, winning the Trials means winning the Olympic Trials Regatta. John Dane was 2nd in the US Dragon Trials in 1968, 4th in the Soling Trials in 1972, 3rd in the Finn Trials in 76, and 4th in the Star in 1984. Three of the four times that John competed in the US Trials, the person who won went on to win the Olympic Gold Medal. “I’ve sailed the Trials in four different boats and never been to the Olympics. Most of the time the person who has won, has gone on to win the gold. The sad part is that the one who wins the Trials goes. If you don’t have a good regatta, you don’t go.”

Mark Reynolds (USA) – Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist in the Star and coaching at this regatta

For John, sailing and winning the US Olympic Trials is an unfulfilled dream. While he has been the top ranked US Star sailor for a while, John still must compete in the US Trials this October. His coach at this regatta is two-time Olympic Gold Medalist in the Star, Mark Reynolds. Mark just qualified the US for the Olympics through his 12th place performance at the Worlds in Cascais and has represented the US in the Star four times.

The Giant among the sailors, Mark Pickle is an inch taller than Peter Bromby, the two often tip the measurement scales within a kilo of one another. Marc qualified Germany for the Olympics in the Star Class and has fulfilled the entire criterion to represent Germany at the Olympics, but is waiting to see if any other German teams place among the top 5 at the Europeans or Worlds next year. If so, there will be a German sail-off at next year’s Holland Regatta.

Peter Bromby sails the only Star in his home country. He does not have an Olympic Trials to worry about, he still has to qualify his country for the Olympics at next year’s World Championship in Miami. Miami, one of Peter’s favorite sailing venues, is where he is the master of the pin end start. Peter’s crew, Lee White, was on the bow in Savannah, Sydney and Athens and was part of Peter’s support crew in Barcelona. The pair has just started training together again and is happy to have received the IOC Solidarity Scholarship and corporate sponsorship from Black Rock, an investment company headquartered in New York; Validis Reinsurance of Bermuda and Arch Capital of Bermuda. It is the first time that Peter has had corporate sponsorship this quadrennium and is relieved that he can focus on his campaign.

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August 15, 2007: Swinging into Action in Qingdao

11:15 am local, August 15:

Hans Spitzhauer and Christian Nehammer (AUT) enjoying their breakfast near the Austrian container.

It is 11:15 am on the first day of scheduled racing at the 2007 Good Luck Beijing Sinopec International Regatta and the sailboards and the Stars are being held on shore while the other classes go out to attempt to sail their first race of the series. For some Star sailors, such as Hans Spitzauer and Christian Nehammer (AUT) who weighed in 1 kilogram under the weight maximum for the Star Class earlier this morning, it is an opportunity to EAT and stay hydrated!

The sun rose this morning and all was still along the waterfront. Visibility was low – between one and two a kilometers and there was not even a ripple on the water. At 6:00 am while the locals fished, ran, swam, practiced wushu and other daily exercises along the scenic waterfront boardwalk and swimming beaches that stretch for over 40 kilometers, the construction crews swung into gear for the day.

Qingdao, a city of 8 million people, has undergone a tremendous transition in preparation for the upcoming Olympics. Not only has the sailing venue undergone a renaissance from a ship yard, but hotels, office buildings and residential towers have sprung up in the past few years. The streetscape, especially near the waterfront has been beautified with wide side walks, lawns, flowers, trees, sculptures and flag poles. There is no question that China, Shandong Province and Qingdao have devoted astronomical resources to promote the event and subsequent economic development of the area.

All of the athletes appreciate the noticeable improvements made from year to year. Some of them have spent a lot of time on shore in advance of this regatta because they have been recovering from injuries. During this first official day of racing it will be interesting to hear how Sebbe Godefroid (BEL) and Andrew Palfrey (AUS) fare. Sebbe, who was 2nd at the 2007 World Championships in Cascais with his team mate Carolijn, is recovering from a knee operation that was performed less than two weeks ago. Carolijn and Sebbe are noteable for a couple of reasons. They are the only co-ed team registered at the event and they are the most recognizable boat at the regatta. They scored what looks to be the biggest endorsement of any sponsor. Their red sails are emblazoned with the McDonald’s logo. It’s not just a panel, mind you. It’s the entire sail!

While Sebbe has been able to gather information by watching his team mate and coach practice together, Andrew Palfrey (AUS) has spent much of the time in Qingdao in his hotel room resting and staying out of the heat and humidity. As the regatta kicks off, it will be interesting to watch the sailors who have spent most of their time sailing on lakes and protected bays rather than open water. Flavio Marazzi and Christoph Christen (SUI) and Peter Bromby and Lee White (BER) set the example in yesterday’s practice race. Flavio and Christoph hail from a landlocked country and sail on lakes when they are not campaigning at various venues around the world. The boat that they are sailing was specially designed and built by Flavio for light air conditions. Peter and Lee sail the only Star boat in their home country on Bermuda’s Great Sound. For competition at home, they often sail Etchells out of Sandy’s Boat Club, just a scooter ride away from Peter’s house.

Some Star competitors:
Star: Robert Scheidt & Bruno Prada (BRA) – 1st at 2007 Worlds; Xavier Rohart & Pascal Rambeau (FRA) – 2nd at 2007 Worlds, won 2003 and 2005 Worlds; Fredrik Loof & Anders Ekstrom (SWE) – 8th at 2007 Worlds, 2004 World champions, smart in light air: Flavio Marazzi & Christoph Christen (SUI) – sailing fast in light air.

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August 14, 2007: Practice Race

There are 238 sailboats registered for the 2007 Good Luck Beijing Sinopec International Regatta. When the registration list is finalized later this afternoon, the number of competitors will be over 330. There is a volunteer team here in Qingdao that outnumbers the competitors by a margin of four to one. The flotilla that leaves the dock everyday is very impressive also. Flags on the colorful RIBs read IRO, IJ, Technical Delegates, Marshall, Media, First Aid, Rescue and, of course there are coach boats.

The highest count of power boats was at the Area A. Area A is closest to the marina and the featured event in today’s practice was the RS:X race. Chinese photographers were eager to get photos of their country’s sailing stars, Yuangou Zhou and Jian Yin, the RS:X sailors. The competitors bunched up by the committee boat and were stationary for what seemed like an eternity. As the large digital timer mounted to the cabin top of the race committee boat started to click off the final ten seconds of the sequence, sails began to flutter. The gun went off and the fleet pumped its way upwind.

Flavio Marazzi and Christoph Christen

Other fleets, further out on Fushan Bay were going upwind at about the same time. Out on the Star course Flavio Marazzi and Christoph Christen (SUI) and, who have been here for many days, rounded the first weather mark with a 30-second lead on Peter Bromby and Lee White (BER) who were out on the water for the first time today.

Out beyond the Stars, the Ynglings had a close race. Superstition got the better of Sarah Ayton, Sarah Webb and Pippa Wilson (GBR). They led the fleet down the final run and let Renee Groeneveld, Annemieke Bes and Marije Kampen (NED) take line honors in this light air practice race. As the women sailed back toward the distant shore, the media boats, full of Chinese photographers, swarmed Song Xiaqun, Xiaoni Li and Yanli Yu (CHN). The Chinese team has not had a lot of time in the boat compared to the competition. Like the rest of the sailors, they used today’s race to become familiar with the light, shifty winds and strong currents here.

It seems as if everything is in order and the host committee, race management, volunteers, coaches and sailors are ready for the first race of this pre-Olympic regatta.


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