Ilhabela (SP) - The unprecedented South American Championships including the Star class in Ilhabela Sailing Week ended on Friday (July 25) with the victory of a traditional champion. Lars Grael lifted the trophy for the fourth time (2005, 2008 and 201) while Samuel Gonçalves celebrated his first continental conquest. This team in 2014 is undeniable.

Lars and Samuca sailed during the week in a fleet of 18 boats, with four Argentine crews. The presence of the defending champion Bruno Prada, Guilherme de Almeida, Dino Pascolato and Reinaldo Conrad among others, ensured the high technical level of the competition.

"Bruno, triple world champion, the Argentine Torkel, and Dino are great sailors and made the tough league for us. We started with a strong pace, with three wins in four races, which left us in an advantageous position," commented Lars. "Today (Friday) we were more conservative and then won the sixth race, so we did not need to compete in the last race as we could discard the result."

Before the South Americans, the duo were the first Brazilian boat to win the competitive Bacardi Cup in Miami, and then won the Star Class Western Hemisphere Championship. "Due to a misconception of the race committee we failed to win the World Championship", resigned Lars.

The bowman credits the victory in Ilhabela Sailing Week precisely to training for the World Cup in Italy. "It was not an easy league, but we are very well trained due to the preparation for the World. Pressure was all on us," analyzed Samuel. "Now we have two more important contests to close the season, the 7th District Star in Rio de Janeiro and the Brazilian Championship on Lake Paranoá (DF)."