The round up
Bidding for a fourth title in a row in the ILCA 7, GBR’s Micky Beckett started well enough with a 3,1: “It was lovely day sailing, 16-17kts, a bit more than we expected. I got into it pretty quickly, the wind was going back and forwards a bit but it was so good to be back out there doing it all again. I made a couple of dumb mistakes – like not finding the leeward mark and sailed off in the wrong direction when I was winning – but I will try not to do that again!” said Beckett.
Kontides followed up his race win with a 15th as he sets into his sixth Olympic cycle, “I just love it. Most of all I love the fighting on the water. This is the first major championship after the Games and most people are here so I want to be here. The world championships are early this year and so most of us want to get good racing in before then to build confidence.”
In the ILCA 6 fleet it is Belgium’s 2021 World Champion Emma Plasschaert, 7th at Paris 2024, who leads after posting two wins: “I am pretty fresh. I had a eight months out of the boat, enjoying doing other things and so I am just off ten days training in Vilamoura before coming here. The second race was trickiest as the thermal effect meant it died completely and I was leading by a lot and then suddenly everyone was up with me and I only just got across the line to win!”
Simon Diesch and Anna Markfort, a disappointing 14th at Paris 2024, head the big German contingent in the Mixed 470 and lead overall after Day 1. The young French pair Lucas Rual and Emile Amoros top the 49er fleet after two races whilst in the FX Freya Black and Saskia Tidey made the best start also leading after two heats.
Australia’s recently crowned Olympic silver medallist Grae Morris is top of the iQFOiL men whilst GBR’s bronze winner Emma Wilson started characteristically strongly with two race wins in the Women. After three races China’s Huangcheng Zhao and Su Sha lead the Nacra 17s which raced in the afternoon’s lighter breezes.
The 54 Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by FERGUS Hotels is jointly organised by the Club Nàutic S’Arenal, the Club Marítimo San Antonio de la Playa, the Real Club Náutico de Palma, the Real Federación Española de Vela and the Federación Balear de Vela, with the support of World Sailing, and is co-financed by the Govern de les Illes Balears’ Sustainable Tourism Tax fund.
More information at www.trofeoprincesasofia.org
The event is part of the Sailing Grand Slam 2025, along with the Semaine Olympique Française, the Dutch Water Week, the Kieler Woche and the Long Beach Olympic Classes Regatta.
More information at www.sailinggrandslam.com
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in North America at the Athletic Brewing IRONMAN® 70.3® Oceanside triathlon. This iconic early season race will once again pit some of the top talent in the sport against each other in the birthplace of triathlon. The Athletic Brewing IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside triathlon will offer a total prize purse of $50,000 USD, with the male and female winners each taking $7,500 USD home as well as 2,500 IRONMAN Pro Series points.
