IFA Reports - Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía MAPFRE in Palma de Mallorca

Close win for Giles Scott in Palma

Giles Scott (GBR) took a narrow one place victory over Pieter-Jan Postma (NED) in the double medal race finale to the Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía MAPFRE in Palma de Mallorca on Saturday. Race wins went to British team mates Andrew Mills (GBR) and Mark Andrews (GBR).

Two short medal races were sailed to trial a new scoring and race format for the week, which judging by feedback received so far, most of the sailors are not very comfortable with.

Postma took the first advantage beating Scott in the first medal race to narrow Scott's lead to just one point. It came down to a tense match race in the second heat to decide the winner. Scott deployed better tactics at the start of the final race to get the better of Dutchman

“It was quite stressful with the double medal race. Matt had a little bit on trying to work out the maths to see if we could do the take-out in the pre-start. I think he got it alright and it came good.”

“We needed to get a decent result in the first race, and then see how the points were, and as it was I finished a place behind Postma so it came down to who beat who in the final race.”

“PJ and I then match raced at the start of the second race, I finally succeeded in forcing him into an uncomfortable position and took a safe advance over him. We had a little bit of an engagement in the pre-start which was good fun and fortunately I came off the better. He also made it a little bit easier for me half way round when he capsized.”

On the scoring format, “It did work out all right for me but I don't really like it as I prefer consistency over the week and the varied conditions to be recognised in the results.”

"I am happy to see that the break I have taken has not affected my performances Now I can go back to America's cup racing feeling good about it and guilt free."

Meanwhile Vasilij Zbogar (SLO) posted the best other scorings of the day to move up one place to take home the bronze, though with more than double the points of the two leaders.

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Scott and Postma lead Finns into Palma medal races

Giles Scott (GBR) and Pieter-Jan Postma (NED) take an 18 point lead into Saturday’s medal races at the Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía MAPFRE in Palma de Mallorca. Jonathan Lobert (FRA) has moved back into third overall, but begins with a much tighter points gap on the chasing boats that the two leaders.

On the second day of finals racing, the fleet enjoyed moderate conditions from 8 to 12 knots with some nice waves to surf downwind. Postma picked up a 3, 1, 2 to close the gap on Scott, who placed 1, 2, 8. Lobert's finishes of 7, 10, 4 were just enough to put him back in a podium position as many sailors had a tough day with inconsistent results.

Scott described the racing, “There was a big righty in the first race that PJ made the most of to have the race pretty much wrapped up by the windward mark. In the second it was a bit more of an even race track with the guys in the middle leading.”

In the silver fleet Milosz Wojewski (POL) won four out of the six races to end up on just 2 points. James Hadden (GBR) and Viktor Filippov (RUS) won the other two to end up second and fourthm while a consistent display from Anrei Ianitski (RUS) left him in third.

It was a great day on the water Postma, “Today I sailed very well in difficult conditions. And that result of today has much influence on how we go in to the Medal Race tomorrow. I'm in a good position. There are 40 points to win tomorrow. That is going to be terribly exciting.”

Class newcomers Josh Junior and Andrew Murdoch (NZL) are sixth and seventh in their first international Finn regatta, while ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami winner Caleb Paine (USA) just missed out on the Medal stage in 11th position.

Murdoch said, “I have been in the class for just over 2 months and this is my first international event. I'm really enjoying the change to the Finn class and look forward to racing the rest of this season. There are so many new things to learn, it's not just the techniques but also the technology in the rigs.”

On his performance so far, “I had no idea how I was going to go prior to the event. It's a great start to my Olympic campaign and I'm really happy with how it's going. I know I have a lot to learn and the fleet will no doubt continue to improve over the next couple of years as well.

Like most sailors he is not convinced the trial scoring format being used this year is the best solution. “It's certainly a change from what we are used to, the importance of the races really steps up as the event progresses. I can see us having issues if the weather plays havoc with the race schedule. We have been fortunate to have very reliable weather at this event so it hasn't caused any issues there.”

Scott has much stronger views. “I think it's no good at all. It brings in a level of randomness and also penalises those who sail consistently, whilst at the same time giving those who have made mistakes almost as good a chance of winning the regatta. In my mind the format is completely flaweded because it hurts those that sail better.”

“I also believe the two medal races to be a bad idea especially with the points being so tight by the end of the regatta with only six races being scored. Most importantly I think that with the Olympics going to a light and potentially shifty venue it's more import that ever to have the fairest scoring system that rewards the consistently good performers.”

The Finns will sail two double scoring medal races on Saturday with a potential 40 points up for grabs. This basically means any of the sailors could potentially win the regatta with only 40 points separating the top ten boats. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.

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Giles Scott heads Finn fleet at half way stage in Palma

Giles Scott (GBR) took the overall lead in the Finns for the first time on the third day at the Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía MAPFRE in Palma de Mallorca as the fleet heads into the finals series on Thursday. There were race wins for Giorgio Poggi (ITA) and Tomas Vika (CZE) in less wind than the previous days, with several sailors picking up high scores in the shifty conditions.

With six races now completed the sailors effectively start again, taking their place in the opening series as the first score in the final series. ISAF is trialling a new scoring system in Palma and so far the jury is still out on any benefits.

Race five got away in a tricky building breeze, starting at around 8 knots and rising to 10 knots, with some pin end bias. The breeze was much stronger and bending round to the left. Those that missed this picked up some the deep positions. Unlimited pumping was on but was borderline.

Giorgo Poggi (ITA) won race five from Caleb Paine (USA) and Bruno Prada (BRA). Poggi explained, “Today in the first race I had a good start four boats up from the pin. There was more pressure on the left of the course and also a small shift to the left that helped me to round the top mark in third. On the downwind I moved up to second place and then I just try to control my position. On the last downwind I closed the distance to Bruno [Prada (BRA)] and at the gate before the finish he took the wrong mark and I won the race. So I also had some luck.”

For race six, the breeze settled at around 10 knots and was a little more steady. Andrew Mills (GBR) said, “It was classic Palma with the land effect making the left good. I came out the pin and went all the way to the layline and rounded second from Thomas Vika (CZE) after going past the layline. The run was unlimited pumping with Giles, Vasilij Zbogar (SLO, myself, Bruno Prada (BRA) and Tomas. Tomas pulled away nicely and sailed the second beat well for the win. I rounded the second top mark in second closely followed by Vasilij and Caleb, then Vasilij got past on the run.”

“The proper racing starts tomorrow.”

Vika took the race win from Zbogar and Mills. Leader into the day, Jonathan Lobert (FRA) had a difficult day with a 17, 12 and dropped to fourth overall, while a 16, 5 for Scott was enough to take the overall lead from Zbogar and Mills. The best performance of the day was Paine with a 2, 4 to move up to ninth, while newcomer Josh Junior (NZL) continued his good form to end the day in eighth at his first major Finn event.

But a points difference at this stage make no difference as the sailors can only take their opening series positions into the two day final series before Saturday's medal racing.

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Lobert leads Finns and after big day in Palma

London 2012 bronze medalist Jonathan Lobert (FRA) leads the Finn fleet after the opening day of the Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía MAPFRE in Palma de Mallorca as big winds and big waves provided challenging conditions for the 72 boat fleet.

Race wins for Lobert and Giles Scott (GBR) leave them both on zero points at the top though a capsize for Scott in race two while he was leading gives him higher total points.

After a general recall first race got away with big pin bias on the line. Andrew Mills (GBR) said, “The forecast was for a big shift to the right though so some guys came from the right and others did well out the pin. I rounded third with PJ, Giles, Jonathan and Vasiliy. Then myself Giles and PJ did the second beat a little better than Jonathan and Vasiliy. The last downwind a bit of a procession, but really nice conditions, 18 knots and big waves.”

Lobert said, “Today was quite windy with massive waves. Very nice sailing conditions. In the first race I was playing with PJ and Giles after the first lap but on the second upwind I went on the left and the wind was shifting right so I lost few boats. In the second race there was a bit more wind and I was second just behind PJ on the first mark but Giles passed us on the run. At the last mark Giles capsized on the gybe and PJ also capsized on top of him so they go stuck together so I just passed them to win the race.”

Palma is Lobert's first big regatta since last year's Games. “I am very happy to be back in the boat. I have spent a lot of time since the Games to try to find sponsorship with no success yet so just be back doing what I like to do is really nice. In term of motivation it's not so hard to find something to focus on. I won the bronze after five years in the Finn but I know I have a lot to improve if I want to get gold in Rio. I have also never won a world cup event and I have never been on the podium in the world championship.

Palma also marks the return of 2011 world champion Scott, though he is only scheduled to take part in two regattas this year due to America's Cup commitments. He says he will be back full time in 2014 to begin his campaign for Rio2016 in earnest.

After a slight delay race two got away as the breeze picked up to 25-26 knots. Mills explained, “Again it was a pin end bias, and they were having a little trouble keeping committee boat end anchored in the huge waves and breeze building to 25 or 26 knots. Again boats came from both sides, with a big shift on the right. On the last downwind the breeze piped up to a proper 25 knots and got pretty lively, most people starting to hang on and a good fun run. Most of us also survived the breaking waves at the harbour entrance.”

New Zealand is fencing a strong team with Josh Junior (NZL) and Andrew Murdoch (NZL) competing. Junior placed 7 and 26 putting him 10th overall, while Murdoch sailed a ninth and an 18to hold 12th overall. Murdoch said, “I am certainly learning a few things on the job. This is my first international event so a great chance to line up with the rest of the world and see what needs working on. I've been here for a few days training and it's great to get racing under way.

Racing continues to Saturday.

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Wins for Lobert and Andrews on shifty day two in Palma

A win apiece for Jonathan Lobert (FRA) and Mark Andrews (GBR) on a shifty second day at the Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía MAPFRE in Palma de Mallorca leaves Lobert leading the fleet by one point from Giles Scott (GBR), and by two from Vasilij Zbogar (SLO), who picked up two second places today. Andrew Mills (GBR) is in fourth, another point back, after two third places.

There was slightly less wind than on Monday, building to 17-18 knots during the day, However, it was quite shifty with big right phases in the breeze. The big waves left over from Monday at an angle to the wind also made the downwind quite tricky.

In race three Lobert took his second race win of the week from Zbogar and Mills. Scott explained the race, “The leaders came out of the right. Up the second windward leg wind oscillated until the final quarter of the leg where a sizeable righty came in with Vasilij making the best of it to catch the leaders.” Scott maintained second overall with a fifth place finish

For the second race the wind picked up to about 17 knots. Scott, “At the start in the final minute to go there was a 15 degree shift to the left making the pin very biased which wasn't ideal for those of us at the committee boat. Up the first windward leg the wind went further left, and all the leaders came from reasonably hard left. I found myself having to battle back from about 30th at the top. But Vasilij Zbogar and Andrew Mills did the best with the conditions today.”

“I had one of those days where I made things difficult resulting in some fraught on the back foot racing.” He eventually recovered to score another fifth place to stay in second overall.

Race four winner Mark Andrews said, “My starts so far this week have been worse than rubbish but eventually I got a good start at the pin end. Just before the start there was a big shift to the left and I was able to tack and cross most of the fleet. The Croatian got tangled at the pin but recovered well and took a big shift and pressure from the left and rounded the top mark in first ahead of me.”

“Down the run I had a good battle between the Croatian [Milan Vujasinovic (CRO)] and Josh Junior. These Laser sailors have taken to the pumping downwind quite well and have got some pace. I think we were all blowing pretty hard by the bottom mark.”

“On the second beat I was first into the left hand shift and was able to stretch out a lead from Josh from there. Vasilij had a amazing second run and to take second, his second of the day. His training over in Valencia has obviously gone well.”

“Obviously it was great to get a 0 point race under my belt, as my Finn sailing is a bit rusty from sailing a Figaro all winter with the Artemis offshore academy.”

“So far two days of champagne Finn sailing in Palma.”

Andrews' win moves him up to seventh, while Zbogar and Mills picked up another second and third place to end the day third and fourth overall

Max Salminen (SWE) is sailing his first major Finn regatta since winning the Star gold medal at last year's Olympics. “My main focus this year is performing well at the Worlds. But there's a long time until then so I think Palma will tell me more in what areas I need to focus until the Worlds. The hardest part so far has been funding. In the boat it took some time to get the free pumping technique, but I think the downwind technique takes time and that I have reached an acceptable level.”

“Palma is an interesting event not only for me but because of 70+ entries and that there are some old stars that have taken the winter completely of, and some other young guns that have been training harder than ever.”

Has he found it hard to go from being Olympic champion in one class to a relative beginner in another? “Ha, well there's not much new really. We became gold medalists and best in the world because we always tried to learn new stuff. I don't really see it that way, what has happened has happened and for sure you try to take as much experience from it as possible, but I need to look ahead.”

Salminen lies in 22nd place after four races. Racing in Palma continues to Saturday when the medal races will be held.