Rolex
Miami OCR - Champions Named: Lack Of Wind Foils
Today's Races; Yesterday's Results Stand
Miami, USA
MIAMI,
FLORIDA (January 30, 2004)--"Breathless"
was not a welcome word for describing the final
day of the four-day Rolex Miami OCR, which began
January 27. To 503 sailors competing in the regatta's
11 Olympic and Paralympic classes, it meant "no
wind" and cancellation of racing. Yesterday's
results, therefore, determined class champions
and left those who were within striking distance
of leaders disappointed. The regatta winners,
most with goals of competing in the 2004 Olympic
Games in Athens, counted their performances here
as critical, since this is one of North America's
largest ISAF Grade One ranking events. The 323-boat
fleet, flush with world champions, Olympic medallists
and America's Cup veterans, represented 39 nations.
 |
British
Laser sailor, and Laser class winner, PAUL
GOODISON 'cracks-off' around the weather
mark. Photo © Scott Kozinchik / Rolex
|
Star
Winning
the regatta's Golden Torch Award for the best
performance by a U.S. team was the winning Star
duo of Mark Reynolds (San Diego, Calif.) and Steve
Erickson (Seattle, Wash). Both Olympic medallists
and Star World champions, Reynolds and Erickson
topped a formidable fleet of 58 boats, but were
going into today's racing cautiously. Only seven
points separated them from Australia's Colin Beashel
and David Giles, who today were ready to pounce
on their U.S. adversaries. Beashel and Giles,
too, are world champions and Olympic medalists--honors
which, though impressive on their own, were merely
common denominators for measurement of talent
in this extraordinary star-studded fleet. The
Golden Torch Award is an actual Olympic Torch
from the boycotted 1980 Olympics presented by
the Russian Olympic Committee to US SAILING's
Olympic Sailing Committee.
Tornado
In
Tornados, Puerto Rico's Olympic representatives
Enrique Figueroa and Jorge Hernandez made an impressive
showing, topping 29 entries, including Austria's
Roman Hagara and Hans Peter Steinacher, who finished
second, only three points behind the leaders.
Hagara is the Olympic Bronze Medalist from 2000.
USA's Lars Guck (Bristol, R.I.) and Jonathan Farrar
(Miami, Fla.) finished fifth.
Laser
St.
Petersburg, Florida's Mark Mendelblatt, who has
secured a berth on the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team,
finished second in the Laser division, among 63
boats. He was a defending champion at this event,
having beaten Great Britain's Paul Goodison by
one point last year. This year, Goodison topped
the scoreboard, putting a seven-point lead on
Mendelblatt. On the first day of racing, a squall
ripped through the fleet and Goodison capsized,
setting him off to a rough start for the regatta.
"At that point, It was just about me getting
results instead of watching anybody else,"
said Goodison, who will compete in his country's
Olympic Trials in April.
Finn
The
1996 Finn Gold medalist Mateus Kusznierewicz (POL)
put 12 points on his closest competitor to win
the 35-boat Finn class. Denmark's Jonas Hoegh
Christensen, who led the regatta up until yesterday,
was going to be most concerned about who was behind
him in scoring if he raced today--the shadow of
two U.S. competitors loomed ominously. In the
end, Geoff Ewenson (Annapolis, Md.) had to settle
for third, only two points behind Christensen,
with Kevin Hall (Ventura, Calif.) taking fourth,
again two points behind Ewenson. Ewenson and Hall
are preparing for the U.S. Olympic Trials in this
class in February, while Kusznierewicz and Hoegh
Christensen are heading into their own Trials.
49er
USA's
Tim Wadlow (San Diego, Calif.) and Pete Spaulding
(Coral Gables, Fla.), also preparing for their
U.S. Olympic Trials, topped the scoreboard in
49er class, beating out Switzerland's Chris Rast
and Christian Steiger in second.
470
Winning
in the 470 men's class were Mikee Anderson-Mitterling
(Coronado, Calif.) and Graham Biehl (San Diego,
Calif.), who finished second at their U.S. Olympic
Trials last Fall. Missing were USA's representatives
to the Olympics Paul Foerster (Rockwall, Texas)
and Kevin Burnham (Miami, Fla.). "It's too
bad they weren't here," said Anderson-Mitterling,
a young rising star on the circuit. "Since
we've had our Trials already, this keeps our feet
wet," said Anderson, "and it is more
about training than winning for us." In women's
470 class, Germany's Alina Grobe/Vivien Kussatz
won.
Yngling
New
Zealand's Sharon Ferris/Kylie Jameson/Joanna White
topped the Yngling fleet. Only five points behind
were USA's Hannah Swett (N.Y., N.Y,/Jamestown,
R.I.)/Joan Touchette (Newport, R.I.)/Melissa Purdy
(Tiburon, Calif.).
2.4
Metre and Sonar
In
Paralympic action, Udo Hessels of the Nederlands
finished only one point ahead of USA's Rick Doerr
in Sonar class. In 2.4 Metres, USA's Jeff Madrigali,
an able-bodied sailor who won the Soling bronze
medal at the 1996 Olympics, beat out Sweden's
Stellan Berlin, a World Champion, in the 2.4 Metre
class. Madrigali and Berlin have been coaching
and training with USA's representative to the
Paralympics in this class, Tom Brown (Portland,
Maine). Brown finished fifth overall.
Europe
Lenka
Smidova (CZE), a defending champion, led early
to win the Europe class. Following her in second
was Meg Gaillard (Pelham, N.Y./Jamestown, R.I.),
who is a lead contender for a berth on the U.S.
Olympic Sailing Team.
Mistral
Antonia
Frey of Greece, a wave and freestyle World Champion
in windsurfing who has only recently taken up
racing, topped the Mistral Women's fleet while
Joao Rodrigues of Portugal won the Mistral Men's
class.
U.S.
Trials to Come
U.S.
sailors from six of the competing classes at the
2004 Rolex Miami OCR will stay nearby to prepare
for their upcoming Olympic Trials. From February
12-22, the Lauderdale Yacht Club will host the
Europe and Finn; the Key Biscayne Yacht Club will
host the 49er and Yngling; and Miami Yacht Club
will take on the Tornado Trials. The Star class
will have their Trials from March 18-28 at Coral
Reef Yacht Club.
Already
decided for the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team are
representatives from the Laser, 470 (Men and Women),
Mistral (Men and Women) class. Decided for the
U.S. Paralympic Sailing Team are representatives
from the 2.4 Metre and Sonar classes.
Serving
as Regatta Headquarters for the Rolex Miami OCR
was the US Sailing Center in Coconut Grove. Other
Hosts for the event were the Coral Reef, Key Biscayne
and Miami Yacht Clubs; the Coconut Grove Sailing
Club; and Shake-A-Leg Miami.
2004
ROLEX MIAMI OCR
FINAL RESULTS
Place,
Name, Hometown/Country, Finish Positions, Cumulative
Score
Europe
(20 boats)
1. Smidova, CZE, 1-(4)-1-1-1-1-2-3-1, 11
2. Gaillard, USA, 2-2-2-(4)-3-2-1-2-3, 17
3. Blanck, AUS, 3-(14)-6-3-2-3-4-1-9, 31
Finn
(35 boats)
1. Kuszinerewicz, POL, 2-(4)-2-1-2-1-2-1-1, 12
2. Christensen, DEN, 1-2-4-3-1-(7)-7-2-4, 24
3. Ewenson, USA, 3-3-5-2-5-(6)-1-4-3, 26
470
Men (6 boats)
1. Anderson-Mitterling/Biehl, USA, 2-2-1-2-(4)-4-1-2-1,
15
2. McNay/Kinsolving, USA, 1-1-2-1-2-1-(5)-5-4,
17
3. Noakes/Beaudoin, CAN, 3-7-6-7-3-6-6-(10)-8,
46
470
Women (5 boats)
1. Grobe/Kussatz, GER, (11)-3-3-3-1-2-3-1-2, 18
2. Carapiet/Besse, USA, 4-5-(11)-4-5-5-4-3-5,
35
3. Maxwell/Freye, USA, 7-6-4-8-7-3-2-(9)-3,
49er
(20 boats)
1. Wadlow/Spaulding, USA, (9)-2-2-3-2-1-2-1-1-1,
15
2. Rast/Steiger, SUI, 2-6-1-1-4-(15)-3-5-3-5,
31
3. Mack/Lowry, USA, (14)-9-6-2-6-2-3-3-8-4, 43
Laser
(63 boats)
3. Goodison, GBR, 4-18-1-6-3-6-(64/DNF)-4-1, 43
2. Mendelblatt, USA, 2-13-2-4-5-3-6-15-(64/DNF),
50
3. Moberg, NOR, 5-1-4-2-2-24/ZFP-10-(25)-12, 60
Mistral
Men (24 boats)
1. Rodrigues, POR, 1-1-1-1-(2)-1-2, 7
2. Santos, BRA, 3-5-3-5-3-2-(7), 21
3. Guyadr, FRA, 5-2-2-4-(9)-9-3, 25
Mistral
Women (14 boats)
1. Frey, GRE, 20-20-18-15-20-(22)-13, 106
2. Konstantinova, BUL, (23)-21-22-20-15-20-18,
116
3. Borges, BRA, (28)-23-25-22-25-24-22, 141
Sonars
(14 boats)
1. Hessels/Van De Veen/Rossen, NED, 3-1-6-2-(8)-6-2-5-3,
28
2. Mackie/MacDonald/Tingley, CAN, (8)-7-2-1-6-2-4-1-6,
29
3. Doerr/Wilson/Ross, USA, 1-2-9-5-7-1-3-(12)-2,
30
Star
(58 boats)
1. Reynolds/Erickson, USA, 2-6-18-3-(46)-8, 37
2. Beashel/Giles, AUS, 13-14-6-10-1-(15), 44
3. Loof/Ekstrom, SWE, 17-3-4-15-(38)-12, 51
Tornado
(29 boats)
1. Figueroa/Hernandez, PUR, 8-4-6-1-5-6-3-(14),
33
2. Hagara/Steinacher, AUT, 7-6-4-(11)-7-2-8-2,
36
3. Booth/Derchsen, NED, 2-(30/OCS)-1-6-4-4-11-9,
37
2.4
Metres (18 boats)
1. Madrigali, USA, 5-1-1-3-2-6-(7)-3-(19/DSQ),
28
2. Berlin, SWE, 3-4-3-8-4-1-1-5-(19/OCS), 29
3. Meyer, USA, 9-(19/DNF)-5-1-7-2-3-2-1, 30
Yngling
(17 boats)
1. Ferris/Jameson/White, NZL, 3-2-4-1-4-7-4-5-(14),
30
2. Swett/Purdy/Touchette, USA, 2-11-1-5-(14)-6-3-2-5,
35
3. Eikeland/Fredriksen/Kristiansen, NOR, (14)-8-3-13-2-2-8-6-2,
44
For
more information: www.ussailing.org/Olympics/RolexMiamiOCR/
