Swedish
Match Tour - Group A Completes Round At Swedish
Match Cup: Jablonski Wins The First Round Robin
At The Final Event Of The Swedish Match Tour
MARSTRAND, Sweden - Karol Jablonski,
the Polish skipper who believes winning round
robins at match-race regattas is a bad omen, won
the Group A round robin today at the Swedish Match
Cup with a 5-2 record and advanced to the quarterfinals
of the final event on the Swedish Match Tour 2003-'04.
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Gavin
Brady’s BMW Oracle Racing crew take
wide stances as they roll to windward on
the first run of their match against Magnus
Holmberg. Photo © Dan Ljungsvik
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While
Jablonski advanced to Stage 3, Mattias Rahm (SWE),
Chris Law (GBR), Gavin Brady (NZL), Magnus Holmberg
(SWE), Jesper Bank (DEN) and Johnie Berntsson
(DEN) advanced to Stage 2, scheduled for Friday.
Michael Dunstan, winless in seven matches, was
eliminated from competition.
The
format of the Swedish Match Cup splits the 16
skippers into two groups of eight. Each group
sails a single round robin, with the two winners
advancing to Stage 3, the quarterfinals, scheduled
for Saturday. The last-placed team is eliminated.
The
six crews placing 2nd through 7th in each group
advance to Stage 2, which is a knock-out series
with the first to three points winning. Stage
2 is scheduled for Friday.
Along
with all of this, there's a women's regatta being
conducted, a pro-am regatta and numerous other
sidelights which forces the racing to be spread
out over many days and creates large downtimes
for some competitors.
"I
didn't want to win the round robin," said
Jablonski, who has been unsuccessful at past events
after winning the round robin. "But it's
not something you can manage."
Jablonski
won the round robin at the Swedish Match Tour
event in Croatia in 2003, but finished fourth.
At last year's Swedish Match Cup, Rahm won one
of the two round robins and then was promptly
eliminated in the quarterfinals.
Part
of the problem at the Swedish Match Cup is that
there is a two day lay off from winning Group
A until the quarterfinals.
"Last
year we didn't have the same attention in the
quarterfinals as we did in the round robin,"
Rahm said.
Jablonski
won the round robin in the last flight of Group
A, but due to no success of his own. He lost to
Holmberg in that flight.
Rahm,
however, lost to Berntsson. That created a tie
between the two skippers at 5-2, which Jablonski
won based on yesterday's victory over Rahm.
In
a match featuring penalties against both teams,
Berntsson beat Rahm by no more than 3 seconds.
Rahm was penalized first, when he jibed to starboard
at the leeward mark and didn't give Berntsson
enough room to keep clear.
Berntsson,
however, gave up the penalty advantage on the
second beat, when he tacked too close to Rahm.
That foul canceled Rahm's penalty, and set up
a thrilling run to the finish with the crews bow
to bow in the last 100 meters. Berntsson got the
last surge, to claim the narrow victory.
"I'm
convinced this is good for us," said Rahm.
"I think we can win the next round robin."
Jablonski
also had a thrilling come-from-behind victory,
snatching a win away from Brady.
Brady
won the pre-start and led around the first lap
of the two-lap course. Jablonski worked the left
side of the second beat and closed up to round
the second windward mark on Brady's transom.
Jablonski
worked the right side of the run, the same side
that paid for him upwind, while Brady was to his
left. Jablonski said he felt there were better
puffs on that side of the course.
Jablonski
jibed to port and back toward the center of the
course and then jibed to starboard to windward
and just ahead of Brady.
Brady
clung to a slight overlap, but Jablonski broke
it. Both boats jibed to port for the finish line,
but the committee boat end was closer and Jablonski
gained the win.
"It
was a close match. It was very puffy and shifty,"
said Jablonski. "Now I have two days off
to try and relax."
Jablonski
just hopes it won't be two days enroute to ruin.
While
Group A completed its initial round robin today,
Group B is scheduled to sail its first round robin
tomorrow. Group B skippers feature Ed Baird (USA),
Russell Coutts (NZL), Peter Gilmour (AUS), Bjorn
Hansen (SWE), Peter Holmberg (ISV), Staffan Lindberg
(FIN), Lars Nordbjerg (SWE) and Luc Pillot (FRA).
OPEN
REGATTA STANDINGS
Final Group A Round Robin
1. Karol Jablonski/POL, Toscana Challenge 5-2
Crew: Tom Baranowski, Piotr Przybylski, Markus
Wieser, Jacek Wysocki 2. Mattias Rahm/SWE, Team
Stena Bulk 5-2
Crew: Johan Barne, Nikas Carlzon, Claes Dahlberg,
Pontus Meijer 3. Chris Law/GBR, The Outlaws 4-3
Crew: Oscar Angervall, Daniel Bjorndahl, Anders
Dahlsjo, Henrik Valderyd 4. Gavin Brady/NZL, BMW
Oracle Racing 4-3
Crew: Dirk de Ridder, Ross Halcrow, John Kostecki,
Brad Webb
5. Magnus Holmberg/SWE, SeaLife Rangers 4-3
Crew: Martin Krite, Lars Linger, Oskar Ljung,
Stefan Rahm
6. Jesper Bank/DEN 3-4
Crew: Thomas Jacobsen, Time Nielsen, Morten Halkier,
Henrik Blakskjaer 7. Johnie Berntsson/SWE 2-5
Crew: Henrik Hansson, Nils Bjerleas, Martin Berntsson,
Robert Skarp 8. Michael Dunstan/AUS, OzBoyz Challenge
0-7
Crew: Glen Atrill, Wade Morgan, Ben Morrison,
Nick Partridge
For
more information on the Swedish Match Tour, its
skippers and events please visit www.SwedishMatchTour.com.
