2023-06-24 20:17:30
The veteran Soling Class, a three-crew keelboat that was an Olympian from 1972 to the 2000 Sydney Games, held the second test of the Soling International Friendship League Championship in the waters of the San Juan reservoir, in which they have taken part crews with sailors from half a dozen countries.
The Real Club Náutico de Madrid, headquarters of one of the most important Soling fleets in the world, has been in charge of organizing this regatta with the support of the RFEV and the ISA, an international organization of the Soling Class, and thanks to the help of the Community of Madrid and the City Council of San Martín de Valdeiglesias and the generous contribution of PL Sails. In order to carry out the regatta, the Madrid fleet made eight boats available to the organization.
A total of 13 tests held under the Round Robin modality could be completed, with 13 crews from Spain, Germany, Italy, Portugal and the United States. The tests were held in two fleets made up of boats donated by RCNM skippers. The organization gave Pires jibs to those who gave up the boats. The different crews were rotating by different boats to equalize to the maximum the material possibilities of the participants.
The championship began on Friday with four qualifying tests, leaving for Saturday a long day of five tests in which the provisional classification was left with the German Dietzel, accompanied in this first phase by Elósegui and Jiménez in first place, followed by the crew skippered by Mikel Álvarez, tied on points. In third place the also German and several times World Champion of the Roman Koch Class with Parodi and Ablático. This ensured the first seven teams to go to the Gold fleet, while the remaining 6 would compete for Silver.
Sunday’s day gave all the participants a magnificent day of regattas, where they would compete in the final of the Silver fleet in the morning, and then the grand final of the Gold fleet.
The crew formed by Alfonso Colón/ Allo/ Dietzel would win the Silver in a light windsock and constant rolls, followed by Pérez Villalonga/ Méndez/ P. Villalonga (h) and the Italians Tognozzi/ Pelosi/ De Bello, in third place.
In the afternoon, the wind increased and the Gold fleet managed to compete in two major races where the crew representing Castilla la Mancha with Mikel Álvarez at the helm would dominate from the start, followed by Dietzel, this time accompanied by Alfonso Colón and Manu Allo. The podium was completed by David Peralta, accompanied by José Ángel Martín and Bjorn Geisler.
The Friendship League Championship is a regatta circuit that began last year in Brazil, it is demonstrating an ideal way to revitalize the Class by facilitating communication between the different fleets. This year, in addition to the recent event in Madrid, the circuit will be completed with regattas in Germany and the USA.
The Madrid event was attended by Enry Thomas, president of the North American Class, and Michael Dietzel, president of the German class, who would also finish as second classified.
#International #Friendship #Cup #held #San #Juan #reservoir