Mistrzostwa Europy 2013

Mistrzostwa Europy 2013,
Warnemuende 19-27 lipca 2013

2013 Finn Dinghy European Championship
Warnemuende / Germany

informacja od Roberta Deaves'a:

Video alert: Finn Europeans final day video summary
2013 Finn European Championships - Final day video summary is now available at: http://youtu.be/qza9aZcL3Zc

Includes footage of the prizegiving along with interviews with the new Junior European Champion, Peter McCoy, the new European Champion Vasilij Zbogar, as well as Ed Wright and Andrew Murdoch.

Event website: www.finneuropeans.org/ec2013
Class website: www.finnclass.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Finn-Class/110408332633
Twitter: http://twitter.com/Finn_Class
Fickr (free of rights photos for editorial use): http://www.flickr.com/photos/97957734@N04/

Vasilij Zbogar wins Finn Europeans as wind fails to show on final day

Vasilij Zbogar (SLO) has won the 2013 Finn European Championships in Warnemünde, Germany after all racing on the final day was cancelled with the wind failing to stabilise over four knots. Ed Wright (GBR) takes the silver and Andrew Murdoch the bronze.
The sailors have played a waiting game all week and the final day was no different. The forecast cloud cover did not materialise but the race course was largely windless nonetheless, with searingly hot sunshine at least offering the promise of something later in the day. An early one hour postponement was replaced by an open postponement as the first signs of the developing sea breeze appeared on the race course. With an ultimate deadline for 15.00 to start any racing, for both the medal race and the final race, time was not on the sailor's side, especially considering that all week the sea breeze hadn't stabilised until around 15.00 each day.
And that was how it played out. The fleet race was cancelled at 13.30, the medal race was cancelled at 14.00, and the sea breeze arrived slighty kater although still very light compared to previous days. This left the results standing from Friday. The week had ended how it began, with no racing taking place.
In taking the title, Vasilij Zbogar (SLO) wins his first major championship in the Finn class. He was clearly the best sailor here this week and fully deserves to lift the trophy. In spite of two breakages which cost him valuable points he kept his usual cool and consistency to remain in control and win the last two races.
He said, "The week was quite hard but I like these sort of conditions, and I took advantage of it and sailed really conservative and good races all the time. Straight from the beginning I was trying to be conservative and not make big mistakes and that paid off in the beginning of the regatta and I just continued like that. My boatspeed was really good so I didn't want to mess around too much, and looking back the worst first mark rounding was fourth place so that was extremely good and I am very proud of that."
"We've been working really, really hard during the winter in Valencia, so all this training is now paying off. Myself and Luca Devoti and all the rest of the team, the physio, the fitness coach, I think they are all pretty happy now, and so am I."
"And it of course been already exactly 10 years since I won my Laser European title in Split in 2003, so after 10 years it sounds a lot of time, but it passed very quickly, and that result in the Laser gave me a lot of confidence, along with the Olympic medals, so I hope this result gives me more strength to get even more results in the next three years."
Ed Wright has been on top form this week, and even though his coach this week, Paul Hobson (GBR) would like to take some of the credit, Wright has been putting in the hours at his Garda training base and deserves this medal as much as anyone here.
He said, "I am very happy to have come away with the silver. It was a pretty tricky week with a lot of light winds and some medium stuff. Downwind in a couple of races was really great out there. The waves can be amazing, especially in the Finn. Vasco sailed slightly better with good starts and probably was a bit faster throughout the week., especially downwind. The venue was wonderful, the organisation was good and the race committee did a great job and overall I am pretty happy going into the worlds in three weeks time in Tallinn, so I am excited for that."
For third placed Andrew Murdoch (NZL) this event is only his third major Finn regatta and, along with Josh Junior (NZL) in fifth, are the sailors on perhaps the fastest learning curve at the moment, so it is probably when, not if, one of them will take a major win. It has been a long time since New Zealand has been a world leading Finn nation, but perhaps those times are just around the corner once again.
He said, "Obviously I am really happy to get the bronze in my first season in the Finn and it's actually better than I have done in the Laser Europeans, so really happy with that and now looking forward to the build up to Tallinn and the Finn Gold Cup and see how it goes there."
In the Juniors Peter McCoy (GBR) has led the 16 boat fleet all week. After finishing just outside the medals at the 2013 Silver Cup a few weeks back, this week has proven he can handle the extra challenge of the senior fleet. Jake Lilley (AUS) closed the gap in the last few days, but could not reduce the points gap enough to pass McCoy. Lennart Luttkus (GER) takes the host's country's only medal at this event with the junior bronze.
McCoy said, "It's been a tough week but I am really happy to come away with the junior European title. It feels good after the juniors worlds coming just outside the medals in fourth. Jake sailed a really good event and put the pressure on towards the end of the racing but I am happy to come away with it at the end, it was close racing.
The new European Champion, Vasilij Zbogar placed sixth in the London 2012 Olympics after finishing as runner up at the 2012 Finn Europeans. He is the key sailor at Luca's Devoti's Dinghy Academy in Valencia, which the Finn Class is supporting through limited campaign funding for eligible sailors. (See here) He has been training hard there since the end of 2012 and this result is clear evidence of the value of the integrated training programme that has been set up there.
In addition, Alican Kaynar (TUR) in tenth, Zsombor Berecz (HUN) in 14th, Frederico Melo (POR) in 22nd, and at his first Finn regatta, 18 year old Joe McMillan (AUS) in 61st, are also part of the Dinghy Academy team here, coached by Devoti. All have clearly benefited from Devoti's coaching and the training regime.
At the prizegiving on Saturday evening in sunny Warnemünde, Vasilij Zbogar lifted the Finn European Championship title for 2013. Everyone is sure there is a lot more to come from this talented sailor.
The sailors now have a brief respite before gathering again in a few weeks time Tallinn, Estonia for the Finn Gold Cup from 23-31 August.
Video summaries are available for each day. You can find links to them all at www.finnclass.org
Full image galleries for each day can be found at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/97957734@N04/

Final results (top 10 from 103)
Top 10 after eight races:
1 SLO 573 Vasilij Zbogar 24
2 GBR 11 Ed Wright 31
3 NZL 16 Andrew Murdoch 48
4 NED 842 Pieter-Jan Postma 50
5 NZL 24 Josh Junior 54
6 CRO 524 Ivan Kljakovic Gaspic 63
7 SWE 33 Max Salminen 72
9 FRA 1112 Jonathan Lobert 73
9 FRA 29 Thomas Le Breton 66
10 TUR 21 Alican Kaynar 59

Juniors
1 GBR 29 Peter McCoy 176 (23rd overall)
2 AUS 41 Jake Lilley 193 (25th overall)
3 GER 64 Lennart Luttkus 285 (39th overall)

Full results at: http://www.raceoffice.org/Finn_ec2013

Victory for Zbogar in only race extends his lead at Finn Europeans

Vasilij Zbogar (SLO) has taken a six point lead going into the final qualification day of the 2013 Finn European Championship in Warnemünde, Germany, after winning the only race sailed on day four. Ed Wright (GBR) moves up to second while Josh Junior (NZL) is up to third.
The patience of the sailors was tested yet again on day four of the championship as the fleet was held on shore all morning following an overnight change in the weather that brought rain and cloud to the area. Finally just as everyone was giving up hope the cloud cleared the sun came out and a light sea breeze began to establish itself. The AP flag was removed at 14.30 and the 100 boat fleet set out for a first start at 15.50 in around 6-8 knots of wind.
Race seven turned into a game of snakes and ladders with some large shifts and tricky conditions. Someone good at finding ladders was championship leader Vasilij Zbogar (SLO). Rounding the top mark in fourth he took the lead on the first downwind and then proceeded to sail away from the fleet for a big win.
Oliver Tweddell (AUS) rounded the top mark first from Mark Andrews (GBR), Michael Jodlowski (POL) and Zbogar. Jodlowski and Tweddell managed to stay out of trouble to finish in third and fifth, while Andrews missed the big shift on the second beat to finish in 16th. Jonathan Lobert (FRA), fifth at the top also had problems on the second beat and dropped to 19th at the finish. However his team mate Thomas Le Breton (FRA) after rounding the gate in 37th, struck out to the right, found the new wind and made big gains to finish in second.
However Zbogar was long gone and finished several minutes ahead of the fleet and crossed the line even before Le Breton had rounded the downwind mark before the reach to the finish. Tweddell crossed third and Ed Wright (GBR) finished fourth.
Le Breton said, "I had a very bad start and some trouble with a German guy and but I kept fighting and on the second upwind I had a good right shift. I was following my wind but I think I had more wind than the other side, so I came back very well. It was good but a bit lucky for sure, but unlucky for others."
Wright, who won the Europeans in 2006, has now moved up to second overall. "Today was a really tricky day out there, but it managed to pull me into second place overall which is good going into the last day of qualifying. The biggest part was the second beat. A lot of the top guys all sailed on a right hand shift which sailed us a long way out of it but luckily I was far enough ahead, and rounded the top mark ahead the group but which gave me a nice cushion."
The race team tried valiantly to start race eight, but after around half a dozen attempts with the sea breeze starting to clock round they hoisted AP over A and sent the fleet back to harbour. It was 18.00 and the sailors were tired and hungry.

In the Junior Championship, the points gap has closed with Peter McCoy (GBR) still leading, but by only 30 points from Jake Liley (AUS), who had a better result today. Lennart Luttkus (GER) has moved into third. McCoy said, "I had a good start, oscillating shifts on the first beat and I had a good downwind and then on the second upwind it went right pretty hard and I was stuck on the left hand side so I lost a few boats. I was happy how I was going earlier in the week and hope to get some good races in tomorrow."
"I've just come back from the Junior Worlds on Lake Garda where we had a really good event. I finished just outside the medals in fourth but sailing here against the seniors is taking it up to the next level, so it's pretty tricky but it's good to be up amongst them have have some good racing."
Zbogar now has a six point jump on the fleet going into the final races. On today he said, "I didn't get the best start but about 10-15 seconds after the start I was able to tack and had free wind. The boat speed was extremely good today and I was gaining all the time on the rest of the fleet. I rounded the mark conservatively in fourth place and had a very good run and the was first at the bottom and then had a nice lead which was extending until the finish. I was just by myself so nobody near me and it was very easy to play the waves.
With a smile he said, "It was good to finish in one piece." He has suffered from gear failure twice this week already. "When I had the big lead I was saying to myself 'what will break today?' I was a little big unlucky this week with the materials but I am enjoying it. I enjoy racing and think I am racing quite good and hope for the top. Tomorrow is a big day. Maybe we have three races so everything to play for but after today's win I am quite confident."
Racing continues Friday at 12.00 with three races scheduled before the final race and medal race for the top 10 on Saturday.
Video summaries are being produced each day. Here is the link to Wednesday's video: http://youtu.be/oldxKeCJGxw. A video for Thursday will be released later.
Full image galleries for each day can be found at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/97957734@N04/

Top 10 after seven races:
1 SLO 573 Vasilij Zbogar 23
2 GBR 11 Ed Wright 29
3 NZL 24 Josh Junior 40
4 FRA 1112 Jonathan Lobert 42
5 NZL 16 Andrew Murdoch 43
6 CRO 524 Ivan Kljakovic Gaspic 46
7 NED 842 Pieter-Jan Postma 47
8 TUR 21 Alican Kaynar 59
9 SWE 33 Max Salminen 60
10 FRA 29 Thomas Le Breton 66

Juniors
1 GBR 29 Peter McCoy 158 (24th overall)
2 AUS 41 Jake Lilley 188 (32nd overall)
3 GER 64 Lennart Luttkus 251 (44th overall)

Full results at: http://www.raceoffice.org/data/1270432022.pdf?changed=2013-07-25%2021:14:38
Event website: www.finneuropeans.org/ec2013
Class website: www.finnclass.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Finn-Class/110408332633
Twitter: http://twitter.com/Finn_Class
Fickr (free of rights photos for editorial use): http://www.flickr.com/photos/97957734@N04/

2013 Finn European Championship video summary and photo gallery
With racing at the half way stage of the 2013 Open and Junior Finn European Championships in Warnemunde, Germany, here are some of the highlights available in the video and photo galleries.

After six races, Vasilij Zbogar (SLO) is leading Jonathan Lobert (FRA) by one point and Ed Wright (GBR) by three points. Another four boats are within 15 points of Zbogar. There are four more fleet races scheduled before Saturday's final race and medal race for the top 10. The wind forecast for the final three days is not particularly good and racing is currently postponed on Thursday due to lack of breeze in the race area.

Video from day 3: http://youtu.be/oldxKeCJGxw
Video from day 2: http://youtu.be/gfxjfugdZ4g
Video from practice race: http://youtu.be/tkwQAUTHNew

Full photo galleries are available for each day on Flickr at: Photo gallery

Three race winners close the points at Finn Europeans

Three different race winners on day three at the 2013 Finn European Championships in Warnemünde has closed the points gap at the top but Vasilij Zbogar (SLO) still leads by just one point from Jonathan Lobert (FRA) and by three points from Ed Wright (GBR). Race wins went to Tapio Nirkko (FIN), Pieter-Jan Postma (NED) and Wright.
The fleet was sent out on time for a start in a building sea breeze. After two general recalls six boats were pulled out of race four under the black flag. The fleet got away cleanly the next time in 7-8 knots with the left side favoured by the building sea breeze. Tapio Nirkko (FIN) led out from the pin end and was never headed. Milan Vujasinovic (CRO) followed in second until the final downwind when Josh Junior (NZL) sneaked past for second. Andrew Murdoch (NZL) claimed fourth and Jonathan Lobert (FRA) crossed fifth.
Having not had the best start to the week so far, Nirkko is now in 14th. "In the first race I started at the pin, as it was a little bit favoured. I had good speed and managed to get rid of the fleet pretty much straight away and then got the big lines right. Conditions were pretty nice today like yesterday's two races with a nice sea breeze and nice waves, actually quite tricky waves and quite tricky conditions but good sailing. I went left first because of the pin bias and then I was playing in the middle trying to keep my options open until the end of the beat to see if the right or the left was favoured. But I could control the fleet pretty well and I managed to do it this time as there were not any really big shifts happening."
The wind started to build for race five and it belonged to Pieter-Jan Postma (NED) from the start. Winning the pin and the controlling the left he already had a nice lead by the top mark, which he extended on every leg helped by the fact that Oscar flag for free pumping was put up at the first mark. Lobert held second all the way while Wright lost third place to championship leader Vasilij Zbogar (SLO). The Kiwis again had a good race with Andrew Murdoch (NZL) gaining the upper hand to cross fifth with Junior in sixth.
Postma commented, "I popped out at the start and I could wait for the next shift as I started at the pin. Then the wind shifted slightly to the left and I could cover and I had good speed up and down. When you are in front it's not that difficult, the difficult thing is to get in front."
The final race was similar with Wright coming off well near the pin to dominate the beat and round first, never to be threatened. He rounded ahead of Zsombor Berecz (HUN), Postma and Zbogar. Tomas Vika (CZE) moved up to second by the gate but on the second upwind, Postma misjudged the moved windward mark to overstand while Zbogar suffered his second gear breakage of the week with the failure of a mainsheet loop on his boom. This cost them each 10 places.
Wright extended away for a big win while Max Salminen (SWE) had a great final beat to close on Vika, who he passed downwind to cross second. Vika was third while Lobert ended a great day with fourth and Nirkko fifth.
Salminen said of his day, "It was a day that looked much like yesterday. We had some light wind in the morning and it picked up slowly so then we had two nice hiking races. I am just happy I have good speed in the boat and I've kind of figured out this wind I think, so for my sake we can keep these conditions. I am super happy. I felt fast the whole race and as I think I know what the wind is doing so there as no surprises. I managed to be at the top the whole race but it was the last upwind I managed to get to the front."
Junior is now in fourth overall, just four points from the lead. "It was pretty tricky really, and a long start line, which means you have to get a good start, which I didn't but I managed to fight my way through with good downwind speed to get three good results. So I am pretty happy, and I am really enjoying it. And looking forward to the next two days of racing."
His expectations, "I want to just keep knocking off small things so just keep getting good results and I think a couple of good starts to make sure I get closer to the front. If I can get some good starts then maybe I can get near a medal."
Postma said, "Three beautiful races today from 8 to 12 knots. It was fierce racing with a big line. If you start with 105 boats on the line it's tricky to keep consistency and to be in front. I had an all-right day. A 14, 6, 1 and I think seven guys are still really close together at the front so the next couple of days will be tough. We have five races to go and I am looking forward to it."
In the 16 boat Junior Championship Peter McCoy (GBR) is sailing an excellent series to lead and sits in 22nd overall, while second placed Jake Lilley (AUS) is in 35th, some 57 points behind. Arkadiy Kistanvov (RUS) is third in 45th overall, another 40 points back. But in such a large fleet it is still far from being over.
The fleet was today joined on the water by a group of former German Finn champions watching from a large yacht. The sailors included Jochen Schumann, Jurgen Mier, Bernd Dehmel, Christian Schroeder, Walter Mai and Arne Akerson from Sweden. They were all visiting the championship under the invitation of the German Finn Association and enjoyed a reunion dinner Tuesday night before coming on the water on Wednesday.
Racing continues Thursday at 12.00 with two races scheduled, with the forecast looking slightly better than it has been.
Video summaries are being produced each day. Here is the link to Tuesday;'s video: http://youtu.be/gfxjfugdZ4g . A video for Wednesday will be released later.
Full image galleries for each day can be found at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/97957734@N04/

Top 10 after six races:
1 SLO 573 Vasilij Zbogar 22
2 FRA 1112 Jonathan Lobert 23
3 GBR 11 Ed Wright 25
4 NZL 24 Josh Junior 26
5 NZL 16 Andrew Murdoch 30
6 NED 842 Pieter-Jan Postma 34
7 CRO 524 Ivan Kljakovic Gaspic 34
8 SWE 33 Max Salminen 37
9 EST 2 Deniss Karpak 50
10 TUR 21 Alican Kaynar 53
Full results at: http://www.raceoffice.org/data/9597259426.pdf?changed=2013-07-24%2019:58:59
Event website: www.finneuropeans.org/ec2013
Class website: www.finnclass.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Finn-Class/110408332633
Twitter: http://twitter.com/Finn_Class
Fickr (free of rights photos for editorial use): http://www.flickr.com/photos/97957734@N04/

Vasilij Zbogar leads Finn Europeans after long day afloat at Warnemünde

Vasilij Zbogar (SLO) is the early leader at the 2013 Finn Europeans in Warnemünde after three races were sailed on Tuesday. Ivan Kljakovic Gaspic (CRO) is second after winning the first race while Andrew Murdoch (NZL) is third. Other races wins went to Deniss Karpak (EST) and Josh Junior (NZL).
The sailors patience from waiting onshore all day Monday paid off with three great races sailed on Tuesday. The first race was sailed in a reducing easterly, while the two afternoon races were sailed in a fantastic sea breeze that produced the great sailing conditions that has made Warnemünde famous with sailors worldwide.
Race one got under way at the fourth attempt after two postponements and one general recall. Five boats got pulled out on the final start, under black flag. Some thought the the left would pay with the building thermal, some gambled on the far right, and the spread of the fleet with 103 boats was quite incredible. Even a small shift at that distance provided some incredible leverage on the other side. However, it was from the middle left that the leaders emerged.
Vasilij Zbogar (SLO) rounded ahead from Filippo Baldasaari (ITA) and Max Salminen (SWE). The wind was starting to go lighter and dropped to from 10 to 6-7 knots by the finish. Zbogar kept the lead downwind and even extended slightly but on the second beat Zsombor Berecz (HUN) moved ahead and Ivan Kljakovic Gaspic (CRO) closed the gap.
By the final top mark Berecz had pulled through to lead but it all changed again on the final downwind with Kljakovic Gaspic finding a way past both to win the race from Zbogar, Berecz and Thomas le Breton (FRA).
Race two took a long while to get going as the first attempt was abandoned as the fleet rounded the top mark following a series of major wind shifts. After a 30 minute wait the sea breeze stabilised and the fleet got away first time.

PRO, Rob Lamb (GBR) said, "We had three really good fair races, the first was quite light compared to the second and third, and we abandoned the second race because of one shift on the beat and a bigger one on the first run making the race unfair. I am pleased I made that decision."
The race two restart belonged to Denis Karpak (EST). Starting just down from the committee boat and tacking out to the right he controlled the race from start to finish. The wind was up to 12-14 knots making for perfect racing confirms. Second at the top mark was Peter McCoy (GBR) from Ed Wright (GBR).
While Karpak led throughout Wright moved up to second on the first downwind only to lose it to Pieter-Jan Postma on the second upwind. Karpak had a nice lead at the finish while Postma led Wright, Andrew Murdoch (NZL) and Josh Junior (NZL) across the finish

Karpak again led round the top mark in race three but lost out downwind on the right and rounded the gate in fifth. Junior, Murdoch and Zbogar were to the left and gained places to round the gate ahead. Junior maintained his lead round the final top mark with Andrew Mills (GBR) working his way into third. Not much changed on the downwind to the finish except Jonathan Lobert (FRA) moved up to third, while Junior took an emphatic victory.
Lobert said of his day, "Finally we have some racing. The first race was a little bit difficult because the wind was a bit up and down. So I was not sailing so well and I didn't managed to get the good pressure on the water so not so good race and then sea breeze came in and we had two good race sin about 15 knots which was good fun and slowly slowly I was improving so not too bad at the end of the day.

Kljakovic Gaspic, "Not too bad today. The first race was a bullet which was a tricky race and light winds but I managed to pull it off quite good in the end. Second race we started again in super light wind and again I was in the front pack in the first few boats and then they decided to cancel the racing and we started all over again. In the end I am happy the race and the day and ready for tomorrow and let's see what going to happen."
Karpak, "It was a good three races today, great day. The second race was good for me, but was difficult. I was also fast ion the last one but no luck on the downwind, always on the wrong side. I was also good in the first one, but the left corner was not so good for me. The wind was changing so much, from the land breeze to the sea breeze. In the first race I went left, and everyone won from the right, but I am happy with today. Seventh after three races with 100 boats is not too bad."
Zbogar, "The day was quite hard, especially the beginning as the first race was so light. And very shift and I managed to play very good shifts up the first upwind and I finished second which is those conditions is extremely good. Then we had a pretty nice breeze, very strong. I had a problem in the second race. I was ahead of the fleet and the halyard block came off and the sail came down. I lost about 25 places, and I really struggled to come back. I managed to finish seventh so I got a countable results when I thought I wouldn't finish the race. And the last race as great. My downwinds are extremely good, and I was playing the waves very well. It was hard but it was a good day.
The championship is still one race behind but has three great races on the card. But for his halyard problem, Zbogar could have an even bigger lead. In this size fleet consistency will pay highly and he is finding his way through the shifts and sailing very well downwind. The double European Champion Kljakovic Gaspic is in second while class newcomer Murdoch is third.
It was a long day on the water but it was also a fantastic day's sailing. What the rest of the week will bring only time will tell as the forecasts do not make good reading. However the race team hope to catch up the schedule with three races planned for Wednesday.
Results after 3 races:
1 SLO 572 Vasilij Zbogar 11
2 CRO 524 Ivan Kljakovic Gaspic 16
3 NZL 16 Andrew Murdoch 23
4 GBR 11 Ed Wright 24
5 FRA 29 Thomas Le Breton 33
6 NZL 24 Josh Junior 34
7 EST 2 Deniss Karpak 34
8 TUR 21 Alicam Kaynar 34
9 GBR 88 Mark Andrews 36
10 SWE 33 Max Salminen 37
Full results: http://www.raceoffice.org/data/5577950203.pdf?changed=2013-07-23%2020:11:42

Lazy day for Finn sailors in Warnemünde waiting for wind

It was a slow start to the 2013 Open and Junior European Championship in Warnemünde, Germany as the sailors waited patiently onshore all day as the wind failed to stabilize at anything more than a paltry 4 knots. It was finally abandoned for the day at 17.00.
On the plus side it was a beautifully sunny and hot day, but there is little that is more dangerous than 100 Finn sailors with nothing to do. The sailors were given regular updates all day but were told to be prepared to go afloat at any time in case the wind arrived. There was a light breeze in the harbour but it was clear that outside the situation was different with a maximum of 4 knots recorded and an average of 2-3 knots. Finally at 17.00 the wait was over and the sailors sent home with no racing.
Rob Lamb (GBR), the PRO said, "We had a light breeze with 3 knots – but there were spots without any wind at all", said Robert Lamb "I hoped until the end to get a sea breeze, but we didn't. But tomorrow we are stepping it up – we are supposed to get a Force 3, which is ideal." Filippo Baldassari (ITA) commented, "The decision has been absolutely right. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work. In this case we prefer to wait here onshore."
Defending Champion Ioannis Mitakis (GRE) added, "I have waited for wind at several regattas, that's part of this sport." About his chances this week he was cautious, "I have studied a lot this year, and have had some exams lately. We will see what will happen here. But this wind is good for me, since I am the specialist for those conditions."
Several of the coaches here are former Finn sailors now passing on their experience to the younger generation. John Bertrand (USA), silver medalist at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 is coaching the Australian team of Jake Lilley (AUS) and Oliver Tweddell (AUS), while John Culter (NZL), bronze medalist at the 1988 Olympics, is coaching Josh Junior (NZL) and Andrew Murdoch (NZL).
Cutlter said, "I'm only in the coach boat but it's good to be back in the Finn fleet. It's great to see what's happened in the past 25 years, and it's all looking pretty positive for the class actually. Josh and Doc are both new to the class, and we just take it as a methodical process, so we rig it up, make a few changes one at a time and see what seems to work best. We're not trying to be super clever, we're just running a methodical programme stepping through the controls and the tuning and seeing what works."
On his return, "I always had a good time in the class and always look back with good memories of my time sailing the Finn and the Olympic campaign, so I thought well, if I can fit this is with my other sailing and things I am doing, it would be a good thing to do and especially having two sailors who are good and motivated, it's good to be involved again."
On his two sailors, "I think there is a lot of potential left. They are both new to the class and this is their first season and they've done pretty well already, so the good thing is they both have good skill set and they had good results in the Laser class, so they know how to start and sail, so it's just about getting a better understanding of the equipment and how to sail a Finn really quickly.
"Just looking at the results, Josh is a little bit younger and probably doing a little bit better, but it's still early days at the moment, and I think the important thing is that as a group we keep learning about what makes the boat go fast."
New Zealand is bidding for the 2015 Finn Gold Cup, a decision that will take place at the 2013 Finn Gold Cup in Tallinn, Estonia next month. "It would be great if we can get the Gold Cup down to Takapuna. We all know there are great sailing condition there, and it will be in the European winter. I am sure there will be a couple of lead up regattas such as Sail Auckland and the Nationals beforehand, so rather than sitting in Europe freezing away, come down to New Zealand and do some sailing."
When was the last time he sailed a Finn, "Surprisingly I sailed one for about five minutes here last week and I quite liked it. Before that it would have been when I sailed against Craig Monk leading up to Barcelona for about a month and then before that the last race of the Olympics in 1988."
In contrast John Bertrand started coaching Finn sailors three years ago and now coaches the Australian team. He said, "It's great to see our generation come back in and help the younger generation. I think we have a fair bit to offer plus it's nice to see it from a new perspective as well so I think it's a good combination."
Bertrand won the Europeans in 1979 and then, "I got invited to the East German Nationals here in Warnemünde and I managed to beat Jochen Schümann in his home town. I was quite a popular winner. It was back when it was the DDR, and behind the Iron Curtain and it was quite an adventure for me to come here. I hadn't been exposed to any Communist nation before. My impression when we rolled in was that it was pretty grey, drab and very controlled and I stayed at the hotel by the beach and I remember at night the spotlights scanning the beach for boats coming ashore and people trying to leave so it was quite an experience. Coming back now, wow, what a difference. It's fabulous. It's a beautiful spot."
"Here I am coaching Jake and Oli and it's a been a great experience. I am really excited about this new generation coming into the class since the 2012 Olympics. I predicted there would be a lot of interest with some sailors coming out of the Laser class, and some of the old guard is going to see some new talent come in. It's almost like what happened when I came into the Finns [in the late 1970s] because we came out of the Laser class and then it was the new guard and the old guard, and I suspect that this generation is going to rise to the top in the next couple of years. And they are all a lot bigger than we ever were."
With more wind forecast for Tuesday, the race committee now plans to attempt three races but at the earlier start time of 11.00. The championship continues until Saturday when the final race and medal race will be sailed.

Event website: www.finneuropeans.org/ec2013
Class website: www.finnclass.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Finn-Class/110408332633
Twitter: http://twitter.com/Finn_Class
Fickr (free of rights photos for editorial use): http://www.flickr.com/photos/97957734@N04/

2013 Finn Europeans opens with 103 starters

Following three days of registration, measurement and preparation racing begins at the 2013 Finn Open and Junior European Championships in Warnemünde, Germany on Monday. At the close of registration, 103 Finns were confirmed as entered, incuding 16 juniors, making this the largest Finn Europeans of all time.
The sun has been shining on Warnemünde for several weeks and looks set to continue for the coming days, though it could be a challenging event with light winds forecast for much of the week. The practice race Sunday could be a precursor for the week ahead.
The opening ceremony was held on Saturday evening overlooking the picturesque Warnemünde harbour with ample quantities of fresh fish sandwiches and Rostocker beer. Uwe Barthel, President of the German Finn Association, said, "It is a great honour for me to welcome you all here for the Finn European Championships. As the largest Finn association in the world it is great to hold a European championships again after a number of years. We have chosen Warnemünde as the venue as it's considered the most beautiful sailing area in Germany by many sailors. So on behalf of all members of the German association I wish you fair racing."
Then Corinne McKenzie, Executive Director of the Finn Class responded by saying, "I think this event was long due to come to Germany. There are more than 350 Finn sailors in Germany, so to hold an event here is a real honour for the Finn class. I am sure we will have a fantastic event and have no doubt that this is one of the greatest venues the sailors have been to. The sailors have been here some time training. This is a beautiful city and I think the water is going to offer a fantastic championship. So good luck to everybody and thank you very much for your support."
Finally, the championship was officially opened by the Mayor of Rostock, Ronald Methling. He said, "Welcome to the city of Rostock. We have one of the best sailing areas in Germany, if not the world. Of course we know that but every sailor knows the Baltic is a special area for sailing. The goal was to attract the sailors of the world and today is the beginning of that."
"We are delighted to gained the trust of the International Finn Association to conduct the title fights of such an active class through the German Finn Association here in Warnemünde. At this event we welcome more than 100 sailors from 26 nations worldwide. Many thanks to all the people that have organised this event, and also to the many sponsors."
"I wish you all a fair and successful regatta with a constant amount of wind, and a little bit of luck for everyone. With these words I announce the Finn European Championship 2013 in Warnemünde is opened."
The defending champions Ioannis Mitakis (GRE) and Michal Jodlowski (POL) handed their senior and junior trophies over to the club to be presented by the Mayor at the conclusion of the regatta.
A reduced fleet set out for the practice race on Sunday afternoon in no more than 7-8 knots of wind. As in past days the afternoon breeze was significantly lighter than the morning breeze and was only 4-6 knots at best at race time of 14.00. After two general recalls, the line was reset for the third attempt with 6-7 knots.
The very long first beat proved more than enough for the vast majority of the fleet after a large right swing in the wind that left those near the committee boat with much less distance to sail. The adverse current also made it a very long leg. Piotr Kula (POL) led Josh Junior (NZ) and Andrew Murdoch (NZL) round the top mark and then most of the fleet headed for home.
However Two German sailors slugged out the remainder of the course with Klaus Reffelelmann (GER) winning from German class president, Uwe Barthel (GER).
The championship really gets under way on Monday with the first two races of the 2013 Open and Junior Finn European Championships scheduled for 12.00.

Further photos from the day are available on Flickr at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/97957734@N04/sets/72157634728502161/

Mistrzostwa Europy 2013, Warnemuende 19-27 lipca 2013

2013 Finn Dinghy European Championship Warnemuende / Germany

Mistrzostwa Europy 2013,
Warnemuende 19-27 lipca 2013

2013 Finn Dinghy European Championship
Warnemuende / Germany