| RS:X
Worlds Men’s Gold Fleet Bulges, But Here's the Women... Enthusiasm gave way to experience in the women’s fleet. Alessandra Sensini(ITA25) and Faustine Merret(FRA9) dominated in inconsistent planing non-planing races. Whilst the Men’s gold fleet bulged. An 82 strong fleet, all squeezing onto a mass port start to gain the advantage from the cliffs. With 164 male competitors some clarification of the split from gold to silver fleets had to be discussed. As
the Championship rules stipulate the top 50% competitors
go through to the gold fleet. If there are any sailors
on equal points, right on the cut off point. Both
sailors will advance forward. If there is an uneven
number, the gold fleet will have one more than silver.
So with this in mind this means that 82 men advance.
The women also had a 50% split with 41 sailors going
through to the gold fleet. Being on the inner course
the women found the wind to less of an advantage.
With breeze fluctuating it was centreboard conditions
upwind, and planing down wind. Faustine Merret(FRA9)
fell in at the start giving a very unwanted advantage
to the rest of the fleet. She went into “fight
back” mode and by the second outer loop had
pulled back everybody excluding Alessandra Sensini(ITA25).
Alessandra and Faustine then proceeded to pull out
from the rest of the fleet finishing first and second
respectively. Marina Alabau(ESP5) and Jannicke Staalstrom(NOR3)
backed them up with 3rd and 4TH, followed closely
by Jessica Crisp(AUS15)in fifth. The second race
and Faustine continued in full race mode and had
the race completely to her self. Zofia Klepacka(POL8)
slipped to a 22nd in race one, and was determined
to not let that happen again. Cracking back with
a second place, and in third place, Alessadra who
moves into 1st place over all. 23 points separate
the top 4 women from the rest of the pack. |