Marstrand, Sweden (5 July 2019) After high winds cancelled racing yesterday, GKSS Match Cup Sweden resumed in earnest today with the eight team repechage round in glorious conditions. Winning their respective matches and advancing to the Quarter-finals are two of the local favourite Swedish teams, Måns Holmberg (SWE) Stratsys Racing and Nicklas Dackhammer (SWE) ESSIQ Racing. Australian skippers, Harry Price (AUS) Down Under Racing, and defending Match Racing World Champion Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Cetilar Mirsky Racing also advance to the Quarterfinals.
Opening the days racing with support from his family sitting high on the Marstrand rocks, Australia’s Harry Price was keen to impress winning the first race against USA’s Markus Edegran (Team Torrent). After dropping the second race, Price pulled back to win two straight and close out a 3-1 score to advance to the Quarterfinals. Fellow Australian Mirsky defeated his opponent and local favourite Johnie Berntsson (SWE) Berntsson Sailing Team 3-1.
The Swedish teams of Måns Holmberg (Stratsys Racing) and Nicklas Dackhammer (ESSIQ Racing) were able to make lighter work of their respective matches against opponents PJ Postma (NED) and Daniel Bjornholt (DEN), both posting 3-0 scores to secure their spots in the Quarterfinals.
To decide the pairs for the Quarterfinals starting tomorrow, the winner of the earlier fleet race Qualifying Phil Robertson (NZL) had the first of the ‘picks’ for his Quarter Final match, selecting Måns Holmberg as his opponent. Taylor Canfield (USA) US One selected Harry Price for his opponent commenting on his reason for choosing Price because their team was slightly under the weight limit, but Price was confident in his response “We’re keen to race Taylor, I don’t think we’ve actually raced them [US One] in the M32’s before, they’ve also have had a few days sitting around the island so we are keen to come out firing tomorrow.”
Defending GKSS Match Cup Sweden champion Yann Guichard (FRA) Spindrift Racing selected defending Match Racing World Champion Torvar Mirsky for his Quarter Final match. “It’s going to be a tough match but the records are in our favour before this, but it will be close, we are looking forward to it.”
The final pairing pits six-time Match Racing World Champion Ian Williams (GBR) GAC Pindar against ESSIQ Racing’s Nicklas Dackhammer. “We are feeling confident; we have sailed many hours [on the M32] this year so we are feeling good for tomorrow” commented Dackhammer.
Tomorrow’s Quarterfinal racing starts at 10am with fine weather forecast. The Semifinals and Finals will take place over the remainder of Saturday and Sunday in front of a record crowd expected on the island of Marstrand this weekend. The winner of the event on Sunday will be crowned 2018-19 World Sailing Match Racing World Champion.
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NOTES TO THE EDITOR
Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The World Tour represents a series of independently organised and officially sanctioned match racing events. Teams accumulate points from each of the events towards an overall WMRT global ranking, the top twelve teams from which compete in the WMRT Championship Finals at the end of the season.
The WMRT is awarded ‘Special Event’ status by the sport’s world governing body – World Sailing – and the winner of the WMRT each year is crowned World Sailing Match Racing World Champion. Previous Champions include Bertrand Pace (FRA), Sir Ben Ainslie (GBR), Jesper Radich (DEN), Magnus Holmberg (SWE), Peter Holmberg (USA), Peter Gilmour (AUS), Ian Williams (GBR), Adam Minoprio (NZL), Taylor Canfield (ISV), Phil Robertson (NZL) and Torvar Mirsky (AUS).
The WMRT is a match racing competition with racing taking place in identically supplied racing yachts which change for each event and which place a firm focus on teamwork, strategy and skill. Racing takes place close to shore to create stadium-style viewing for spectators.
