France and Sweden shine at the 470 Europeans

Two Medal races, sailed in perfect Mediterranean conditions, wrapped up the 470 Europeans, organised by Yacht Club Sanremo and Marina degli Aregai, in co-operation with the national and international 470 class.

On the eve of the Medal Race, both the men’s and the women’s top ten standings were close, ensuring everyone had a chance to grab a medal.
 
Although there was a wait for the wind, shortly before 14:00 the wind set and enabled the Race Committee two launch the Medal Races on a windward/leeward course, that were concluded in less than half an hour.
 
The Women’s 470 kicked off first in a nice westerly, with an intense start.
 
France’s Camille Lecointre and Aloise Retornaz took the lead, carefully covering their closest rivals Afrodite Zegers and Lobke Berkhout from the Netherlands and Poland’s Agnieszka Skrzypulec and Jolanta Ogar. Meanwhile Great Britain’s Hannah Mills and Eilidh McIntyre were trying to get free from the middle of the pack.
 
The French team rounded every mark in pole position which was enough to give them gold.
 
The British team could only manage a fifth placed which pushed them down in to second overall as they settled for silver. The Dutch and Polish teams battled for position on the race track and the Polish streaked ahead. However it was not enough as the Dutch team came through in fourth which gave them a narrow bronze medak.
 
“The Medal Race was a tough, especially the start, but very exciting,” said French helm Lecointre. “We needed to sail well, think about our race. We only needed to keep an eye on the competition on the second lap. We’re very happy.”
 
Shortly after the women’s celebrations on the water, the Race Committee launched the starting procedure for the men, where the scoreboard was even closer, with all the ten crews having a chance to jump on the podium.
 
Australia’s Mathew Belcher and Will Ryan entered the Medal Race with a five-point lead over the reigning champions Anton Dahlberg and Fredrik Bergstrom from Sweden, with Spain’s Jordi Xammar/Nicolas Rodriguez and Greeks Panagiotis Mantis and Pavlos Kagialis, all at short distance from the top and all serious medal contenders.  
 
The wind picked up a bit and the start was very tense and heated with the Swedes pushing hard from the pin end of the line, and the Austrians David Bargher and Lukas Maehr getting a penalty.
 
On the first windward mark a collision between the Austrians and the Greeks resulted in a penalty for Mantis and Kagialis too, forcing the bronze medalists in Rio 2016 out of contention for the top spots. New Zealand;s Paul Snow-Hansen and Daniel Willcox showed excellent speed and guarded their second place to the finish line. The Australians and the Kiwis closed the match in first and second place respectively, with French pair Kevin Peponnet and Jérémie Mion in third.
 
A fifth place guaranteed Dahlberg and Bergstrom their second consecutive European title with Xammar and Rodriguez picked up a seventh and securing silver, while bronze went to the French duo.
 
“It’s amazing,” said the Swedish sailors, just after crossing the finish line. “It was a very tough race, everything was there to grab. We had to keep focused all the time. It’s been a very challenging week and we are super happy.”
 
Podiums 470 Europeans
Women’s
Gold – Camille Lecointre/Aloise Retornaz (FRA)
Silver – Hannah Mills/Eilidh McIntyre (GBR)
Bronze – Afrodite Zegers/Lobke Berkhout (NED)
 
Men’s Open
1st – Mathew Belcher/Will Ryan (AUS)
2nd – Anton Dahlberg/Fredrik Bergstrom (SWE)
3rd – Paul Snow-Hansen/Daniel Willcox (NZL)
 
Men’s European
Gold – Anton Dahlberg/Fredrik Bergstrom (SWE)
Silver – Jordi Xammar/Nicolas Rodriguez (ESP)
Bronze – Kevin Peponnet/Jérémie Mion (FRA)

Event website – http://2019europeans.470.org/en/default/races/race