The final races of the 52nd edition of the Youth Sailing World Championship will take place this Friday December 15th in Búzios (RJ). The champions of all classes in the largest youth sailing championship on the planet will be determined after the races with the classic winds of the Rio de Janeiro coast, with gusts expected to exceed 20 knots, waves, and plenty of sunshine.
The event, featuring more than 400 athletes aged 19 from 62 nations, kicks off its final schedule at 9:30am. The selected racecourses are Manguinhos, Branca, and Feia, with headquarters at the Armação de Búzios Yacht Club and Búzios Sailing Club.
The Brazilian Sailing Team has podium chances in five classes of the Youth Sailing World Championship and is in contention for the Top 3 of the Nations Trophy, awarded to the best national teams globally. Brazil has a total of 16 medals in the competition’s history.
“We have five significant chances for medals in these final races, which is important for the new generation of Brazilian sailing. The race day was challenging, with the traditional strong winds of Búzios. We have worked hard for these conditions, and I believe they are prepared for tomorrow. Let’s aim for this historic result,” said Juan Sienra, head coach of the Brazilian Youth Sailing Team.
With no races on Thursday, Joana Gonçalves and Gabriela Vassel have an 11-point lead over their closest competitors in the 420 female class. Only three races remain to determine the champions.
The two attempted to sail in the afternoon, but the committee decided not to conduct the races to ensure the safety of the athletes after gusts exceeded 33 knots in the east direction. In the morning, in the 420 Open, Lucas Freitas and Victoria Back dropped to fourth place.
To secure a spot in the top three, the duo needs to take six points from the third-placed Spaniards, Miguel Angel Hernandez and Alejandro Martin. The Italians Quan Cardi and Mattia Tognocchi are the virtual champions with only one race remaining.
In the Nacra 15, Alex Kuhl and Alexia Buuck dropped to tenth place and can no longer reach the medal zone with two races to go. The Spaniards Daniel Garcia de la Casa and Nora Garcia de la Casa will compete for the title with the Americans Cody Roe and Brooke Mertz, who are in first place.
In the 29er class, with no races on the day, the Santa Catarina pair Guilherme Menezes and Fernando Menezes are in fourth place after nine races. They have real chances of reaching the final races, fighting for bronze or perhaps silver. The clear leaders are the French Karl Devaux and Hugo Revil, followed by the British boat.
In the 29er female class, the Polish pair Ewa Lewandowska and Julia Maria Zmudzinska continue to lead, while the Brazilians Clara Meyer Cardoso and Lívia Valduga Nogueira are in 21st place, without mathematical chances.
In the ILCA 6, Felipe Fraquelli was the best Brazilian of the day, advancing to fifth place and with the possibility of leaving Búzios (RJ) with a podium on Friday. After winning the eighth race of the championship, the athlete accumulated 70 points, eight less than the Dutchman Hidde Scharaffordt and the Portuguese João Pontos. One race remains, and Felipe Fraquelli knows the calculation he needs to make.
“My expectation for tomorrow is to go for the bronze medal; I am a few points behind and need to perform well to achieve the result, as I did today in the last race, winning and getting closer to the leaders,” said Felipe Fraquelli.
In the Formula Kite class, the world’s best, Max Maeder from Singapore, is practically the champion, but he cannot celebrate yet. There are more races to come, and the Brazilian Lucas Fonseca could also enter the podium. In fourth place, the Maranhense needs to take 10 points from the Italian Riccardo Pianosi in the next races.
In the women’s version of the new Olympic class, the Czech Kristyna Pinosova is the championship leader.
In the women’s IQFoil, the Brazilian Sofia Rocha maintained 17th place. In the men’s version, without Brazilians, the best of the day was the Pole Stanisław Trepczynski.
Energisa is the official sponsor of the Brazilian Youth Sailing Team in the 2023 Youth Sailing World Championship in Búzios through the State of Rio de Janeiro Sports and Leisure Secretariat.
The French dermocosmetics brand Avène sponsors the Brazilian Sailing Confederation (CBVela). The agreement takes effect from December 2023 and will last for 13 months.
Overall results can be found here: https://worldsailingywc.org/notice-board/
Text & Photo Credits: World Sailing
