WA Sailors set for Action in Genoa World Cup
Six Western Australian members of the Australian Sailing team have arrived in Italy ahead of the third round of the World Cup Series.
The port city of Genoa in the northwest Liguria region will host action from April 16-21 with WA talent competing across four boat classes.
The group will be seeking improved performances from the Princess of Sofia Trophy in Palma recently, where no combinations were able to qualify and race in the medal rounds.
They will face the majority of the same fleets that competed in Palma, meaning the international standard remains very high. The 2019 international year will build towards the specific boat class world championships as calculations and qualifications for the Tokyo2020 Olympic Games intensify.
Australian Sailing Performance Director Iain Murray said this regatta would provide opportunities for the team to apply feedback gleaned from competition in Spain.
“We hope we can take away the hard lessons we learnt this week and put them into better practice in the next weeks and regroup.”
He predicted however a tough challenge ahead for the crews competing.
“Genoa will be a testing event, just as Palma was,” he said.
In results from Palma:
Chris Charlwood in the men’s 470 class sailed alongside Josh Dawson and posted the best result of WA’s representatives in Palma. He and Dawson finished 17th overall on 115 points. Crews from Sweden, Spain and Great Britain secured the top three positions.
David and Lachy Gilmour recorded a 23rd placed effort in the 49er class on 143 points. They were the top ranked Australian crew in the fleet. The duo opened competition strongly, but fell from contention across the second half of the regatta.
The WA pairing of Nia Jerwood and Monique de Vries had a trying campaign, taking 25th place with a net score of 198. A disqualification in the fifth race meant they carded a high score as part of their series, but they’ll be looking for better in Italy.
Caitlin Elks crewing for Amelia Stabback in the 49erFX completed competition ranked 27th overall. They accrued 126 points whilst crews from Brazil, New Zealand and Great Britain claimed the medals.