World Match Racing Tour, è l’anno di Mathieu Richard?
Match RaceVelaWorld Match Race Tour 13 Giugno 2010 Zerogradinord 0
World Match Racing Tour – Gyeonggi – Superando in finale il due volte campione del mondo Ian Williams, Mathieu Richard si è imposto nel terzo evento del World Match Racing Tour: la Korea Match Cup. A favorire la vittoria dello skipper francese, già vincitore della tappa di apertura del circuito, sono state le condizioni di vento leggero, a lui notoriamente gradite.
“Sin dall’inizio della stagione mi sento particolarmente in forma e devo ammettere che buona parte del merito di questo ottimo momento va riconosciuta al mio team, con il quale si naviga sempre benissimo” ha commentato Richard prima della premiazione.
Per Williams, giunto per la terza volta consecutiva in finale della Korea Match Cup, è arrivata la terza sconfitta consecutiva. Nonostante ciò, il sorriso non è sparito dal volto del velista britannico: “Richard ha fatto davvero bene. E’ stato sempre al comando e alla fine ha vinto con merito”.
A completare il podio dell’evento è stato il sorprendente Bjorn Hansen, apparso in ripresa dopo un Round Robin a fasi alterne. Lo skipper svedese ha superato nella finalina di consolazione Torvar Mirsky, finito al quarto posto di una classifica che ha visto chiudre sesto Francesco Bruni e settimo il campione del mondo Adam Minoprio.
Alla luce dei risultati maturati nella Korea Match Cup, Mathieu Richard ha esteso la sua leadership nella classifica generale del circuito. Il francese, che vincendo in Corea ha incassato venticinque punti, vanta ora ventisei punti di vantaggio su Adam Minoprio e trentacinque si Ian Williams.
La prossima tappa del World Match Racing Tour è in programma a Portimao a partire dal 22 giugno.
Korea Match Cup
1. Mathieu Richard, pt. 25
2. Ian Williams, pt. 20
3. Bjorn Hansen, pt. 15
4. Torvar Mirsky, pt. 12
5. Peter Gilmour, pt. 10
World Match Racing Tour
1. Mathieu Richard, pt. 65
2. Adam Minoprio, pt. 39
3. Ian Williams, pt. 30
4. Torvar Mirsky, pt. 28
5. Francesco Bruni, pt. 23
WORLD MATCH RACING TOUR, MATHIEU RICHARD REIGNS AS KOREA MATCH CUP KING
[World Match Racing Tour Press Release] The island of Jebu sitting 2 km off Jeongok Marina could once again be seen today as great weather set in for the ultimate day of Stage 3 in the ISAF World Match Racing Tour. Mathieu Richard is ‘King of Korea Match Cup’ after racing against the best pool of match racing skippers in the world and concluding Korea with a victory over double World Champion Ian Williams.
Richard kept momentum at all times in the light airs up the concentrated course area which created a need for all the crew to use their bodyweight and drill the KM36 yachts into a series of smooth roll tacks and gybes to propel the Blakewell-White designed yachts round the race marks.
Richard is delighted to have won Korea Match Cup, two years previously he was watching the skippers in the final hoping to reach it himself one day, “I have had a good feeling onboard since the beginning of the season and I am happy with the team”.
Williams has now been in the final at Korea Match Cup for the last 3 years since the inception of the Korean leg of the World Match Racing Tour. Williams however has not yet won this Tour stage and is seen as ‘always the bridesmaid and never the bride’. He is however, in good spirits despite missing out on the biggest prize money and spoke about Richard’s style on the race course, “Richard really nailed the starts today, every time he dominated the first exchange”.
The semis, sailed in the sheltered flat waters of Jeongok Port, saw Williams beat Bjorn Hansen and Richard taking a last minute lead over Torvar Mirsky followed by an instantaneous on the water request for redress due to interference from a boat on the course, redress was then denied.
The weekend crowd was entertained by a variety of outdoors performances with a rock band and creative percussion. A matter of seconds from the race circuit were peddle boats, kayaks, sailing dinghies and water bumper cars for the public to personally test out why Gyeonggi is such a successful marine location.
The World Match Racing Tour’s 3rd Stage has changed the ISAF World Match Racing Tour ranking. After 5 days of racing at Korea Match Cup Richard reigns at the top of the table with 65 points, Adam Minoprio also stays consistent with 39 points in 2nd. Williams who is an unstoppable force is climbing the ladder from 8th place to 3rd in one event and Mirsky moves up one position into 4th place, followed by Francesco Bruni in 5th.
The prize giving ceremony for Korea Match Cup was flanked by thousands of locals and the charismatic Governor of Gyeonggi, Moon-Soo Kim, presented the Korea Match Cup awards totalling USD $240,770. The prize money afforded to the 2010 Tour events is the main force that pulls the professional match racing trade’s elite players to annually participate in this top sporting series.
Dong Young Kim, Event Promoter, Korea Match Cup spoke about the importance of this World Series event to their national sport development, “I am really impressed and it feels great to see that the status of the Korea Match Cup and recognition of Korean yachting is on the rise throughout the world. The long term goal for Korea Match Cup is that it will attract further sports and provide an opportunity for the Korean marine sports industry to develop further.”
Korea Match Cup
1. Mathieu Richard, pt. 25
2. Ian Williams, pt. 20
3. Bjorn Hansen, pt. 15
4. Torvar Mirsky, pt. 12
5. Peter Gilmour, pt. 10
World Match Racing Tour
1. Mathieu Richard, pt. 65
2. Adam Minoprio, pt. 39
3. Ian Williams, pt. 30
4. Torvar Mirsky, pt. 28
5. Francesco Bruni, pt. 23
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