ISAF – Germany’s Philipp Buhl won the Carnival Regatta in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain in the Laser Standard, followed by Swedish Jesper Stalheim in second and current World Champion, Britain’s Nick Thompson, in third.
Buhl, the Silver medallist in the World Championship in Kingston, Canada, won in a very close regatta that doubled as a great training session for sailors before the European Championship that will take place on the same race course at the end of the month.
The last event of Gran Canaria Sail in Winter calendar was marked by hard conditions with shifting winds of 15-18 knots and big waves.
Whilst the lead changed after every race in the Laser Standard, with only one point separating second, third and fourth. In the Laser Radial it was a family affair as brother and sister from the Netherland’s, Roelof and Marit Bouwmeester dominated the entire races from the get go. Marit, Silver Medallist in the London 2012 Olympic Games, won in the Laser Radial female and her brother Roelof won in the male category.
Britain’s Alison Young, a regular at the winter season in Gran Canaria, earned a second place in Laser Radial, while Netherland’s Sarah Toftedal took third, the same position she achieved in the World Championship in Miami a few weeks ago.
For both Laser Standard and Radial, this Carnival Regatta has been a great chance to prepare for the European Championship that will take place between February 26 and March 4 on the same race course. The regatta has brought several of the best sailors in the world to participate in the Gran Canaria Sail in Winter program.
Canarian sailor Joaquin Blanco said, “It has been great training because we have raced against some players that we will compete against in the European Championship. In this way, we could measure where the team is, measure our strengths and try to improve some areas to get ready for the race in two weeks.”
For some of the sailors, the European of Gran Canaria has added importance as there are vital points to be earned to help secure a place for Rio 2016.
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