African Course Racing Championships: Egypt U

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Johnny and Erika Heineken, Adam Koch and Joey Pasquali are representing the USA on a junkett to the Red Sea on Egypts east coast. The resort site Soma Bay looks pretty sweet, the water clear, temps warm, sand clean. Why not?







Heres a report from a place you probably never heard of:

2013 African Course Racing Championship
24-29 March 2013, Soma Bay, Egypt


Day 2 at the 2013 African Course Racing Championships and the weather was not looking too promising early on in the day, with the turquoise waters of Soma Bay in Egypt distinctly mirror-like in appearance. However, a few hours of patience waiting ashore, were rewarded with breeze kicking into between 7-11 knots. For the men, racing in two fleets reseeded from day 1, today was all about qualifying through to the gold group for the final series. World number 1 on the Course Racing World Rankings, German’s Florian Gruber, left nothing to chance and took two race wins to move up into second on the leaderboard, just behind series leader Riccardo Leccese. Gruber seemed unstoppable today and more than confident enough to play amongst the big names in course racing, despite his young years – at just 19 years old. Reigning World

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z90_rMu83v4


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFzg_9Eoh30



Champion, Jonny Heineken had difficulties trying to catch Gruber, but a 4th place in race 6 was enough for him to stay in the top three of the leaderboard, just 2 points behind Gruber. Tomorrow sees the men split into gold and silver fleets for the final races, with the top 30 kiters now racing against each other in the same fleet – so there is guaranteed to be added pressure and excitement on the race track. In the women’s first race 5 of the day it was the young Russian Elena Kalinina who led, and achieved a major margin over the rest of the pack. Her light weight certainly played to her advantage, and she went onto score another win in race 6 and end the day where she started, in second overall. Series leader going into race day 2, Steph Bridge from Great Britain posted a second in race 5, to help her stay in the top spot on the leaderboard. With the wind forecast to pick up tomorrow, it will be interesting to see how Bridge responds to the challenge from the Russian. And pushing up in to third overall is the reigning Course Racing World Champion Erika Heineken after a strong 4,2 scoreline.










TOP 3 for the 2013 African Course Racing Championship
Men 1. Riccardo Andrea Leccese (ITA) 2. Florian Gruber (GER) 3. Johnny Heineken (USA) Full Results: http://sailwave.com/results/IKAAfric...13_QS_Men.html

Women 1. Steph Bridge (GBR) 2. Elena Kalinina (RUS) 3. Erika Heineken (USA)
Full Results: http://sailwave.com/results/IKAAfric..._OS_Women.html

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Heinkens In Their Element @ Soma Beach




2013 African Course Racing Championship
24-29 March 2013, Soma Bay, Egypt


Day 3 at the 2013 African Course Racing Championships and stunning but challenging conditions delivered an impressive kiting spectacle at Soma Bay in Egypt. With winds gusting up to 32 knots, four races were held for each of the men’s and women’s fleets, with the reigning World Champions Johnny Heineken and sister Erika Heineken relishing the conditions to launch their attack on the leader board. Today marked the first day of final series races for the men, who were split into gold and silver fleets. In the first race for the men, it was Joey Pasquali and Tomek Janiak that stepped off the line with a bold move – starting on port and crossing the rest of the fleet – which rewarded them both with top 10 finishes. But it was the reigning Course Racing World Champion,




American Jonny Heineken who brought all his experience into play and left the fleet behind him. He was first at the leeward gate, followed by Riccardo Leccese, who at this point was still the series leader. Heineken kept his lead all the way to the finish line and celebrated victory and the start of his push up the leaderboard. Leccese did not seem so happy with his performance – but he was simply out raced. Onto the second race of the day, and again Heineken led the fleet to the bottom gate, but this time chased by Brazilian Wilson Veloso and Leccese in third. But, Leccese dug deep and passed the Brazilian to score another second place finish, leaving Veloso to cross the line in third.

A repeated performance for the next two races of the finals, with Heineken continuing to claim the race wins, sees him topping the leaderboard, with Leccese in second and yesterday’s overall runner up Florian Gruber, knocked down into third In the women’s fleet, the day was set to belong to Erika Heineken, who dominated by scoring one bullet after another and closing in on the series leader Steph Bridge. After a stunning performance in yesterday’s lighter breeze, the young Russian Elena Kalinina could not compete against the likes of Heinken and Bridge and was left further back in the leaderboard, as she struggled to master the windier conditions.




Erika was in her element, as the conditions are clearly her favourite, successfully ending her day sitting only a few points behind Bridge, with Kalinina holding onto third. Tomorrow is the last day of the final series, after which the top ten of the men and women fleets will advance to the medal series scheduled for Friday. With just a few points separating the top kiters, racing is expected to become even more exciting as many fight for a place in the top ten. The wind conditions are expected to slightly decrease tomorrow, so the tables may turn as the lighter wind specialists have an opportunity to return to form.




Full Results: http://sailwave.com/results/IKAAfric...13_FS_Men.html


http://sailwave.com/results/IKAAfric..._OS_Women.html

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Day 4




2013 African Course Racing Championship
24-29 March 2013, Soma Bay, Egypt


Day 4 at the 2013 African Course Racing Championships, with all to play for as the kiters focused on climbing into the top 10 on the leaderboard and qualify through to Friday’s medal series. Soma Bay in Egypt today served up another day of strong winds, with the breeze gusting up to 25 knots. A little less extreme than yesterday, but still fairly exciting – perfect for the heaving wind thrillseekers. Five races were held for the 80 kiters in this concluding day of the final series. First to hit the race track were the men’s gold fleet with everyone starting on starboard and close together.





Series leader Johnny Heineken was on a roll yesterday, and continued his winning ways today, quickly opening up a big gap between him and Adam Koch in second, with Riccardo Leccese following closely. Heineken has so far been flawless in the final series and scored another bullet, with Leccese finishing in second after overtaking Koch and the American Brian Kender in 4th. These top finishers were now seriously threatening Germany’s Florian Gruber in the overall standings, who needed to defend his third place. In the second race the two Americans, Koch and Pasquali, started on port, aiming to cross in front of Heineken – but Heineken was simply unstoppable and extremely fast in the conditions. He rounded first at the downwind gate, this time followed by Leccesse and Kender in third.





While Heineken and Leccese had a solid performance extending their points difference, it was Kender who, despite his off pace performance in the qualifying series, was now upping his game. After a short break, a further 3 races were held, with Heineken wrapping up every race win to end the final series with an immaculate scoreline. After fifteen races over the past four days, the top 10 going through to the medal races are decided, with Johnny Heineken heading up the men kiters, with a 5 point margin over Italy’s Riccardo Leccese. Both these top two have more than a 15 point margin over the rest of the pack – so get ready for some close racing tomorrow.




In third is Florian Gruber of Germany. In the women’s fleet it was Erika Heineken who started the day’s opening race on port, followed by the rest of the top pack in the leaderboard, and her move paid well, as she rounded in first at the bottom gate and most importantly for Heineken in front of Bridge – positions they held to the finish. However, despite the strong challenge from Heineken, Bridge was clearly not ready to step down from the top of the leaderboard, and upped her game for the second race of the day. Looking more determined, she was first to the upwind mark, although being pushed hard by reigning Course Racing World Champion Heineken.

Bridge held her lead on the second upwind, whilst Heineken fell behind and gave an opening for Holland’s Katja Roose to get closer. After scoring a series of third places in the series, Roose was eager to secure a better finish, which in turn would force
the Russian Kalinina to release her hold on the third overall leaderboard placing. Roose kept cool and went on to score a second place, followed by a win in race 4 of the day, which rewarded her with a move into third overall. Heineken went on to win two more races, and narrowed the points advantage held by series leader Bridge to just 2 points.

The Medal race series is scheduled as a “best of three” repechage consisting of quarterfinal, semi-final and final, where only one competitor advances from stage to stage.



TOP 3 for the 2013 African Course Racing Championship
Men 1. Johnny Heineken (USA) 2. Riccardo Andrea Leccese (ITA) 3. Florian Gruber (GER) Full Results: http://sailwave.com/results/IKAAfric...13_FS_Men.html


Women 1. Steph Bridge (GBR) 2. Erika Heineken (USA) 3. Katja Roose (NED)
Full Results: http://sailwave.com/results/IKAAfric..._OS_Women.html
PR Services: Icarus Sailing Media

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Go Heinekens!