Louis Vuitton Trophy

The World Sailing Teams Association (WSTA) and Louis Vuitton today announced more Louis Vuitton Trophy regattas for 2010 and early 2011. These new international events follow the successful regatta held in Nice, France, last month. Each Louis Vuitton Trophy regatta is a stand-alone regatta sailed in event-supplied 85-foot long AC Class yachts that require a crew of 17 top sailors to sail. The regatta concept is designed to transform a port venue, regardless of its previous sailing culture, into the capital of professional yacht racing for two weeks, along with all the associated activities and excitement, on and off the water.The concept of the Louis Vuitton Trophy regattas was inspired by the acclaimed Louis Vuitton Pacific Series raced in Auckland, NZ, last February.

The schedule for the next events covers four distinctly different parts of the world:

Louis Vuitton Trophy Auckland: 9 - 21 March 2010
Louis Vuitton Trophy La Maddalena, Sardinia: 22 May - 6 June 2010
Louis Vuitton Trophy Middle East: 13 - 28 November 2010
Louis Vuitton Trophy Hong Kong: 9 - 24 January 2011 (To be confirmed)

*The venue in The Middle East is embargoed until January 15th 2010

Monsoon Cup

Adam Minoprio and his Emirates Team New Zealand BlackMatch crew faced a sudden death match, fighting for his season with a scoreline of 4-6, against Sebastien Col, 6-4 (French Match Racing Team ALL4ONE). Sebastien Col attracted a penalty while Minoprio was looking for a clean start. The pair battled throughout the match; Minoprio finally taking the win to keep his World Tour Championship hopes alive.
In the other matches to complete the round robin, Torvar Mirsky (Mirsky Racing Team) defeated Peter Gilmour (YANMAR Racing).
Mathieu Richard (French Team) beat Ben Ainslie and his TeamOrigin crew handsomely.
Francesco Bruni and his Italian Azzurra team took the last match in the last flight from Ian Williams and Team Pindar.
The skippers who did not make the quarter finals were Magnus Holmberg (Victory Challenge) 5-6, Francesco Bruni (Azzurra), 4-7, Ian Williams (Team Pindar) 4-7 and Hazwan Hazim (Taring Pelangi TESA) 0-11.
Onto the quarter finals and Ben Ainslie (TeamOrigin) chose to sail against Damien Iehl (French Team). Ainslie controlled the left, while Iehl was very happy to go right, and the race started with a big split. Iehl gained two lengths in the heavier current, running up to five knots. But down the run Ainslie gained, staying out of the adverse current.
In the other quarter final matches, Peter Gilmour pushed young Perth competitor Torvar Mirsky to the left side of the line, before heading right. Mirsky headed right, but he fell in behind Gilmour and was unable to make an impression. Forced over the line early by Adam Minoprio (BlackMatch Racing), Mathieu Richard (French Match Racing Team) had to fight to stay in contact. At the bottom mark for the second time, Minoprio was two lengths ahead and headed right. But Richard gained rapidly in the left hand current; Minoprio was just a length ahead. With Richard failing to keep clear in a luffing match, the Frenchman attracted one penalty then another. All Minoprio had to do was to stay clear to win.
Although Phil Robertson lost his quarter final match against Sebastien Col this afternoon, he was still irrepressible.
The last quarter final match was the two Perth, Australian skippers, the old bull Peter Gilmour and the young bull Torvar Mirsky.

Monsoon Cup

Adam Minoprio and his Emirates Team New Zealand BlackMatch crew faced a sudden death match, fighting for his season with a scoreline of 4-6, against Sebastien Col, 6-4 (French Match Racing Team ALL4ONE). Sebastien Col attracted a penalty while Minoprio was looking for a clean start. The pair battled throughout the match; Minoprio finally taking the win to keep his World Tour Championship hopes alive.
In the other matches to complete the round robin, Torvar Mirsky (Mirsky Racing Team) defeated Peter Gilmour (YANMAR Racing).
Mathieu Richard (French Team) beat Ben Ainslie and his TeamOrigin crew handsomely.
Francesco Bruni and his Italian Azzurra team took the last match in the last flight from Ian Williams and Team Pindar.
The skippers who did not make the quarter finals were Magnus Holmberg (Victory Challenge) 5-6, Francesco Bruni (Azzurra), 4-7, Ian Williams (Team Pindar) 4-7 and Hazwan Hazim (Taring Pelangi TESA) 0-11.
Onto the quarter finals and Ben Ainslie (TeamOrigin) chose to sail against Damien Iehl (French Team). Ainslie controlled the left, while Iehl was very happy to go right, and the race started with a big split. Iehl gained two lengths in the heavier current, running up to five knots. But down the run Ainslie gained, staying out of the adverse current.
In the other quarter final matches, Peter Gilmour pushed young Perth competitor Torvar Mirsky to the left side of the line, before heading right. Mirsky headed right, but he fell in behind Gilmour and was unable to make an impression. Forced over the line early by Adam Minoprio (BlackMatch Racing), Mathieu Richard (French Match Racing Team) had to fight to stay in contact. At the bottom mark for the second time, Minoprio was two lengths ahead and headed right. But Richard gained rapidly in the left hand current; Minoprio was just a length ahead. With Richard failing to keep clear in a luffing match, the Frenchman attracted one penalty then another. All Minoprio had to do was to stay clear to win.
Although Phil Robertson lost his quarter final match against Sebastien Col this afternoon, he was still irrepressible.
The last quarter final match was the two Perth, Australian skippers, the old bull Peter Gilmour and the young bull Torvar Mirsky.

Monsoon Cup

After the monsoon drama of the first day, the toughest racing day so far in the history of the regatta, this morning the competitors had time to focus on the leader board. At the start of racing on day two of the Monsoon Cup the Asian Match Racing champion, New Zealander Phil Robertson, was 1-3. His single victory yesterday was against Ian Williams and he had been singled out as one of the teams who could miss the cut. Mathematically a team needs six wins to get through to the quarter-finals, so Robertson and his WAKA Racing crew had work to do.
However Robertson did not expect to beat Peter Gilmour the defending Monsoon Cup champion. Gilmour was aggressive in the starting box, but impressively Robertson outgunned him. Gilmour attracted two penalties in the pre-start; one a red flag meaning he had to take one penalty immediately. Game over. Sailing against the World Tour ranked number two Torvar Mirsky, Robertson forced the Australian to the left side of the starting line. Robertson was fast to the right hand current elevator and sailed to victory. Then came the Kiwi match up - Robertson against fellow New Zealander Adam Minoprio, who is the Tour leader. Minoprio and his crew were confident ahead of the match, but Robertson took control in the pre-start and grabbed the right hand side of the course. They were sailing bow to stern when the two boats reached the current at the top mark. Robertson was just a length ahead but down the run he extended to three lengths. He held the lead and went on to win.

Ian Williams and Team Pindar have dominated the World Tour for the last two years winning both the 2007 and 2008 World Match Racing Championships but right now Williams is in nightmare territory. After the first day Williams was 1-3, having recorded losses to Damien Iehl (French Team) Peter Gilmour (YANMAR Racing) and Phil Robertson (WAKA Racing), while defeating Torvar Mirsky (Mirsky Racing Team). Williams started with a workman like victory over the Malaysian Match Racing champion Hazwan Hazim Dermawan (MAS). He then lost to Sebastien Col (French Team/ALL4One) and Magnus Holmberg (Victory Challenge). But it was disaster for Williams in his match against Ben Ainslie, earning a penalty in the pre-start. Team Pindar sailed hard, won a leg advantage on the left, but lost the match. Robertson, the world ranked number 25, finished a great morning’s work beating Damien Iehl. WAKA Racing was now 5-3 and heading for the quarter-finals. Next the number 25 ranked sailor tackled former World Tour Champion Magnus Holmberg and in the tight pre-start Holmberg attracted a penalty. Robertson comprehensively outsailed his rival and went on to finish the day with a 6-3 score card.

Monsoon Cup

The Monsoon Cup, the final event of the nine stage 2009 World Match Racing Tour, will commence on the Pulau Duyong Basin course in Kuala Terengganu tomorrow and the stage is set for an epic battle.

Heavy monsoon rains have been falling in eastern Malaysia for the last week and today the World Tour's top match racing crews were on the water acclimatising to the conditions. The leader of the 2009 Tour, New Zealander Adam Minoprio commented as he came ashore this afternoon ‘We are set for a very challenging event this week and there is a lot at stake, the biggest prize money of any sailing event in the world (around US$450,000) and the 2009 World Match Racing Championship. ‘We are glad we had the Perth practice event last week, we certainly needed more time in these boats (Foundation 36s) and we will really need to be on the top of our game to hold out Torvar Mirsky and his MRT Racing Team. The battle for podium placings is going to be exciting.' The World Match Racing Tour's second ranked sailor, Australian Torvar Mirsky, stated ‘On paper it seems simple enough, we are 12 points behind Adam. We’d like to win and have Adam finish fourth. But the reality is much harder than that, the standard is so high and so even that if any of us stumble, we can fall pretty hard. Last year here, we made it to the semi-finals and then Peter Gilmour knocked us out, before going on to win.

‘Ian Williams or Mathieu Richard can take the World Tour crown too, so it’s getting tense.’
Peter Gilmour, the defending Monsoon Cup champion commented, ‘We are all in for an interesting week. It’s a very strong field and a challenging course. We can’t wait to get racing tomorrow.’

World Match Racing Tour Director Craig Mitchell summed up the situation this afternoon. 'With six crews in contention for podium places, the event is wide open. The points awarded in this deciding event are one and a half times that of regular tour events which means that with 150 points to be won, the World Match Racing Tour Championship is far from decided.'

Tour Standings (After 8 of 9 events)

1. Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing 100 Points

2. Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team 88 Points

3. Ian Williams (GBR) Team Pindar 75 Points

4. Mathieu Richard (FRA), French Match Racing Team Racing 74 Points

5. Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR 71 Points

6. Ben Ainslie, (GBR) Team Origin 65 Points

7. Damien Iehl (FRA) French Match Racing Team 48 Points

8. Sebastien Col, (FRA) French Match Racing Team 41 Points

Match Cup Sweden

3 July – Quarter final day, brought an early westerly breeze that built throughout the competition. The racing started a little after 10am and by midday the crowds were out in force enjoying the sun and sailing. An on-form Torvar Mirsky (AUS) took on a resurgent Sebastien Col (FRA). With the extra sailing Sebastien Col has seen this week and a tough repechage he clearly had more fight in him that the young Australian and took only three matches to dispatch him to the 5-8 competition and elevate himself to his first Tour semi of the year. Local hero Magnus Holmberg (FRA) was paired with Damien Iehl (FRA). Holmberg, still looking for his first victory at Match Cup Sweden looked very confident going out to race and pressed Iehl hard but a slippery Iehl found a slight edge and eased his way to a 3-0 victory dashing Holmberg’s hopes of a coveted win. The all French duel between Mathieu Richard (FRA) and Philippe Presti (FRA) promised much with Presti gunning hard for his fellow French Team mate. Richard however show amazing control and superior strategy loosing only one match to Presti when Presti managed to gain the right hand advantage. With a final score line of 3-1 and with both Ian William’s and Adam Minoprio out of the Tour points at this event Richard is now in a position to leap to the top of the Tour leaderboard, third or better will secure that. The biggest match of the day taking five matches to decide was the Gilmour vs Berntsson head to head. Gilmour took the first match after loading Berntsson with penalties. Berntsson took the next two matches returning the penalty to Gilmour in both races. Gilmour came out blazing in match four.
In the first half of the 5-8 Competition Torvar Mirsky took on Johnie Berntsson and won. Magnus Holmberg took out Philippe Presti to head for the 5th place race. Victory gave Magnus 5th place and Mirsky 6th. In the other playoff Berntsson took 7th leaving Presti with 8th.
Day 5 of Match Cup Sweden was ladies day with the Women’s semi’s and finals.

5 July 2009: The arrival of a cold front over night brought clouds and cooler conditions for day 7 of Match Cup Sweden. Race Management had to set up a shorter three lap course across the fijord. It was Peter Gilmour who dominated the day winning his semi final and then the final without dropping a match and casting aside the strong challenges from Damien Iehl and then Mathieu Richard. The semi finals got underway just before 09.30 and first up were Peter Gilmour and Damien Iehl. The first match was the closest of their series with Iehl taking an early lead though he was carrying a penalty. Gilmour attacked the next two matches leading Iehl round the course to finish off his semi 3-0. The second semi final pitted the two French Match Racing Teams of Mathieu Richard and Sebastien Col against each other. Col won the first two matches but Richard rallied in the third. The fourth match was all Col but Richard held his nerve to take the win. In the deciding match Richard managed to push Col out to the starboard layline and lead him into the finish.

The petit final featured Seb Col (FRA) against Damien Iehl (FRA) in a first to two point duel. Iehl took the first but only just. Then Col returned the favour in the second to push them into a decider. A fired up Sebastien Col blazed off the line in the third match leading Damien Iehl throughout and taking third place.

Overall Results
1st – Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing
2nd – Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Team
3rd – Sebastien Col (FRA) French Team/K-Challenge
4th – Damien Iehl (FRA) French Team
5th – Magnus Homlberg (SWE) Victory Challenge
6th – Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team
7th – Johnie Berntsson (SWE) Berntsson Sailing Team
8th – Philippe Presti (FRA) French Match Racing Team
9th – Peter Wibroe (DEN) Wibroe Sailing Team
10th – Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch
11th – Ian Williams (GBR) Bahrain Team Pindar
12th – Mattias Rahm (SWE) Stena Bulk Sailing Team
13th – Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Team Onico
14th – Francesco Bruni (ITA) Team Joe Fly Match Race

Match Cup Sweden

Fantastic racing conditions allowed the organizers of Match Cup Sweden to complete the repechage round on Thu 2 July, which saw Johnie Berntsson and Sebastien Col emerge as the final two skippers that will join Mathieu Richard, Peter Gilmour, Torvar Mirsky, Damien Iehl, Magnus Holmberg and Philippe Presti in the Quarterfinal Round, scheduled for Friday.

The repechage round was full of excitement. Johnie Berntsson was on fire winning all three matches including a nail biter against Adam Minoprio. It started badly for Berntsson as he was awarded a penalty just after the start for tacking too close to Minoprio. Berntsson’s plan won out and he crossed the line as Minoprio desperately tried to throw in his penalty turn.

The final Flight of the repechage left Peter Wibroe needing a win and for Berntsson and Col to loose in order to get into a three way tie on 5 points and an increasingly complex count back depending on the results of the other matches in the flight. But nothing could stop either Berntsson or Col who both blitzed their final matches against Bjorn Hansen and World Champion Ian Williams respectively to dive into the quarter final.

It was a disappointing day for Tour leader Adam Minoprio and second placed Ian Williams. Both were swept out of the repechage and out the World Championship.

Richard stepped up and chose fellow countryman Philippe Presti for the quarterfinals. Peter Gilmour shied away from a home country match against Torvar Mirsky and picked Berntsson. Damien Iehl wasted no time, singling out Magnus Holmberg. That left Torvar Mirsky up against Sebastien Col.

MATCH CUP Sweden

DS 37’s set sail on the shore’s of Sweden’s Marstrand Island 29 JUNE 2009. The beautiful island of Marstrand located an hour north west of Sweden’s second city, Gothenburg, plays host to Match Cup Sweden. It was a good day for the French Teams with all four taking 2 wins. Also starting well was Torvar Mirsky, fresh from his victory at Portugal Match Cup and the runner up here last year. Current World Champion Ian Williams had a solid start to the event and returned a 2-1 scorecard for the day.

30 JUNE 2009 six quarterfinalists determined at Match Cup Sweden. Day Two of Match Cup Sweden, stage 5 of the World Match Racing Tour saw more beautiful weather, more spectators and of course more great match racing. Today saw Peter Gilmour, Damien Iehl and Torvar Mirsky finish first, second and third respectively from Group A. They were joined by French Match Racing Team members Mathieu Richard, Philippe Presti and Magnus Holmberg from Group B. All six now qualify for the quarterfinal round which will start on Friday. The remaining teams from both groups will now go through to the repechage which will be a full round robin where each skipper will race against each other team. The top two skippers from the repechage will then go through to join the other quarter finalists. Day Two was once again dominated by the French with three members of the French Match Racing Team all through to the quarterfinals. Leading the way in Group B with 5 wins was Mathieu Richard, his only loss coming at the hands of countryman Philippe Presti. In Group A Peter Gilmour showed why he has won this event six times, losing only to the last two winners of Match Cup Sweden, Bjorn Hansen and Mattias Rahm. Joining Gilmour direct into the quarter finals was his old rival and local hero Magnus Holmberg.

Troia Portugal Match Cup

19 June,2009 – After a long day stretched to the limits of sunset, Round Robin racing has been completed along with three flights of two pairs in the Quarter Final stage. Eight teams have advanced to this next stage in the competition out of 12 who came here for a slice of the 50,000 Euro prize money purse at the beautiful Troia Resort. After a fitful start in the morning and an entire flight of matches abandoned for lack of wind, the westerly seabreeze finally filled to perfect strength, with 8-14 knots available all afternoon to complete the six flights of three matches left in the Round Robin. Emerging from the pack as winner of this stage on the strength of 9 wins was Philippe Presti, though he went 1-1 on the day. His success in this stage was also due to a tie-break with fellow member of the French Match Racing Team Mathieu Richard. Others advancing to the Quarter-Finals include Peter Gilmour, Ian Williams, Adam Minoprio, Sebastian Col, Torvar Mirsky and Bjorn Hansen.

20 June, 2009 – After a long first-to-three point Quarter-Final series, four teams have emerged on top to compete in next day Semi-Final stage. The four Semi-Finalists are Adam Minoprio (NZL) and his Emirates Team New Zealand/BlackMatch team, Ian Williams (GBR) and his Bahrain Team Pindar, Mathieu Richard (FRA) and his French Match Racing Team, and Torvar Mirsky (AUS) and his Mirsky Racing Team.

One pair that went to five matches had the oldest and youngest skippers veteran Peter Gilmour, against Adam Minoprio. International umpire team was busy with numerous whistles and penalty flags in nearly all their matches. The 8-10 knot wind conditions were perfect for tight manoeuvring. Another particularly aggressive pair was the match-up between Ian Williams and Sebastian Col. Col had a good start to the series, winning their first match, but this ignited Williams determination, taking three straight.

21 June 2009 – In only their second full season on the World Match Racing Tour, Torvar Mirsky (AUS) and his Mirsky Racing Team. claimed their first win at the Troia Portugal Match Cup. Victory here for the 24-year old skipper puts him in company with other world-famous match racing legends who have been champions at this event, including Peter Gilmour, Chris Dickson, Peter Holmberg, and Ed Baird. Mirsky took his fellow antipodean Adam Minoprio in just two matches of the first-to-two point Final, displaying a smooth sailing style and impeccable sense of timing both in the pre-starts and around the track. And while the first match of the Final was decided fairly early in the game as Mirsky took and extended on his winning start, the second match was far from easy.

On the strength of an exciting 2-1 win over Richard in the Petite-Finals, Ian Williams jumped up to the runner-up position.

Korea Match Cup Finals

After a day of semi-finals that grew in pace and excitement, Sunday (7 June started flat, grey and uninteresting, and looked like staying that way. The start of the finals match between Williams and Cian was scheduled for 1400 hrs, but the race course was just a grey glass-out with no sign of any breeze at all – not even the small shifty zephyrs that had allowed the 5th-8th place sail-offs go through. Playing a waiting game out on the water, Cian was working hard to stay optimistic – if the finals were canned due to lack of breeze then the Korea Match Cup would be decided on the performances in the Round Robin – handing a win to Ian Williams (8 pts) against the Italian’s five wins that allowed him to just squeak into the quarter-finals. At 1450 hrs there was some sign of sunshine – an ingredient that encouraged a little sea breeze. Cian put up a spinnaker and sailed around slowly, as if to demonstrate to the Race Committee that there was enough breeze to get things started, and at 1530 hrs racing did indeed get under way.

Both boats hit the line together for a split-tack start with Cian going to the right. Williams gybe-set for a separation, found some pressure on the right and smoked into the bottom pin. But Williams then earned a penalty. Williams crossed ahead of Cian on the upwind leg, but had to execute his penalty. So Cian sailed gently down to his seventh win in a row.

Race 2 began with a slow motion dial-up. Both boats started together on port, Cian at the boat end. Williams went right, and led all the way down the run. Williams crossed Cian from the right coming into the finish and gybed into the line. Match squared at 1-1.

With one-all, the third race was a sudden death. Cian calmly controlled most of the pre-start, with Williams wriggling to get away. Williams started with pace, and split away to the right, followed by Cian. Williams went for the gybe-set plit-and-come-back-from-the-right option, but just couldn’t find enough breeze to make it work, and watched the soft-touch Italian ghost across the line 15 secs or so in the lead.

At US$240,000, the Korea Match Cup is the richest purse on the World Match Race Tour. A good deal more champagne was soon sprayed on stage in front of the Closing Ceremony crowd, and the giant cheques were presented by the Governor of Gyeonggi Province, Kim Moon-Soo. It had been a desperately slow start to the day, but it finished in cracking style.

OVERALL RESULTS
1st Paolo Cian (ITA) Team Shosholoza
2nd Ian Williams (GBR) Bahrain Team Pindar
3rd Ben Ainslie (GBR) Team Origin
4th Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Team Onboard
5th Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing
6th Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing
7th Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing
8th Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team
9th Sebastien Col (FRA) French Match Racing Team/K-Challenge
10th Laurie Jury (NZL)
11th Philippe Presti (ITA) French Match Racing Team
12th Byeong Ki Park (KOR)

Korea Semi Finals

The next day more costly turnarounds and huge drama marked the penultimate day of the Korea Match Cup. Unbeatable on Friday, ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing Adam Minoprio suffered three straight defeats in his quarter final races against Team Shosholoza’s Paolo Cian, putting him out of the competition. With the wind starting light and getting lighter until the sea breeze pumped up mid-afternoon, Minoprio found himself forced over the line early in the first race and infuriatingly repeated this in the second. 2-2 and for the decider it was gloves off. Minoprio picked up a penalty in the pre-start, but crossed the line with a four boatlength lead. But the Italian closed in and finally overhauled Minoprio on the second beat.

For TEAMORIGIN’s Ben Ainslie the day was very black and white. The quarter finals against France’s Mathieu Richard, Ainslie won two-one. However when he came up against Paolo Cian in the semis, Ainslie was dispatched three-zero, including a sorry first race when he had the race sewn up in the start, leading and a penalty up on Cian, only to suffer a wrap on his genniker on the second run, followed by a short trawl of it allowing Cian enough margin to overtake and successfully complete his penalty to take the point.

Ian Williams and his Bahrain Team Pindar started the day in the quarter finals level pegging, 1-1, with Torvar Mirsky and their series went to the full five races. In the second race there was a dramatic prang at the weather mark when Williams careered into the back of Mirsky’s boat. In the third race Williams’ boat looked a little lethargic in the pre-start and after Mirsky won the start they sailed a little way up the course before dropping their sails and hoisting their red flag. Finally Williams and his crew made it through to the semis where they were pitched against Bjorn Hansen, who had seen off Peter Gilmour in the quarter finals despite Hansen sailing with a mostly amateur crew. In their second semi-final race, Hansen lost to Williams. The wind had picked up unusually for the third race and after a long dive down into the start box Hansen led off the line. Hansen was ultimately black flagged for not having carried out either of his penalties soon enough.

Semi Final Results
Paolo Cian (ITA) Team Shosholoza 3-0
Ian Williams (GBR) Bahrain Team Pindar 3.5-2
Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing 2-3.5
Ben Ainslie (GBR) TeamOrigin 0-3

Korea Quarter Finals

While America’s Cup legend Peter Gilmour was the class act of the first two days of racing at the Korea Match Cup, on 5 June it was Emirates Team New Zealand’s Adam Minoprio who got on to a strong winning streak, with a run of eight races and just one loss. In conditions similar to yesterday with the sun burning through early morning mist, followed by a light 8 knot sea breeze establishing itself, so in winning four of his five remaining races in the round robin put Minoprio on eight points out of eleven matches. This equalled him with Britons Ben Ainslie of Team Origin and Bahrain Team Pindar’s Ian Williams and, unexpectedly, Sweden’s Bjorn Hansen. In the first-to-three quarter final, Minoprio and his team were the only ones to end the day with 2-0 wins.

Minoprio chose Team Shosholoza’s Paolo Cian as his quarter final opponent, while Williams picked Torvar Mirsky. In both races Minoprio won the start from Cian and led around the course.

QUARTER FINAL PAIRINGS

Minoprio v Cian 2-0

Williams v Mirsky 1-1

Gilmour v Hansen 1-1

Ainslie v Richard 0-0

Korea Match Cup

Today 4 June the 12 teams through a full day, completing a further twelve of the 22 flights. When racing got underway at 1000, the conditions were not looking promising with the breeze light and the fog leaving the top mark obscured. However, come the fourth flight the sun had finally burned off the fog and a good 13-14 knot sea breeze had established itself until the last flights at the end of the afternoon. Peter Gilmour had a glamour day and at the end of day two his YANMAR Racing team looked set to be the only unbeaten team. With seven wins and no losses, all was looking good until the final flight when in a tight match that saw two lead changes in the dying breeze, he was finally beaten by Ben Ainslie and his TeamOrigin crew. Ainslie has now sailed all his races in the round robin finishing with eight wins in 11 matches. Among the scalps Gilmour claimed today was Ian Williams. Like Gilmour, Williams has still to sail his three final races. Mirsky also had a lively race against K-Challenge America’s Cup helm Sebastien Col with both sides picking up pre-start penalties, the first against the Australian for erring too close to an obstruction and the second against Col as the two boats separated on the start line and his stern touched the Aussie boat.

World Match Race Final

The semi finals pitted a fascinating mix of talents against each other, with four time world match racing champion Peter Gilmour (AUS) Yanmar Racing facing three time Olympic gold medallist Ben Ainslie (GBR) Team Origin. Where as in the other semi final pairing it was a case of ‘de ja vous’ Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Team found him self in familiar territory as it was to be a repeat of last years all French affair when he chose fellow country man Damien Iehl (FRA) French Team as his opponent. Ben Ainslie took the first two races in his semi final match, even after clearly losing the start in the first race against Peter Gilmour, only for Gilmour to comeback and tie the score going in to the final fifth match. The racing was tight and Gilmour and his Yanmar Racing crew never gave up they just kept coming back. The final race was a good reflection of the pair’s whole semi final with multiple lead changes and whenever either team was behind, they seemed to have the tenacious ability to get right back into the race. The two teams were overlapped at both the first windward mark and then overlapped again as they rounded at the final bottom mark, leaving the match wide open until the final windward leg, where Gilmour split to the right side of the course with Ainslie headed to the left. The wind gradually shifted to the right and when they converged Ainslie had a tidy lead which he was able to hang to until the finish.

The second semi final, the tasty all French match up of Richard versus Iehl, was also a five match nail biter with neither team willing to lie down and concede defeat. After four feisty encounters the score was two wins a piece with the two teams swapping wins and the semi final looking to go into a fifth match decider. However the umpires handed half a point deduction to Richard’s team as he was adjudged to have fouled Iehl in collision which resulted in damaged to the boats. This meant Richard would have to win two more races to reach the final, as it was first to three points wins, which undoubtedly put a little more pressure onto his team. Although the fifth match was a tense affair, Iehl was able to put Richard away and secure his place in final against Ainslie.

Match Race Germany ended with Ben Ainslie (GBR) and Team Origin taking 1st place in a first to three points final against Damien Iehl (FRA) and his French Match Racing Team. Ainslie drew first blood in the final. He then went on to defeat Iehl in the second match, however Iehl was not going to let his Match Race Germany title go without a fight. He secured the third match only to be out mastered by Ainslie in the fourth and final match. This is the first event for Team Origin on the Tour this year and the win catapults Ainslie to 4th place on the World Tour standings with 25 points. However the 20 points gained for being runner up takes the Frenchman to joint 1st place with fellow country man Mathieu Richard on the Tour standings.

World Match Race Germany

Making his debut on the Tour was Italy’s Francesco Bruni who was keen to make an impression against the well polished Tour regulars but with an undefeated scorecard and a smile on his face it was clear the first day had made a good impression on him. Bruni was able to extend his lead against two of his competitors which secured him the wins, however a tight race with the current world number one ISAF ranked match racer, Seb Col, put his skills to the test and he didn’t disappoint, using a combination of good strategy and boat on boat tactics to over come his opponent.

Mathieu Richard currently number two on the Tour standings and ISAF rankings also faired exceptionally well, winning four of his five matches. After the days racing was finished, an upbeat chief umpire Philippe Gomez was pleased with the successful start to the regatta.

WMRT - Match Race Germany

The picturesque town of Langenaren on the shores of Lake Constance will be flooded with sailors and spectators this week as Match Race Germany opens its doors.

As well as hosting the German leg of the World Match Racing Tour a week long festival has been planned. Live bands will take to the stage and food and entertainment will be on offer. Children will also have the opportunity to get out on the water in Optimist dinghies.

Amongst the competitors lined up for the Tour event are reigning World Champion Ian Williams (GBR) and Bahrain Team Pindar, number 1 ranked ISAF sailor Seb Col (FRA) with the French Team/K-Challenge, current Tour leader Adam Minoprio (NZL) of ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing and four time Match Racing World Champion Peter Gilmour (AUS) backed up by Yanmar Racing. The list of talent doesn’t stop there with Triple Olympic Gold Ben Ainslie and Team Origin starting their assault on the World Championship. Defending Match Race Germany Champion Damien Ihel with his French Match Racing Team is also back to try and retain his crown, a pretty tall order some might think.

Racing will take place a stones throw from the shoreline in Langenargen which is sure to see its share of visitors keen to watch the action and listen to the lively commentary throughout the day. The boat of choice is the Bavaria Match 35.

Match Race Germany is the second stop on the 2009 Tour and has $50,000 in prize money on offer. The next six weeks will see four Tour events tightly packed and by the end of the first week of July half the Tour will be completed. Teams will need to stay focused and fight for every World Championship point.

World Match Racing Tour

After a long day that had it all starting with long delays with no wind, then light and shifty conditions, and ending with a building breeze and waves 24-year old Adam Minoprio (NZL) and his Emirates Team New Zealand/BlackMatch Racing team of David Swete, Tom Powrie, and Dan McLean have won the Marseille International Match Race, the first event of the 2009 World Match Racing Tour.

Minoprio had two formidable French obstacles on his path to victory today, starting with Damien Iehl and his French Match Racing Team, who he met in the Semi-Finals. But the series did not start off well, as the Kiwis misjudged the start and were caught over the line early at the gun. Unfazed, Minoprio and team kept their focus in the light and shifty conditions to find a little advantage on the right side of the course and gain back enough to pass Iehl in the middle of the first windward leg.

Showing great composure rather than just reactionary covering tactics, the Kiwis let Iehl take the right while they sailed into a little more pressure they saw to the left, and promptly extended their one length lead to three. It was never less than this for the remainder of this first match.

As the weak sea breeze continued to weaken, Minoprio and team once again were behind at the start in the second Semi-Final match, but managed to roll over Iehl just before the bottom mark. The two teams split, the Kiwis left and the French right, but Iehl got stuck in a windless hole, allowing Minoprio to sail in to an insurmountable 8-length lead at the second top mark, and from there it was on to the Finals.

Minoprio was now up against Mathieu Richard and his French Match Racing Team/Team French Spirit, who had just come off a tough 2-1 series of his own against another antipodal young gun 23-year old Torvar Mirsky (AUS). While the teams switched boats, race managers switched the course around towards a late-building westerly Mistral, bringing with it some choppy wind waves on top of a 1-metre swell.

Αs the breeze started dying, and shifted even further right with the setting sun, starboard tack became difficult as the boats slammed head-on into waves often bigger than the wind. This put a premium on proper gear-shifting, and Minoprio and team did this well when it counted. After taking early control off the line to leeward of Richard at the start they simply extended away from the French to take and early lead and never looked back.

Meanwhile in Petite-Final action, Mirsky avenged his loss to Richard in the Semi's by defeating Iehl in straight matches 2-0.

Final Results
1st Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing
2nd Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team/Team French Spirit
3rd Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team
4th Damien Iehl (FRA) French Match Racing Team
5th Ed Baird (USA) Alinghi
6th Sébastien Col (FRA) French Match Racing Team/K-Challenge
7th Paolo Cian (ITA) Team Shosholoza
8th Ian Williams (GBR) Bahrain Team Pindar
9th Philippe Presti (FRA) French Match Racing Team/Team French Spirit
10th Ian Ainslie (RSA) Team Proximo
11th Pierre Antoine Morvan (FRA) French Match Racing Team
12th Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Team Onboard

Marseille International Match Race

An impressively strong field of Tour Card holders and qualifying teams line up for this week's 2009 Tour season opener at the Marseille International Match Race. The newest event of the ten-stage 2009 World Match Racing Tour will also be its first as 12 teams prepare for Marseille International Match Race, held over 10-15 March and hosted by the Yachting Club Pointe Rouge (YCPR). The assembled field is one of the strongest yet seen, lured by the opportunity to compete against the best talent in the sport, valuable Tour points earned towards the World Championship, and a piece of the €50,000 prize purse.

With three-metre seas and blustery 25-35 knot Mistral conditions in the harbor, Principal Race Officer Gerard Bosse and his race management team from the Yachting Club de la Pointe Rouge decided to postpone the start of the Marseille International Match Race until tomorrow. The 12 teams assembled for this first event of the World Match Racing Tour stayed ashore to rest up and keep their powder dry, as tomorrow will likely be a full day to try and get through Stage One of the competition, a single Round Robin pitting all teams against each other once.

Gilmour Wins Monsoon Cup

King of the 2008 Monsoon Cup for the second time is Peter Gilmour and his Yanmar Racing team.

Challenged on every part of the race course through four very tough races, Gilmour and his team of Yasuhiro Yaji, Rod Dawson, Thierry Douillard and Kazuhiko Sofuku, are deserved winners of the 2008 Monsoon Cup.

In the Petite Final Torvar Mirsky (Mirsky Racing Team) and recently anointed Match Racing World Champion, Ian Williams (Bahrain Team Pindar), took to the water to redress their semi final losses as they both refocused and looked to finish third in the event. A tough battle between the two with Mirsky dominating both matches to take out third place Monsoon Cup honours.

Overall Monsoon Cup Results
1st Peter Gilmour, Yanmar Racing (AUS)
2nd Adam Minoprio, ETNZ/Black Match Racing (NZL)
3rd Torvar Mirsky, Mirsky Racing Team (AUS)
4th Ian Williams, Bahrain Team Pindar (GBR)
5th Paolo Cian, Team Shosholoza (ITA)
6th Sébastien Col, French Match Racing Team / K-Challenge (FRA)
7th Magnus Holmberg, Victory Challenge (SWE)
8th Mathieu Richard, French Match Racing Team / French Spirit (FRA)
9th Ben Ainslie, Team Origin (GBR)
10th Keith Swinton, Black Swan Racing (AUS)
11th Johnie Berntsson, Berntsson Sailing Team (SWE)
12th Nurul Ain bt Md Isa, Perak Sailing Team (MAS)

Monsoon Cup Match Races

In the first match of the day Ian Williams(Bahrain Team Pindar) and SebastienCol (K-Challenge) went into the match with an equal number of wins from the previous days racing. Williams beat Col after a tactically challenging race in a soft, shifty breeze. It was only in the last leg of the course that Williams caught a soft puff on the left-hand shore and lead Col to the finish by five boat lengths.

Gilmour (against Ainslie) dominated with some smart sailing to win the match and move up the scoreboard with four wins.

Ainslie went into his next match, against Monsoon Cup round robin leader, Paolo Cian. The Bahrain Team Pindar needed to win this match to secure their quarter final berth. Cian challenged them every moment of the match, but Ainslie took the lead to finish clearly ahead of Cain to be one place behind Cian on the point score.

At the mid-way point of the day Cian and Adam Minoprio lead the field on seven wins each and have secured their quarter final berth. Torvar Mirsky with six wins also looks secure. Williams, Ainslie and Gilmour are all placed in a strong position to qualify for the quarter finals with five wins each.

It is now down to Col, Richard, Holmberg and Berntsson to fight it out for the quarter final.