Tomorrow Medal Race promises to be a nail biter

A large spectator fleet was a witness to yet another example of Ben Ainslie’s extraordinary sailing: after rounding mark 1 somewhere after 40th, he wrapped up the race in 8th place capturing 4 points from French Guillaume Florent, the provisional leader of the scoreboard. Yesterday Ainslie had been disqualified after having won race 7.

Tomorrow’s Medal Race will be a make or break one. The top ten will face off in the crystal blue waters of Maremma’s sea beginning at 12 p.m. The course will be a short one, the race will last about 30 minutes, and there will be a double point system. The rest of the fleet will compete in race 9 after the Medal Race. The prize giving ceremony will be held immediately thereafter, closing this fantastic European Finn Championship which saw the best athletes of this Olympic class race in Maremma just a few weeks before Qingdao.

The athletes are happy with the organization at la Marina di Scarlino and the race courses set in the Gulf of Follonica, considered by many among the best in the world.

Today’s winner Rafael Trujillo speaks for everyone when he says: “I am truly happy to have raced here in Scarlino, Maremma. This is a perfect spot to hold races at the highest level and I hope that other events of this importance will soon be organized here. The surroundings are breathtaking and I really loved the food and the wine! Today I performed well and qualified for tomorrow’s Medal Race, an important step that allows me to develop the consistency I need for the Olympic Games.”

Medal Race participants:
Florent (France, 32 points),
Ainslie (Great Britain, 40),
Gaspic (Croatia, 43),
Cook (Canada, 50),
Vincec (Slovenia, 51),
Hogh-Christensen (Denmark, 54),
Postma (Nederlands, 61),
Railey (Usa, 63),
Birgmark (Sweden, 68),
Trujillo (Spain, 82).