The IOC President, Jacques Rogge came to watch the racing at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore on Friday. Although the weather was overcast for most of the day, the racing was intense and as usual followed every inch by the now infamous Singapore twitters.[more]
Boys Techno 293 – Mayan Rafic (ISR) leads the boys windsurfing on 10 points after placing second in race five and fourth in race sixth.
“I’m feeling stable, not like everybody else, so it is really good right now,” he said.
Hong Kong’s Michael Cheng is three points behind in second after winning the final race of the day with a dramatic surge in the last 20 metres.
The windsurfing boys managed to start on time today at 12 noon with good winds averaging about 12 knots in the first race. There was a general recall after the first start as the majority of the fleet were over the line before the last minute gun. The next start was a clear start which saw the boys pumping hard and aggressively off the line.
Mayan Rafic (ISR), Kieran Martin (GBR) and Michael Cheng (HKG) started well in clear air with good acceleration off the line. In the end it was Martin who stole the show, leading the pack at the first rounding and eventually winning the first race with half a leg lead over the fleet.
Race two saw the wind easing off slightly throughout the race. It was a much more intense and exciting race as the top five boards were all very close to one another and there were many changes in positions throughout the race. It was Cheng who managed to pull away from the pack in the last 20 metres to the finish, winning the race in style. He was followed closely by Chaneui Kim (KOR) in second and Maxime Labat (FRA) in third.
Girls Techno 293 – Thailand’s Siripon Kaewduang-Ngam is the new leader of the girls windsurfing on 14 points after her third race win of the series, one point clear of Singapore’s Pei Lin, Audrey Yong, who lost ground after dropping her sail twice in race five.
“I am very proud of what I have achieved today,” said Siripon. “I would be happy with a medal of any colour – gold, silver or bronze. I’m very glad. I would like to participate in the Olympic Games in the future,” she continued.
The Girls Techno boards started in 10 -12 knots of wind and the windsurfers were just beginning to plane. Veronica Fanciulli (ITA) was zooming in the conditions that obviously suited her. She finished in first place with a comfortable lead.
It was a close fight for second between Siripon Kaewduang-Ngam (THA) and Anastasiua Valkevich (BLR) who exchanged positions on every leg of the race. Unfortunately for Audrey Pei Lin Yong (SIN), dropping her sail twice in the race had put her in fourth position despite a strong start. Eventually, Kaewduang-Ngam finished second with Valkevich close behind in third.
By the time race six started, the wind had dropped to six knots. All the girls were aggressive at the start line which resulted in seven OCS’s in an 18-board fleet. The competition tamed down a notch after the OCS windsurfers were eliminated from the race.
It was definitely a disappointment for two of the culprits, Valkevich (BLR) who reached the top mark ahead, as well as Naomi Naomi Cohen (ISR) who was the leader going into today’s racing. The Thai and Singaporean girls rounded the top mark with a good gap between them and the rest of the fleet. Kaewduang-Ngam took the bullet followed by Yong.
