Farr 30: festival of the sultanate

“Oman Sail Renaissance” has won the Farr 30 category of Normandy Sailing Week, with the Omani team making a highly successful entrance into the circuit. Comprising three British sailors, two Omani beginners and French sailor Cedric Pouligny, the crew has put up an impressive performance through its speed across the water and the way it gets itself into a good position, as proved to be the case during yesterday’s coastal course. Today, in a W’ly kicking up a little over 15 knots of breeze the team, led by British legend Rob Greenhalgh, won the first race of the day before returning to port. Indeed, so substantial was its lead that the crew had done enough to sit out the event’s final act. “Courrier Dunkerque” skippered by Pierre-Loic Berthet came second in the general rankings, just slightly ahead of the amazing performance put up by the Dutch sailors on “Tu Delft”.

Cedric Pouligny ”Oman Sail Renaissance”: “During these 4 days of competition, we kept up the pressure throughout, particularly during the night race. During the latter we were both unlucky and lucky with the wind shifts. We knew we had to continue working flat out against our honed rivals. Our crew is very efficient. We have good speed under all points of sail and we’re motivated. The result speaks for itself. I think Oman Sail has surprised just about everyone and that we must be in with a shot to win the Tour 2010!”

Yascer Alrahbi “Oman Sail Renaissance”: “I’ve had my first real taste of racing during this Normandy Sailing Week, but we’ve already done a fair bit of sailing in the UK. I’m very happy with this victory and still as much in awe of sailing with such experienced sailors as ever.”

Christophe Patou “Courrier Dunkerque”: “We made a few errors, but we’re still fast in relation to the rest of the fleet. It’s been a positive experience all in all. We’ve once again demonstrated that we’re a consistent crew. The Omanis have had a great introduction to the Farr 30 circuit. It’ll be interesting to see whether they can maintain the same consistency over a month of sailing in the Tour de France à la Voile. You’ve also got to be able to rub along well together on the TFV. We’ve been sailing together since 2006.”

The Ecole Navale stands out in the J80 category

The crew of “Ecole Navale – CG29” had a great run at Normandy Sailing Week. After breaking in their steed on the first day, Patrick Bot and his crew developed well. However, the racing was intense according to Frédéric Hauville, one of the crew: “It was a great final day of sailing with one victory and a second place in some rather shifty wind… We came here to train and we’ve ended up winning this Normandy Sailing Week! It’s also given me the chance to revisit my home town as I’m from Le Havre originally. It was a tough battle with “Marine Cherbourg – DCNS” and “Vog”. We enjoyed some great times on shore too, with two very nice evenings put together by the organisers.”

IRC 1: Force 45

The Swan 45 “Wisc” skippered by Glynn Williams, battling with the J133 “Jivaro” since last Friday, has managed to gain the upper hand in the general rankings. “The racing was superb” says an enthusiastic Glynn “with a whole range of different wind conditions warmed by the sunshine. It was the first race of the season for us so it was a great way to get a feel for it again. The J133 skippered by Alain Rouault put up a strong performance, so congratulations to them. This racing in Normandy has been an opportunity for us to face up to some overseas teams, as most of our racing is done in the Solent. The next event for us now is the World IRC Championship in the UK.”

IRC 2: the Dunkirk sailors take victory!

“Marine Diffusion Dunkerque”, despite overshooting the start line on the first day, has taken victory in the IRC 2 category. It proved to be a well deserved win for the crew of Philippe Bourgeois, who have sailed in the North Sea and the Channel for many years. “Despite a few errors yesterday and today, we’ve ended up in first place. There were four boats with their sights on victory so the racing was full-on all the way to the wire” explains Christian Gouteau. “Our crew has matured. We now have the ability to handle the difficult times, though we could still do with playing it a bit calmer onboard.”

IRC 3: the prize goes to Laurent Beaurin!

The Farr 727 “45° South” skippered by Laurent Beaurin, a member of Le Havre’s Société des Régates, takes gold tonight. He is tailed by “Pinguin Playboy” a quarter Tonner, and “Casper” a Corby 28 from nearby Courseulles.

6.50: supremacy to “Nemo”

The Mach 6.50 “Nemo” skippered by Manuel Guedon, has won the 6.50 category of Normandy Sailing Week hands down. On its tail was another Magnen design, that of Yves Gouron. “It’s the first time we’ve done so well” raves Manu. “You really had to work hard to get an edge though. Our tactician Julien Texier was at the top of his game on the race zone, where it was necessary to play with the current.”

“Tourco Team” victorious on the First 7.5

Thomas Mellano and Jean-Baptiste Touzard from the Centre Nautique Paul Vatine, along with the three other top teams in the general ranking, have won their ticket to the French Junior Sailing Championship, due to take place in Le Havre at the end of August. “It’s been cool and we’ve had a lot of fun on the water. That’s often a good recipe for success! We really had some great gear. Thank you to the Sailing League for preparing the boats so well. The level on the water was pretty uniform so that augurs well for the French Championship”.

Finally, in the Laser SB3 category, the British sailor John Outhwaite and his two crew stormed into the top spot today, with a considerable 11 point lead over one of Le Havre’s finest, Manuelle Adam.

– Info presse www.normandy-week.com