World Laser Radial Men's Championship 2009
Mon 3rd August 2009 - Mon 10th August 2009
Karatsu, Japan
Monday 10th August
Marcin Rudawski of Poland won the men's championship with a day to spare. He did not sail on the last day of the championship and took the refatta win with 30 points. Ben Koppelaar nearly ruined his chances of second with an OCS in the first race today. However, he kept calm and finished second in the next race to hold second by 4 points from Insub Kim of Korea. Giacomo of Italy left his run too late but can be pleased with his two wins today.
Congratulations to all the people of Japan and particularly all the volunteers who made this such a fantastic regatta.
Report coutesy of Linda Parrish
Sunday 9 August
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| Kim Insub of Korea finished 4th and 2nd and standing 3rd after 10 races. (picture courtesy of K. Matsumoto) |
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| Rudawski Marcin Poland secured the seat of World champion before the final day after 2 bullets. (picture courtesy of K. Matsumoto) |
Mens World Champion decided. Marcin Rudawski of Poland again showed his dominance in this fleet with two bullets today and need not sail tomorrow to be world champion.
Sunshine, 14 to 18 knots and choppy seas again greeted the sailors in Karatsu, Japan for the Laser Radial World Men and Youth Championship.
There will be some tired sailors again tonight after 5 continuous days of great but challenging sailing conditions. Two races were sailed for each of the four fleets with the first race in 14 to 16 knot NNE winds and the second in 18 to 20 knots. Everyone is hoping that the last day tomorrow will be free from rain and typhoons. The jury has been very busy on the water Rule 42 infringements.
Maybe the change in start order for the men to be third start combined with some windshifts and delays to allow a clear race course, upset their equilibrium as the black flag general recall gave spectator status for five sailors with BFD. They finally got away on a clear start. Race 10 was a much better start with only two OCS. With the winner decided the race is on for the other positions. The big mover today, when the two drops remove an OCS and DNF, is Insub Kim from Korea who is now in third position six points behind Ben Koppelaar of Netherlands. Local sailor Hisaki Hagai is now in fourth place overall.
Tomorrow is the final day with two races scheduled for each fleet.
Tonight is party time for the sailors and volunteers. Japanese hospitality has been fantastic and sailors, coaches and supporters have all commented on how well they have been looked after. This has certainly been a special regatta. Tomorrow night is the Prize Giving.
Report courtesy of Linda Parrish
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| Hisaki Nagai of Japan finished 1st in the 7th race and ranking 6th after 8 races. (picture courtesy of K. Soehata) |
Saturday 8th August
Another fantastic day of sailing in Karatsu, Japan for the Laser Radial World Men's Championship
After a shakey start with low cloud, poor visibility and little wind, racing started half an hour late when Karatsu yet again turned on great sailing conditions. Two races were sailed for each fleet with the first race sailed in light winds of 7 to 10 knots and the second in 12 to 15 knots. The sun was shining and the seas were slight. With the threat of a typhoon south of Kyushu that is moving slowly north, everyone was very pleased to have such a good day. This typhoon is being closely monitored.
Marcin Rudawski from Poland consolidated his big lead in the men's competition with only one place outside the top three in eight races. Ben Koppelaar of Netherlands is nineteen points behind, but has a thirteen point buffer over Romzi Muhamad Mohd of Malaysia who lies in third place. Japanese sailor, Hisaki Nagai, had his second win of the regatta to move into sixth place overall.
A very special ceremony was held at the end of racing today to honour a local laser sailor, Masakazu Hayashi, who was to have been a key member of the race management team for these world championships. Unfortunately he passed away suddenly last summer. A special memorial scattering of the ashes took place in 'Castle Bay' with a guard of honour of the race management boats and some Japanese laser sailors in their boats.
Two races are scheduled for tomorrow and we are all hoping the typhoon will not head our way.
Report courtesy of Linda Parrish
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| The huge boat area with everyone rigged and ready to go afloat today (picture courtesy of Linda Parrish) |
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| Muhamad Mohd Romzi from Malaysia moved into third place today. (picture courtesy of K. Matsumoto) |
Friday 7th August 2009
Summer arrived in Karatsu today with shifty conditions for Day 3 of the Laser Radial World Men's Championship. It was a beautiful day on the water with sunshine and light breezes although there was some rain ashore in the hills.
The first race was sailed in five to eight knots and the second in ten to twelve knots. Today was an opportunity for those liking lighter conditions to show their skills and there was significant movement in position throughout the fleets in the overall results.
Race 5 results reflected the light conditions with the top two sailors down in the results. Giacomo Sabbatini from Italy won the race with Cheol Seo Dong from Korea in second. However, Marcin Rudawski from Poland continues to dominate the fleet with a win in race 6 to continue as overall leader.
Ben Koppelaar from Netherlands had an OCS in race 6 but continues to hold second place 14 points behind Marcin. Romzi Muhamad Mohd from Malaysia has moved into third place with the two big movers of the day Insub Kim from Korea in fourth place and Giacomo Sabbatini from Italy in fifth.
Report courtesy of Linda Parrish
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| Race 4: Men's fleet coming up to Mark 4 gate (picture courtesy of Linda Parrish) |
Thursday 6th August 2009
It was long day on the water in Karatsu, Japan for the Laser Radial Men's World Championships.
Windshifts caused a headache for race management and delays for sailors. However, patience paid off and two good races were sailed. The first two starts got away on time in NNE winds of 15 to 16 knots. The attempts to start race 3 for the men resulted in two postponements for big wind shifts and a general recall. The fleet then got away on a black flag preparatory signal with one BFD. Race 4 had to be delayed again for the men. It was worth the wait though for the new breeze of 16 to 18 knots from NE and the fleet was spread across the course for the first beat and on both gybes for the run. Then the wind dropped to about 7 knots and the final run, reach and beat to the finish were halved in length.
Ben Koppelaar, from Netherlands, was in the lead at the mark 4 gate and maintained that lead to win the race and move into second overall. Marcin Rudawski from Poland showed his skill to recover from sixth at the same gate to place second in the race. He is the convincing overall leader, 4 points ahead of Ben with Jon Emmett from Great Britain, heading the chasing pack on fifteen points.
The twilight series starts tonight and some of the coaches may well be showing their skills.
Report courtesy of Linda Parrish
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| Hisaki Nagai (JPN) (picture courtesy of K Soehata) |
Wednesday 5th August 2009
Strong winds and rough seas test laser radial sailors on the first day of the World Laser Radial Youth Campionship in Karatsu, Japan.
Karatsu is a great place to have a World Championship and again turned on superb sailing conditions with a warm sunny day, 20 knot NNE winds, a choppy sea and building swell. It was daunting conditions for some of the less experienced sailors and some scored DNF for being outside the time limit. However the experienced sailors had a wonderful day with real gains to be made on the reaches and runs. The 58 sailors strong men's fleet completed 2 races. Both races were within 3 minutes of the target time of one hour end this Japanese Race committee again have set a very standard to aspire to for the rest of the week.
Marcin Rudawski from Poland appeared to enjoy these conditions to have two bullets today to lie in first place overall. Hisaki Hagai was holding second place but was disqualified in race 2 after a protest. Jan Ter Haer Sierk from Netherlands is in second overall from his fellow countryman Ben Koppelaar.
There will some tired sailors today after some dramatic capsizes.
Last night sailors experienced an impressive opening ceremony in the Town Centre with local high school students carrying the 30 country flags representing the competitors. A local high school band accompanied the proceedings. The local dignitaries welcomed the group of nearly 200 sailors and their coaches and support teams to the city of Karatsu and the wonderful sailing waters of this region. A reception was held nearby with a wonderful array of Japanese food. A group of male dancers performed a traditional dance and then the famous Japanese drums and their talented performers came on stage to delight the assembled company.
Report courtesy of Linda Parrish
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| Karatsu Harbour (picture courtesy of Linda Parrish) |
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| Measurement Day in Karatsu(picture courtesy of Linda Parrish) |
Monday 3rd August and Tuesday 4th August 2009
Anticipation is high for the 59 Laser Radial senior sailors who have completed registration and measurement procedures.
The race committee has put on practice starts and course changes for the last two days so there is no excuse for the sailors not knowing how the races will be conducted. The sailors are also enjoying the large hard stand area, shaded tent area and the superb launching ramp.
The wind is predicted to remain in the same sector as last week but there is likely to be a period of rain and lighter wind later in the week. The typhoon at present centred around Hong Kong is the unknown wild card that, at this stage, is not expected to cause problems.
The opening ceremony is tonight in the city centre followed by a reception at the Arpino Hall a short walk away.
Report courtesy of Linda Parrish