| Yugtranzit is The New IMS Offshore World Champion |
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 Again no races for the Starboat Europeans due to lack of wind NEUSTADT, GERMANY (Friday, 11 August 2006) - Sergey Shevtsov's Russian team on Yugtranzit is new IMS Offshore World Champion in division 1. With two races to spare they hold a lead of more than 30 points over second placed Al Cap One(Peer Moberg, Norway) and cannot be beaten on the final day. The Star European Championships once again had no race on Friday because there was not enough wind on the Bay of Lübeck for the penultimate day of Rolex Baltic Week in Neustadt, Germany. An occluded front over the Baltic Sea resulted in a day where the wind had built to no more than eight knots mid-morning but by noon had disappeared altogether on the Bay of Lübeck. After ruthlessly squeezing in four races on Thursday despite the huge shifts and complete calms, even the Race Committee for Rolex Baltic Week's IMS Offshore World Championship only managed to get one race in for their two divisions. This started in around 8 knots of south-westerly breeze before the wind dropped to zero shortly after the leaders had finished. Once again the Grand Soleil 42 R Yugtranzit from the Sea of Azov put in a strong display finishing first, their third win during this year's Rolex Baltic Week. With seven races sailed they have been off the podium only once and now hold so great a lead in the IMS Offshore World Championship that they cannot be beaten even if two races are held tomorrow. "The Grand Soleils are much much quicker especially in under 6 knots," says IMS veteran Peter de Ridder. De Ridder, this year's IMS 600 champion, had been having a disappointing regatta on board his 11 year old Bashford Howison 41 Checkmate 3 and had been protested by Jani Lehti's Alfa Romeo over a port-starboard incident during the offshore race earlier in the week. Checkmate 3 was on port, without rights, and was alleged to have tacked too late and so was disqualified from both of that race's two parts. Yet despite one 17th place, de Ridder's yacht was second best scoring boat in yesterday's four windward-leeward races. This afternoon De Ridder received redress for his disqualifications from Rolex Baltic Week's International Jury. "If I get this corrected we still have a chance to end up within the top five," he said, however he is happy for Shevtsov's Russian team to take first place. "I think they are so quick especially in these conditions so I think it would be good if they won." In fact several protests brought against the Race Committee heard this afternoon has resulted in Monday's first offshore race being annulled and this has put Al Cap One into second place, two points ahead of Swede Ralf Aspholm's Data Communication, now third. This was a double bonus for the Norwegian Grand Soleil 42R as she came into her own today taking second place behind her Russian sistership Yugtranzit. Al Cap One is being skippered at this regatta by Norwegian Olympic Laser turned Finn sailor Peer Moberg, as owner Einar Sissener has injured his arm. "We had a good start and we won that and then the wind turned 30 degrees and died on one side of the course. So it was really difficult, but sailing is sailing. We were lucky to get our second place today," said Moberg. "Last year there was more wind and it was steadier and the owner was here so it was more fun." Once again the 80 strong Star boat fleet ventured out on to the chilly waters but the wind would not settle ultimately disappearing altogether. Exasperated the Race Committee could do nothing but send the men's Olympic keelboat class home. At present they have sailed five races but need to race one more for the series to comply with the minimum number of races for it to be considered a European Championship. After five races and having scored three wins in the first three races, Florida-based duo of Mark Mendelblatt and Mark Strube still dominate the championship on ten points, to the Brazilian Olympic triple medallist Robert Scheidt sailing with Bruno Prada on 25 and third placed Americans Andrew Horton and Brad Nicol on 27. Top European at present is Italian former Laser Olympic sailor Diego Negri and Lugi Viale. Negri says he is surprised to be the European leader in this championship. "We are sailing in the Star class only since last November and we've only had three or four weeks in our new Lillia [their new boat]. But the feeling is coming better and better day after day and we are learning how to set up the boat and the results are coming too. The regatta is very difficult because the wind is shifty a lot and so I am using my Laser experience to try to get out of the fleet as soon as possible and try to sail well on the shifts." While one more race must be held on Saturday at Rolex Baltic Week for the Star European Championship to be considered a valid regatta, an adequate number of races have been held in the IMS Offshore World Championship. Both classes will race on Saturday although the forecast of variable 2-5 knot winds in the morning and 4-7 knots from the northeast in the afternoon does not look too hopeful. This year's event is the third ever Rolex Baltic Week. It is the only Rolex-sponsored sailing regatta in Germany and the Baltic Sea. Overall results Rolex Baltic Week - IMS Offshore World Championship after one offshore, five inshores) Division 1: 1. "Yugtranzit" (Sergey Shevtsov/Russia) 14.63 points 2. "Al Cap One" (Peer Moberg/Norway) 46.50 3. "Data Communication" (Ralf Aspholm/Sweden) 48.50 4. "Imagine" (Peter Rudbäck/Sweden) 50.00 5. "Checkmate 3" (Peter de Ridder/Netherlands) 52.50 6. "Ocean Warrior" (Sverre N. Valeur/Norway) 53.00 Division 2: 1. "Froschkönig" (Detlef Amlong/Germany) 29.88 points 2. "No Limits" (Sven and Lars Christensen/Germany) 34.50 3. "Patent3" (Jürgen Klinghardt/Germany) 40.00 4. "Cala Ventinove" (Uwe Wenzel/Germany) 45.25 5. "Chinook" (Johann Friedrichsen/Germany) 46.75 6. "Static Electric" (Heiko Päsler/Germany) 51.75 Full results be published on the event website at www.Rolex-Baltic-Week.com Related Items:
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