Alberto Bolzan retains lead at Melges 24 Worlds
'Blu Moon - Volvo Melges 24 Worlds 2008'
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Italy's Alberto Bolzan, helming Pilot Italia for Gianni Catalogna, continues to lead the regatta by seven points after a stunning third day at the Volvo Melges 24 World Championship 2008, in Porto Cervo - - Clear skies, hot sunshine, crystal clear blue waters and a northwesterly breeze that built from around 16 knots at the start of racing to well into the 20s by the end of the afternoon.
The Race Committee successfully ran three Round Robin races on each of the two courses so that five of the 12 scheduled races have now been completed. One more Round Robin race remains to be sailed tomorrow before the fleet is divided into Gold and Silver groups for the final six races of the championship.
In the overall standings, scores are incredibly close. Italy's Alberto Bolzan, helming Pilot Italia for Gianni Catalogna, continues to lead the regatta by seven points, having added a 3-1-7 to his 2-1 scoreline from Sunday and making his team the only one with finishes all in the top-ten.
Lorenzo Bressani, helming Uka Uka Racing for Lorenzo Santini, has leapt up the board from ninth place to second thanks to putting in the day's most consistent score of 1-2-2, giving him 21 points overall.
Flavio Favini, helming the Swiss, Blu Moon for Franco Rossini, also had a great day, posting a 6-3 and then winning the final race to move up from eighth into third overall, five points behind Bressani.
Chicago's Brian Porter and his Full Throttle team got the day off to a good start with a second in race three, but a 13th in race four and an eighth in race five saw them slip from third to fourth overall. Switzerland's Jean-Marc Monnard, in Poizon Rouge, trails Porter by just one point in fifth place, while Italy's Luca Valerio, helming Alina Helly Hansen, lies sixth and will be eager for the discard to come into play after tomorrow's sixth race, as his score card currently reads 1-30-1-2-3.
In the Corinthian Division, for the all-amateur crews who are also scored in the Open Division, Norway's Oyvind Peder Jahre, sailing Terra Eindomsmeglng for Stian Briseid, continues to lead the regatta, having won the first two of today's races and come fourth in race five.
He is just four points ahead of Giovanni Pizzatti, helming ITA664 for Gian Luca Perego, who has moved up to second place while Jean-Francois Cruette, sailing FRA612 Bouygues Telecom for Cedrid De Kervenoael, remains in third place. Estonia's Tonu Toniste, sailing Lenny, is now lying fourth, with Bruce Ayres of the USA, on Monsoon, in fifth and on equal points with Antoine Albaret of Perros-Guirec.
Germany's Kicker Schafer, helming GER582 No Woman No Cry for Eddy Eich, was also unlucky today when the boat lost its rig during race four. After sailing Eddy Eich admitted, 'It was just a boat handling error, nothing else.' Fortunately, European Melges 24 builder Devoti Sailing is on hand with spare masts, and already a replacement tube is being prepared.
For tomorrow, the Race Committee has scheduled racing an hour earlier, for 10.30am. This is to give them additional time to run the final race of the Round Robin, then bring the competitors back ashore to hear any protests and announce the Gold and Silver fleet allocations before returning afloat as soon as possible to run races seven and (if conditions and time allow) eight. Tomorrow's forecast is for more good winds, possibly a little stronger than today and clocking slightly to the north.
Melges 24 - Leading positions after day 3
1. PILOT ITALIA Alberto Bolzan Gianni Catalogna, ITA, 2,1,3,1,7, 14.00
2. UKA UKA RACING Lorenzo Bressani Lorenzo Santini, ITA, 10,6,1,2,2, 21.00
3. BLU MOON Flavio Favini Franco Rossini, SUI, 11,5,6,3,1, 26.00
4. FULL THROTTLE Brian Porter Brian Porter, (Chicago, Ill./Geneva, Wis.) USA, 5,3,2,13,8, 31.00
5. POIZON ROUGE Jean Jean-Marc Monnard, SUI, 3,5,10,9,5, 32.00
6. ALINA HELLY HANSEN Luca Valerio Maurizio Abba, ITA, 1,30,1,2,3, 37.00
7. BRONTOLO AB MEDICA Matteo Ivaldi Filippo Pacinotti, ITA, 6,13,9,5,6, 39.00
8. COTES D'ARMOR Ronan Dreano Troel Simon, FRA, 2,9,4,20,7, 42.00
9. GULLISARA Carlo Fracassoli Comerio Giuseppe, ITA, 3,20,12,7,5, 47.00
10. EURO-VOILE Christophe Barrue Denis Infante, FRA, 16,10,10,5,8, 49.00
11. TEAM BARBARIANS Jamie Lea/Stuart Simpson GBR 1, 8, 29, 6, 11, 55.00
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Conte of Florence is an Official Supplier of the event. The Italian company has been a partner of the Volvo Cup for many years with a dedicated clothing line and is also present at the Volvo Melges 24 World Championship for which it has exclusively created technical garments. For more information, visit www.conteofflorence.com
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