Porto San Rocco (Muggia – Trieste), July 7, 2017 – After a long wait for wind on the second to the last day of ORC Worlds Trieste 2017 World Championships for Offshore Sailing, the three classes finally put a sixth race behind them, breaking up the top of the overall rankings for class C. The series concludes tomorrow when discards come into play after one regatta and this year’s champions are established.

Classes A and C, sent by the Regatta Committee to race in Slovenian waters, are the first to begin. At roughly 3:00pm class A has a clear start with winds of 270° and 7 knots for their windward/leeward course of 1.6 miles to complete three times. After the first lap, a wind shift of 30 degrees to port and an increase in intensity require repositioning of the windward mark, creating more competitive conditions and a duel between Hurakan and Freccia Rossa. After scoring, general victory goes to Altair 3 (Massimo Paniccia’s Scuderia 50), beating once again Vincenzo Onorato’s Cookson 50, Mascalzone Latino, in the general provisional rankings. Still in the lead is Maurizio Poser’s Swan 42, Sheraa Yacht Club Hannibal.

Class B, racing for the first time in the heart of the Gulf of Trieste (having raced in Slovene waters until yesterday in the racing field where classes A and C are today), is still until 4pm when a light breeze comes from the west, enough for an exciting race rich with changes in the top places for three star Swan 42s of the event. Massimo De Campo’s Selene Alifax, Renzo Grottesi’s BEWILD and Alberto Franchi’s Digital Bravo finish in that order a regatta cut short at the second beat. In overall rankings Croatian Nube (Diego Zanco’s X-41) are still in the lead, followed by Selene Alifax and BEWILD.   

Fleet C is not as lucky, and are not able to take advantage of wind conditions in the area between Koper and Isola (Slovenia), the same racing field as Class A. The first start ends with a general recall for too many boats over the starting line (OCS) at the start time. The second start, proceeding only on individual recalls, is cancelled after 0.2 miles because of constant wind rotation to the left. On the third start the regatta finally begins the windward/leeward course of 1.4 miles shortened to the second windward leg. Sarchiapone Fuoriserie Gianluigi Dubbini’s Italia 9.98 wins the race. A slight shakeup at the top of the rankings after 6 races when Sease, Giacomo and Franco Loro Piana’s Farr30, breaks away from Alessio Querin’s twin Mummy One Lab Met and Estonian Aivar Tullberg’s Arcona 340 Katariina II remains in third place.

Tomorrow the Racing committee has decided to use the entire day and has fixed the starting time for the first race at 11:00am. The weather forecasts do not indicate significant change over previous days.

GENERAL PROVISIONAL RANKINGS Class A

1. SHERAA (Swan 42), Maurizio Poser, ITA
2. ALTAIR 3 (Scuderia 50), Sandro Paniccia, ITA
3. MASCALZONE LATINO (Cookson 50), Vincenzo Onorato, ITA
4. FRECCIA ROSSA (TP52), Vadim Yakimenko, RUS
5. AERONAUTICA MILITARE DUENDE (Vismara 46), Raffaele Giannetti, ITA

Class B

1. NUBE (X-41), Diego Zanco, CRO
2. SELENE ALIFAX (Swan 42), Massimo De Campo, NED
3. BEWILD (Swan 42), Renzo Grottesi, ITA
4. HORUS TEMPUS FUGIT (M45), Nadia Canalaz, ITA
5. DIGITAL BRAVO (Swan 42), Alberto Franchi, ITA

Class C

1. SEASE (Farr 30), Giacomo e Franco Loro Piana, ITA
2. MUMMY ONE – LAB MET (Farr 30), Alessio Querin, ITA
3. KATARIINA II (Arcona 340), Aivar Tuulberg, EST
4. HANSEN (X-37), Michael Mollmann, DEN
5. AIRIS (Melges), Roberto Monti, ITA