Day 1 Act 2 Qingdao:
The Gloves Are Off In Qingdao. |
| By Extreme Sailing Series 2011 Media. |
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Photos by Lloyd Images,
edited By Peter Andrews. |
| April 13, 2011. |
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| The dramatic city landscape of Qingdao provided the backdrop for Day 1 of the Extreme Sailing Series Qingdao, Act 2 of the 2011 global tour. The horseshoe shaped Fushan Bay is home to the Extreme 40 fleet for the next five days; surrounded by high-rise buildings of this huge industrial city. Qingdao is China’s fourth largest manufacturing port and is also know known as the ‘City of Sails’. |
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The fleet on the start line, during the Extreme Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao,
China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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| Qingdao hosted the Olympic sailing events of the 2008 Beijing Games, in addition to being a stopover port for both the Volvo Ocean Race and the Clipper Race. But the people of Qingdao haven’t seen anything like the Extreme 40s’ before and although these first two days are non-public days, hundreds of public gathered along the huge pedestrian breakwater to see first-hand the boats in race mode. |
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A Thai Chi Fan performance at the Qingdao Olympic Sailng Centre, during
the Extreme Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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Six races were staged today just outside of the breakwater in a good easterly breeze, that was blowing between 10 and 15 knots. For any shore based spectators, the ‘open water’ courses were still close enough for them to follow each race and watch the action unfold.
The gloves were off from the beginning and it was clear the 11 teams were going to push for every inch of water, resulting in two minor crashes. Groupe Edmond de Rothschild collided with Alinghi, while Red Bull Extreme Sailing barreled into the back of team Niceforyou’s port side hull. |
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Team Extreme heading out of the Fushan Bay harbour, during the Extreme
Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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It was Dean Barker’s Emirates Team New Zealand who had the best day however, finishing at the top of the leaderboard with 49 points.
"We started off a little bit slowly and then we steadily improved, our worst result was a 7th," said Barker. "It was testing today as we haven’t had the ideal preparation and I’ve been a little bit crook with food poisoning, but it was good to get out there. The racing is really tight but it is the reason we are here, we want to test ourselves as much as we can against the best multihull sailors in the world, and this is the place to be." |
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Emirates Team New Zealand, during the Extreme Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao,
China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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The Kiwi campaign is gathering momentum from their impressive start in Act 1 in Oman, which saw Barker’s men find their form over the final two days to finish 4th overall. And today’s 1st, 2nd, two 4th places, 5th and 7th place demonstrated that they are steadily on the upward curve.
The Wave from Muscat (Torvar Mirsky), Red Bull Extreme Sailing (Roman Hagara) and Artemis Racing (Santiago Lange) ended the first day on equal points with 47. Lange is a six-time Olympian, a bronze medalist in 2004 and competitor in Qingdao at the 2008 Olympic Games, was delighted with his first Extreme 40 experience. |
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Artemis Racing skippered by Santiago Lange for Act 2, during the Extreme
Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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"I love it! I think we have had great wind conditions for Qingdao and I enjoyed it a lot. We have only practiced the day before and yesterday for a couple of hours so I felt that I was not going to perform one hundred per cent," said Lange. "It’s the first time we sailed together and it was a challenge as I have some issues with the language especially in the heat of the battle!"
Roman Hagara was also enthusiastic with his team’s performance. They were third overall in the standings equaling their overall podium result in Oman, the first time the Red Bull Extreme Sailing team made the Extreme Sailing Series podium.
"Overall today was pretty good for us. We had some ups and downs but everybody was making mistakes and so were we but that is racing," said Hagara. |
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Red Bull Extreme Sailing and The
Wave, Muscat racing, during the Extreme
Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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The Swiss-team Alinghi skippered by Tanguy Cariou and helmed by Frenchman Yann Guichard, had a good and a bad day with two 1st places in race 3 and 5. But three results in the bottom half had left them in 5th place overall after the first day.
Max Sirena’s Luna Rossa improved in the second half, finding some consistency to leave them in 6th place, a good 8 points ahead of Act 1 victors, Groupe Edmond de Rothschild. Two second-places was best race results of the day for Groupe Edmond de Rothschild. |
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Manuel Modena ‘hanging around’ onboard Luna
Rossa, during the Extreme Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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Chinese sailor, William Wu on board Roland Gaebler’s Team Extreme had his first Extreme 40 race experience. Having had little time to train together, Gaebler’s team will be looking to improve on their current 10th place standing as Act 2 unfolds.
Tonight the 11 teams will be attending the ‘Official Opening Ceremony’ at the Shangri-La Hotel attended by Qingdao’s city dignitaries and the Qingdao organising committee. |
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The fleet racing in Fushan Bay, Qingdao, during the Extreme Sailing Series
2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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Extreme Sailing Series Act 2 Qingdao
Current overall standings after Day 1.
Position / Team / Skipper & crew / Points.
| 1st |
Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Dean Barker, Glenn Ashby, Jeremy Lomas and Richard Meacham on 49 points. |
| 2nd |
The Wave, Muscat (OMA), Torvar Mirsky, Kyle Langford, Nick Hutton and Khamis Al Anbouri on 47 points. |
| 3rd |
Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT), Roman Hagara, Hans Peter Steinacher, Will Howden and Craig Monk on 47 points. |
| 4th |
Artemis Racing (SWE), Santiago Lange, Rodney Adern, Morgan Trubovich and Andy Fethers on 47 points. |
| 5th |
Alinghi (SUI), Tanguy Cariou, Yann Guichard, Nils Frei and Yves Detrey on 44 points. |
| 6th |
Luna Rossa (ITA), Max Sirena, Paul Campbell-James, Alister Richardson and Manuel Modena on 42 points. |
| 7th |
Groupe Edmond de Rothschild (FRA), Pierre Pennec, Christophe Espagnon, Thierry Fouchier and Hervé Cunningham on 34 points. |
| 8th |
Niceforyou (ITA), Alberto Barovier, Mark Bulkeley, Daniele de Luca and Simone de Mari on 28 points. |
| 9th |
Oman Air (OMA), Sidney Gavignet, Kinley Fowler, David Carr and Nasser Al Mashari on 24 points. |
| 10th |
Team Extreme (EUR), Roland Gaebler, Bruno Dubois, Sebbe Godefroid and William Wu on 24 points. |
| 11th |
Team GAC Pindar (GBR), Ian Williams, Brad Webb, Gilberto Nobili and Jono Macbeth on 10 points. |
To view a video of Seb Destremau’s interview with William Wu, go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UrVjm7vC-A&feature=player_profilepage.
For more information: www.extremesailingseries.com. |
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| Outimage and the
Extreme Sailing Series™ © 2011 |
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