1998 Finn Gold Cup - Athens, Greece

 

 
     
1
2
3
4
5
6
Total
1
POL 17
Mateusz Kusznierewicz
1
24
2
2
9
2
16
2
SWE 7
Fredrik Loof
2
3
10
9
1
5
20
3
FRA 778
Xavier Rohart
19
15
3
1
7
1
27
4
BEL 7
Sebastien Godefroid
8
6
26
3
5
6
28
5
GRE 6
Emilios Papathanasiou
4
27
11
6
8
3
32
6
CRO 11
Karlo Kuret
9
5
1
44
3
20
38
7
GBR 54
Iain Percy
26
1
24
4
2
8
39
8
CZE 304
Michael Maier
25
2
14
7
10
11
44
9
GER 79
Michael Fellmann
13
11
33
8
4
15
51
10
CAN 11
Richard Clarke
3
8
23
39
14
22
70
11
IRL 8
David Burrows
7
39
35
5
16
10
73
12
GER 6
Andreas Buchert
11
48
4
23
29
17
84
13
RSA 1
Ian Ainslie
32
4
17
27
6
85
86
14
ITA 14
Nenad Viali
20
28
18
24
12
12
86
15
POL 4
Dominik Zycki
37
13
5
16
17
39
88
16
CRO 118
Bartul Misura
23
18
64
28
21
9
99
17
NED 701
Martijn van Muyden
38
19
20
30
27
4
100
18
GBR 550
Richard Stenhouse
16
23
45
11
26
24
100
19
ITA 71
Massimo Gherarducci
17
26
22
15
22
31
102
20
NZL 27
Clifton Webb
39
9
30
10
19
85
107
21
AUS 221
Anthony Nossiter
12
10
66
21
42
23
108
22
UKR 21
Juri Tokovoi
6
30
19
26
28
42
109
23
RUS 21
Oleg Khopersky
10
34
54
14
32
19
109
24
BRA 1
Bruno Prada
15
29
6
22
41
85
113
25
USA1074
Russ Silvestri
27
17
29
12
36
36
121
26
NZL 242
Ian Baker
21
43
46
13
38
7
122
27
ITA 55
Walter Riosa
56
12
21
32
33
25
123
28
GRE 1
George Kontogouris
28
25
16
41
64
13
123
29
GBR 564
Jamie Lea
65
20
9
18
23
85
135
30
GBR 8
Tim Carver
24
21
12
42
37
85
136
31
AUS 222
Paul McKenzie
85
32
52
25
13
28
150
32
NZL 11
Joe Spooner
59
16
67
35
24
16
150
33
DEN 143
Lasse Hjortnaes
43
42
15
54
25
32
157
34
IRL 1
John Driscoll
47
50
74
17
18
35
167
35
CZE 479
Michal Hruby
30
7
53
46
53
33
169
36
CAN 201
Lawrence Lemieux
45
67
8
53
20
44
170
37
NZL 19
Stuart Bannatyne
33
53
28
34
46
38
179
38
GBR 540
David Mellor
50
85
34
19
57
21
181
39
BEL 2
Philippe Rogge
42
40
25
33
43
43
183
40
GRE 11
Christos Chionas
34
22
36
43
51
85
186
41
ESP 260
Agustin Juarez
36
38
49
47
44
26
191
42
TUR 3
Arif Gurdenli
22
36
50
31
54
85
193
43
SUI 464
Peter Theurer
85
14
37
60
65
18
194
44
NED 696
Wiebe Schippers
35
37
43
38
55
45
198
45
ITA 1
Luca Devoti
5
85
13
85
11
85
199
46
GBR 15
Charlie Cumbley
49
47
38
62
31
34
199
47
ITA 11
Mario Salani
40
54
47
29
40
46
202
48
POL 41
Andrej Czapski
14
55
81
58
15
62
204
49
AUS 219
Findlay Taylor
44
69
73
20
35
41
209
50
CAN 19
Ray Davies
53
33
58
55
68
14
213
51
SUI 451
Christoph Burger
18
56
63
64
48
29
214
52
ESP 100
Rajael Trujillo Villar
29
35
44
85
39
67
214
53
IRL 10
Colin Chapman
60
46
42
36
30
85
214
54
RUS 31
Eugeny Chernov
31
45
51
61
61
30
218
55
FRA 791
Mathieu Deplanque
41
60
41
37
60
49
228
56
USA1151
Darrell Peck
85
52
59
40
34
55
240
57
NED 733
Stefan de Vries
63
41
39
48
50
65
241
58
USA1078
Andrew Kern
48
59
40
57
49
48
242
59
GRE 8
Alexandros Dragoutsis
46
72
7
68
58
85
251
60
USA1149
Chic Parsons
72
31
61
63
62
40
257
61
SUI 456
Christoph Christen
58
64
32
52
67
58
264
62
ITA15
Michele Machesini
54
61
56
51
56
47
264
63
FRA 7
Sylvain Chtounder
62
63
76
76
47
27
275
64
CZE 13
Rudolf Lidarik
70
51
31
73
71
56
279
65
USA1140
John Callahan
71
76
60
45
69
37
282
66
BRA 101
Fabio Bodra
52
58
75
59
66
50
285
67
NED 707
Marc Blees
51
68
62
50
59
63
285
68
TUR 44
Akif Muslubas
66
70
55
66
45
59
291
69
EST 8
Imre Taveter
67
44
57
65
63
68
296
70
GER 81
Jan -Dietmar Dellas
61
57
79
56
70
53
297
71
GRE
Leonidas Pelekanakis
85
77
69
49
52
60
307
72
GER 22
Mantin Mitterer
55
71
68
67
74
51
312
73
NOR 108
Lars Petter Field
64
49
80
70
76
66
325
74
NED 76
Ewout Meijer
85
73
48
78
78
52
329
75
USA1150
David Beyers
69
65
70
74
75
54
332
76
USA1138
Scott Griffiths
57
66
72
69
72
69
333
77
BLR 1
Vladimir Zuev
85
85
27
75
77
70
334
78
USA1087
Charles Hagedorn
68
62
78
72
73
61
336
79
BRA 100
Mauricio Bueno
74
75
65
71
80
57
342
80
UKR 47
Sergei Kotov
75
74
71
79
79
71
370
81
YUG 82
Srdjan Volarevic
73
78
83
80
82
73
386
82
YUG 1
Istvan Boya
77
85
85
85
84
64
395
83
USA1163
Emil de Balthazar
78
85
77
85
83
72
395
84
GBR 13
John de Leeuw
76
85
82
77
81
85
401
 
 

FINN GOLD CUP 1998 REPORT

The 1998 Finn Gold Cup was sailed from 16-23 August in Athens, Greece, on the same water that will be used for the 2004 Olympic Games. Mateusz Kusznierewicz secured his first major victory since his Olympic Gold Medal in 1996, and in doing so became the first reigning Olympic Champion to win the Gold Cup for 25 years. Report and photos by Corinne Rolland-McKenzi

The 1998 Finn Gold Cup organising Committee did some great work on a short deadline after the withdrawal of Durban in April. They were also able to secure important sponsorship from RE/MAX (International Real Estate Group), Super Sport (TV channel specialised in Sport) and SuperFast ferries who offered half price transportation to the sailors for the event. The entrance hall of the Peace and Friendship stadium was converted to a sailing club. In a week, a 600 square meter bare room was fitted with 9 offices, a souvenir shop, a lounge... and all facilities to allow everyone of the 41 organising Committee team members to work. JŸri Saraskin, IFA Chief Measurer was the first one impressed with the facilities: ÒThis is the best measurement area have I come across in all my lifetime as a measurer.

The practice race was as usual, a pale rehearsal of the real thing...all boats crossed the line early, sailed one windward beat and went home!

A few of the following race reports were written by the new World Champion, Mateusz Kusznierewicz.

Race 1

Mateusz’ race report read: The ‘Meltemi’ wind from the Acropolis gave us a lot of fun and work to do during this race. It was very shifty all the time making racing very difficult. After the start it was easy to recognise what was the tactic of whole fleet. Heroes of the right lead by Super-Seb were going closer to the shore catching a late big shift. On the left I saw about 20 boats hitting the corner to find more wind on the open bay. Only myself and Freddy choose the middle. This paid off as we rounded the top mark 1st and 2nd. We felt Emilios and Andrzej on our back but the rest were far behind. During the whole race it was nice to watch from 1st place how the good guys were constantly filling up the top places. Really nice comeback on the finish for Richard Clarke in 3rd by beating Emilios just on the finish.

At the end of his training last week Mateusz had said ÒI have been preparing myself for a long time for the Finn Gold Cup. Now I feel ready. My coach, Andy, told me that the sailing conditions in Athens were similar to what I have at home. So I spent lots of time training in Puck (Poland).

Race 2

Mateusz’ race report read: 'With a long postponement and a lot of wind (Meltemi again) we started the race around 12.30. It has not happened not very often this season, but today we had a 40¡ wind shift just 5 seconds before the starting gun. All of us who started on the vessel side of the starting line were already 150 meters behind the leaders. At the top mark the lead was held by ‘Golo’ Ainslie followed by Iain Percy and Mike Hruby. The wind was shifting a lot during the whole 2 hours and 13 min race. The race was won by Iain Percy followed by Mike Maier and Freddy.

After coming back to the shore, Iain Percy explained ÒWith such shifty conditions, it is much easier to be in front than behind. I only had to stay in the middle during the following beats to secure both sides. Then on the run, I know I am fast. That’s when I increased my lead on the others.

Race 3

Mateusz’ race report read: 'This was the first day with a nice seabreeze. From the beginning until the end of the race we had between 5 and 12 knots. When all the Finn sailors where going out I noticed that all of them are a bit confused because of new weather conditions. I decided to talk about it not only with my coach but also with someone else (Karlo Kuret). Actually during the race we did some different tactics but finally both rounded the top mark in the lead just behind Jamie Lea. The wind paid more in the middle putting still more pressure on the left. Karlo was going well especially on the downwind legs when the Jury paid a lot of attention to all the Bad Boys. Xavier also impressed me and was sailing great in the light winds, finishing 3rd!!! At the end of the race the wind died and Dominik Zycki got a 5th and Andreas Buchert a 4th.

It was the first time that Karlo Kuret had won a race at a Gold Cup. ‘I think that I have a good speed in all conditions thanks to the sail I developed with Victory. These new sails are good in all weather, I always use the same one and it is a big advantage.’ confided Karlo.

Race 4

The start of the race was delayed while the sea breeze established itself but around 2 pm the wind was a steady 12 knots. After a general recall race 4 started at 2.30pm. Xavier Rohart started near the Committee boat before crossing the course towards the left. He rounded the top mark in front of Mateusz and Iain Percy.

The reach started with Mateusz and and Iain Percy trying their best to overtake Xavier. The Frenchman retained his speed, keeping ahead of his followers: 'I just focused on the mark in front of me, without worrying about any one else. I let Mateusz and Iain fight each other and sailed my own race.

At the end of the first reach, Iain Percy had passed Mateusz and at the bottom mark, Xavier was still in front, with Mateusz back in second place. The next beats followed the same pattern as the first. Xavier won the race with a good lead on Mateusz and Sebastien.

Race 5

The sea breeze, similar to the last two days, came late and increased from 8 to 18 knots during the race. The fleet was evenly spread on the starting line with all the regatta favourites grouped at the pin end with the only exception of Fredrik who chose to start at the Committee boat end. ‘My main goal was to start clear from everyone else. I saw that the line was quite even and it didn’t matter to me which side I chose if I had clear wind. I know that I have good speed and that I can point high. With a good start I had the best chance to cross in front of most sailors. The first beat worked exactly as Fredrik had planned. After a good start and constant speed, the Swede was first around the top mark. He was closely followed by Larry Lemieux who enjoyed the light conditions (8 knots).

During the reaches, the wind nearly doubled in strength. At the next windward mark, Fredrik was still in front of Karlo, Ian Ainslie and Iain Percy. The extended run gave Fredrik the opportunity to make the break with his followers. It also allowed Iain Percy to take second position on Karlo. The last beat saw Fredrik winning the race in front of Iain Percy, Karlo and Michael Fellmann.

Fredrik Lššf, despite winning the race easily, was worried by Ian Ainslie at times but especially by Iain Percy, who was very fast on the beat as well as on the downwind legs. Fredrik has been using the same rig since the start of the regatta. 'I try as much as possible to use only one rig for all types of conditions in a regatta. I am using a Latini mast and a Swedish Sobstad (Polyester) sail.'

Race 6

After a postponement from the shore to let the sea breeze settle and a black flag start which cost a few heads it needed another general recall followed by another black flag start for Race 6 to finally get under way.

Only a few chose to start at the pin end of the line. Emilios Papathanasiou took a terrific start around the mark on port tack. Luca Devoti had also selected the pin end but went further to the left on starboard tack. He was the first one to reach the top of the course, closely followed by Emilios. During the reaches, Emilios passed in front of Luca and Mateusz climbed from 6th to second. After the second beat Emilios was still in front of Mateusz. Xavier Rohart, 11th after the first beat was now in 4th place. Luca had a disastrous second beat dropping from 3rd to 25th place and decided to abandon. Mateusz put his Òturbo on during the run to pass Emilios 10 meters before the bottom mark with Xavier Rohart in third place.

The climax of the race was definitely on the last beat. Emilios and Mateusz started match racing each other on the left side of the course. In the meantime, Xavier was making progress further right, until the finishing line came so close that Mateusz finally realised that the real danger now was more in the French than the Greek! He came charging in just to be at Xavier’s side 20 meters before the finish. Xavier, tacking on the line, won the race by a few centimetres!

Xavier Rohart had won his second race of the championship. When asked about his tactics for the last day: ÒI will not worry about the others, I will do my own race and will try to win it as today!

Race 7 - No race

But he didn’t get the chance! The race committee were on the water evaluating options and kept all the sailors ashore in suspense, but when they decided the chances of having a start before the deadline of 2 pm were gone, they sounded the horn. This meant that Mateusz had won the Gold Cup. Since his Olympic Gold medal in 1996, Mateusz has managed to stay at his best to finally win a World title. Fredrik Loof came very close to winning the Gold Cup for a third time. With just 4 points dividing the two, anything would have been possible, but the wind decided otherwise and came too late to allow a race within the time limit. Fredrik will take his place on the Gold Cup podium for the 6th year in a row! Third place goes to Xavier Rohart, winner of two races but only one point ahead of Sebastien Godefroid.

Of course, the ongoing development in the rig, especially in the sail cloth have obliged sailors to up date their equipment to stay competitive. Once again, the new materials (vectran, polyester, monofilm...) have been widely used and proved successful.

All competitors are unanimously grateful to the Hellenic Yachting Federation and Olympiakos for organising such a great event. Principal Race Officer Takis Nikiforides and his Race Committee set the standard for 6 quality races. The IFA thanks the Hellenic Yachting Federation and Olympiakos for putting together a memorable Finn Gold Cup, and congratulates the sailors on some great and exciting racing.

This year’s Gold Cup had the added pressure and excitement of being the first qualifier of the Finn event in the 2000 Games. Congratulations go to the top eight competitors who have successfully qualified their countries for a place on the starting line in Sydney. The next Olympic qualification opportunity will be at the 1999 Gold Cup in Melbourne.

© 2024, International Finn Association, Inc