A strong European 49er championships start for last week's gold medal winners Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern was ruined yesterday by a start line disqualification in race three. The Ballyholme Yacht Club pair opened their Euro account with a solid sixth placing. They moved up to a second in the second race of the day before being scored 'UFD' in race three. The sole Irish pair in the 72–boat fleet lie 28th with more qualifying races today.  

The UFD rule (similar to the Black Flag) came into effect yesterday as a means of keeping the highly competitive fleet from starting prematurely. Under the rule, a boat within the triangle formed by the ends of the line and the first mark during the minute before the start is disqualified without a hearing.

In the women's 49erFX division, Ireland's Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey also fell foul of the UFD rule in their opening race and lie 19th from 37. 

The super competitive 49er fleets lined up and stretched their legs as racing got under way from the world class Barcelona International Sailing centre close to where the 1992 Olympics were held.

The 49erFX raced in the afternoon sessions of the day and Netherland's emerging stars Annemiek Bekkering and Annette Duetz started the championship in the same dominant manner that they took home the Princess Sofia Trophy from Palma de Majorca last week. 

The yellow fleet of the 49er got racing under way to start the championship, and all three active class medalists drew the same fleet and engaged with one another. Once again it was the London Silver medalists Peter Burling and Blair Tuke who got the best start of all.

In the Blue 49er fleet, Austrians Nico Delle Karth with Niko Resch, fresh off their Silver medal at the 2016 World Championship got off to a good start with a 1, 7, 2 to sit in second overall after the first night.

The forecast for the rest of the week in Barcelona is outstanding, with endless sun and wind on offer. It could get really windy for the final day of qualifying, so putting in solid performances on today's day 2's qualifying will be vital in case the third day gets blown out. The schedule for day 2 is for the 49erFX to start with three races followed by the 49er doing four races.

Results are here

Only a week after a spectacular gold medal in Palma, Belfast Lough's Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern are back in action this morning at the 49er European Championships in Barcelona.

Qualifying rounds start today until Wednesday with the finals from April 14-17. It would be an impressive performance for Team Ireland if the skiff pair could keep the momentum going in their Rio campaign.

After some earlier disappointing performances by their own accuont, last week's medal now raises the prospect of a strong Olympic Skiff result in four months time. Rio will be the second Olympics for the Northern Ireland duo and the dream of a top ten place in the mens 49er comes with it.

Last week's Mediterranean gold is an endorsement of the progress the Ballyholme Yacht Club pair have made, especially beating 2012 Olympic Champions Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen of Australia.

The joint-funded Irish Sailing Association (ISA) and Royal Yachting Association Northern Ireland team were 14th at the last Olympics and have had brief spots near the top of the fleet, including silver at the Sailing World Cup Hyeres Regatta in 2014, but last week they showed the depth of their ambition when they stepped to the top of the podium. Helmsman Seaton concluded: 'To be so solid has been important. This was really a training regatta along the way, it's important but it is a great platform for us and the confidence it brings, winning a big regatta at this stage, is immense.'

It is a major boost and Seaton is wise to put the result in context. It was not a Sailing World Cup regatta, and, as such, these events are often used by top sailors to test gear and try new tactics. With big fleets in attendance, the Trofeo Princesa Sofia was a test bed opportunity and the Belfast crew took full advantage of it but Seaton knows the real test is the European Championships in Barcelona this morning, in what will be a deep fleet, they come face to face with Blair Tuke and Peter Burling, the Kiwi world champions who have won every regatta they have entered this quadrennial.

Also racing in Barcelona this week is the Rio qualified skiff of Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey.

It was business as usual for Kiwi duo Pete Burling and Blair Tuke who wrapped up their fourth world title at the 49er World Championships with a Gold Fleet race to spare, and ended up winning by a massive 41 points. While the Medal Race was a formality for the victorious Kiwis, there was a very close battle for the silver and bronze. Meanwhile, Irish hopes of a top ten finish at this year's Olympics have been boosted with a highly credible top ten finish by Rio qualified Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern of Belfast Lough who were tenth overall in the 68–boat fleet. See the full results here.

Final top three

49er

1. Peter Burling / Blair Tuke, NZL, 40
2. Nico Luca Marc Delle Karth / Nikolaus Liopold Resch, AUT, 81
3. Dylan Fletcher-Scott / Alain Sign, GBR, 88

49er FX
1. Tamara Echegoyen / Berta Betanzos, ESP, 62
2. Maiken Foght Schutt / Anne-Julie Schutt, DEN, 75
3. Victoria Jurczok / Anika Lorenz, GER, 76

Olympic sailors Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern continue to stay very much on target at the 49er Worlds in America this week, surviving a very light day three of the championships in Clearwater, Florida. Yesterday, kicked off with a sunny, 4-8 knot variance giving everyone a sigh of relief and readiness. The Belfast duo are now 13th overall counting an 8, 26.0 2, 6.0 14.0.

The fleet rigged up and got after it early launching to make a 10am start. The breeze dropped quite a bit, but after one general recall, the fleets were able to begin their day. One race was sailed in a slowly dying 5-7 knots, but unfortunately a third of the fleets were DNF due to the almost non-existent pressure. Almost two hours later and the 49er gods finally answered the RC's prayers. A building sea breeze allowed the boys to sail three more races getting a total of four in before the ladies were sent out to reap the same wind benefits.

The Irish 49erFX pairing still searching for Olympic qualification for this Summer's Olympics have withdrawn from this week's World Championships due to an ankle injury. Helmswoman Andrea Brewster sustained the knock in the lead up to last month's Miam World Cup event. Now, Brewster & crew Saskia Tidey will instead focus on getting ready for a qualification battle in Palma in March.

The Royal Irish Yacht Club pairing narrowly missed out on qualification in November last at the World Championships in Argentina. Now one European place remains available, which they can still compete for at the Princess Sofia regatta in late March in Palma, Mallorca but there is still cause for optimism in the Irish camp because on the basis of Brewster and Tidey's finishing position in Buenos aires they could well pick up the remaining African slot at the Palma World Cup in March as there does not appear to be an African nation with a 49erFx campaign.

Ryan Seaton & Matt McGovern are 15th from 56 after the first race of the 49er World Championships in Clearwater, Florida until Sunday. Having already qualified for the Olympic games, they will be using the regatta as preparation for the this summer's Olympics. Former World Cup silver medallists and Olympians at the London 2012 games, the Irish 49er skiff pairing are up against the world’s best sailors, including Australian Olympic champions Nathan Outteridge & Iain Jensen and the unbeaten New Zealand pairing of Peter Burling & Blair Tuke, who have not lost a competitive race in over 3 years on the global circuit.

In an ISA press release issued yesterday, Seaton commented on this year’s championships: "We feel the last few months of training and competition have been productive and this gives us another chance to prepare for the Olympics against the best sailors in the world. This is the last major championships before the World Cup series and we are looking to continue the work we have done on process, particularly around the start time. With two black flag disqualifications last week, we still have tweaking to do."

Providence Team IRL Performance Director, James O'Callaghan commented on the 49er's chances at the 2016 Worlds: “Only every four years does the Worlds get overshadowed. Even at this stage of the season the focus is on the Olympics this summer, so while a result would be a good marker to put down, it’s more important to improve skill sets in readiness for August. A World championships offers that opportunity in a high calibre fleet.”

Irish Olympic class sailors were tested again yesterday in fickle Miami breezes on the second day of the World Sailing Cup on Biscayne Bay. The important regatta marks the build up to the Rio Olympics in less that 200 days.

After six races In the mens 49er skiff Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern from Belfast Lough lie 30th in a fleet of 61, up 20 places from Monday's poor start when the Belfast Lough duo were black flagged for a starting line penalty in race two.

Only two races have been sailed so far in the Laser Radial class which forms the second round of the irish trial for the single Rio berth between Annalise Murphy of the National Yacht Club and Aoife Hopkins of Howth Yacht Club. It was another long day with only one race completed. Hopkins has moved into 36th and Murphy is in 53rd in the 81–boat fleet. An earlier start is planned today and three races scheduled.

A 'niggling' foot Injury has forced the withdrawal of 49erfx campaigners Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey who  are not competing.

In the Paralympic Sonar, John Twomey, Ian Costelloe and Austin O'Carroll are sixth from nine.

Click here for the results table.

Sailors opening their curtains in Miami yesterday morning would have been welcomed by a pleasant breeze that was enough to put a grin on their faces.

Upon arriving at the venues of Sailing World Cup Miami their grins were to turn into a smile as a 14 knot south eastern breeze whipped its way around Biscayne Bay.

Predicted to hold throughout the day, the breeze was unable to sustain its tempo, dropping early afternoon and in the words of Australia's Jason Waterhouse it was a day to 'have your head on a screw.'

In the end, only the 49er, Laser and Paralympic fleets completed their full schedule of racing for the day with the remainder either completing three, two, one or in the RS:X Women and Finn fleets case, no races.

Laser and Laser Radial

Dutch sailor Rutger van Schaardenburg continued his solid start to the regatta with a first and sixth today. It was a slight step down from his 2-1 yesterday, but it was still the best score of the day, nipping Filip Jurišić (CRO) by virtue of a tiebreaker. Van Schaardenburg retains command of the overall lead, six points ahead of Jurišić. Behind the Croatian sailor, however, lies a tightly packed mob of top Laser talent; just 23 points separates second from 22nd. Included in that group is five-time Olympic medalist Robert Scheidt (BRA) in 13th and American medal hopeful Charlie Buckingham (USA) in 14th. Buckingham is in the first stage of the selection series for the U.S. Olympic Team. While US Sailing Team Sperry teammate Chris Barnard (USA) is not off to a good start, Erik Bowers (USA) is just 2 points behind Buckingham in the overall standings. The Lasers will hope for two races tomorrow and then, regardless of how many races have been completed, the fleet will be split into Gold and Silver Groups for the final two days of full-fleet racing.

49er and 49erFX

'Keeping it consistent' is a term every racing sailor aspires to and that term could not be more appropriate in the Olympic sailing arena.

Sailors don't necessarily have to win a race to claim a medal. Regular results at the front of the pack can go a long way to ensure you're there at the end when it counts.

Argentina's Victoria Travascio and Maria Sol Branz are well known for their light breeze consistency and they personified that once again by picking up a 2-1-2.

"We did very good and it was really cool,” explained Travisco. "We managed three good starts and that was it really. The first we went on the left, had a good start and stayed on the left.”

The Argentineans demonstrated their light wind nous in the middle of 2015, winning Pan American Games gold on Lake Ontario in Toronto, Canada. Miami's conditions on Tuesday suited them and they have leapt up the leader board, tied for third with Brazil's Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze (BRA).

Ragna and Maia Agerup (NOR) hold their overnight lead with Alex Maloney and Molly Meech (NZL) in second.

Defending Miami 49er champions Nico Delle-Karth and Nikolaus Resch (AUT) took over at the top of the pile after four races. They opened up with a 13th, which they discarded before swiftly following up with a fourth, second and a first. They occupy first overall on 12 points.

James Peters and Fynn Sterritt (GBR) are second on 19 and overnight leaders Jorge Lima and Jose Costa (POR) drop to third on 24 points.

Paralympic Classes

Three 2.4mR races have thrown out different victors in each. Bruce Millar (CAN) took the first bullet on the opening day and in Tuesday's two, Peter Eagar (CAN) and Helena Lucas (GBR) crossed the line first in races two and three.

As a result, the trio are separated by one point at the top of the leader board. Miller leads on three points followed by Eagar and Lucas on four.

Paul Tingley, Logan Campbell and Scott Lutes (CAN) grabbed the lead in the Sonar following a second and a discarded seventh. Race wins went to Aleksander Wang-Hansen, Jacob Haug and Per Eugen Kristiansen as well as Alphonsus Doerr, Brad Kendell and Hugh Freund who are eighth and fifth respectively.

Racing resumes on Wednesday 27 January at 10:00 local time. The Laser, Laser Radial and 49er will complete their qualification series and many of the fleets will be looking to catch up on races lost over two challenging days.

A mixed Irish sailing team of youth and experience compete in Miami this morning at the start of Olympic year that includes, as previously reported on Afloat.ie, the second round of the women's Irish Laser Radial trial between Annalise Murphy and Aoife Hopkins. 

Already qualified for Rio, Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern are racing in the 49er as is the three-man Paralympic Sonar sailing team of John Twomey, Ian Costello and Austin O’Carroll. Still seeking an Olympic nomination are hopefuls Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey in the 49erFX class.

In less than 200 days, many of the nearly 800 sailors gathered in Coconut Grove this week will walk in the Opening Ceremonies of the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games. For the sailors with a confirmed spot in the Olympic Regatta, this event is about sharpening their tactical game, refining their equipment and improving their conditioning. Others have a more immediate focus as they are in the midst of a selection series for their respective countries or working to qualify their country for the Olympic regatta.

Team Seaton-McGovern will be looking to take last season’s ups and downs into what is a tough regatta, and with stiff competition from the world’s best skiff crews, the pressure is on. In the 49erFX boat, Team Brewster-Tidey will be looking to build on last year’s  performances in preparation for a final qualification bid.

“There’s a lot at stake this year at Sailing World Cup Miami,” said Josh Adams, Managing Director of U.S. Olympic Sailing. “For the first time in the event’s 27-year history, it’s being used as part of the U.S. selection process and part of country qualification process for the 2016 Olympic Games.”

For American sailors in eight of the Olympic classes and the 2.4mR, this event is the first of two events that will determine the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team for this summer’s Games.

Sailing World Cup Miami is the second of six regattas in the 2016 series. From 25-30 January 2016, Coconut Grove, Miami, USA is hosting more than 780 sailors who are competing across the ten Olympic and two Paralympic classes on the beautiful waters of Biscayne Bay.

Sailing World Cup Miami is the second of six regattas in the 2016 series. From January 25-30, 2016, Coconut Grove, Fla., is hosting more than 780 sailors from around the world who are competing across the ten Olympic and two Paralympic classes on the beautiful waters of Biscayne Bay.

Competition in US Sailing’s premiere racing event gets underway this Monday in all 10 Olympic classes and two of three Paralympic classes. Saturday’s Medal Races will be carried live on ESPN3.

The Olympic classes competing this week will be: Laser Radial (women), Laser (men), Finn (men), Men’s RS:X, Women’s RS:X, 49er (men), Men’s 470, Women’s 470, Nacra 17 (mixed) and 49erFX (women). Paralympic classes included are the 2.4mR (open, Para World Sailing) and Sonar (open, Para World Sailing).

Both Irish mens and women's skiff teams made the Gold Fleet cut in the 49er and 49erfx World Championships in Buenos Aires yesterday – but only just in a day of drama at this notoriously difficult venue.

The qualifying series could not have been more challenging for the teams vying for Gold fleet inclusion, Olympic berths, and Olympic selection. Results are here.

Belfast's Team Seaton-McGovern, who are already qualified for Rio, took a fifth & 10th place to be 23rd from 66 on day three and Dun Laoghaire's Brewster and Tidey who are looking for qualification this week came fifth and are in 19th place from 44 after a last race retiral. Crucially, the girls are currently ranked fourth nation of those seeking the three Rio qualification places available this week. Singapore currently holds the third spot, six points ahead of the Irish duo. And in an important boost for Irish hopes neither Finland or Japan, both seeking a Rio slot, made the gold fleet cut yesterday thereby dashing their qualification chances.

Starting the day, the mens 49er teams vying for Olympic berths were huddled at the top of the 49er leaderboard, with 4 out of the top 6 teams looking to qualify their nation. By the end of racing today, 7 nations are looking for the 3 (and possibly up to 5 Olympic berths) with Argentina and Poland both having 2 teams in the hunt.

The real fleet depth in the 49er is on display here in Buenos Aires as only Championship favorites, Burling and Tuke (NZL), are sailing to expectation and at the top of the leaderboard.

Many of the rest of the presumed top 10 had to fight hard, right down to the final race just to make gold fleet with Fletcher/Sign (GBR), Outteridge/Jensen (AUS), Seaton/McGovern (IRL), and Warrer/Thomsen (DEN) all in danger of falling out of the Gold fleet split in the final race of the day. Of the bunch, the Brits and Outteridge proved clutch, with Fletcher/Sign winning the final race while Outteridge/Jensen pulled off two second places to close out the qualifying series.

#49er – New Zealanders Pete Burling and Blair Tuke have won the 49er European Championships, after dominating the final day of competition on the huge Atlantic swell off the coast of Portugal. Ireland's Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern finished 11th making steady progress up the fleet from an opening result in the 30s. 

The Kiwis went into the day in 3rd overall, after coming off worse from a protest by Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen the previous evening. The Aussies were sailing upwind out of the leeward gate when the Kiwis, below the layline as they were dropping their gennaker, fouled the 2012 Olympic Champions. The Kiwis' subsequent disqualification dropped them to 3rd overall, 7 points behind the Aussies who assumed the championship lead.

The surprise silver medallists were Germany's Justus Schmidt and Max Boehme who have had a meteoric rise up the rankings this season. The up-and-coming young team won Kiel Week a few weeks earlier, and now with a 2nd place in Porto they hold a useful points lead in the German trials for Olympic selection for Rio 2016. This was the first of three regattas that the Germans are using for their trials process.

The bronze medal went to John Pink and Stu Bithell who bounced back from their disqualification last night with a great performance on the water, edging Outteridge and Jensen off the podium by just 2 points.

Today's victory marks an unbroken run of 18 regatta wins for Burling and Tuke who have been invincible since taking the Olympic silver medal at London 2012 behind arch-rivals Outteridge and Jensen.

Final top five:

1. Peter Burling / Blair Tuke, NZL, 32 points
2. Justus Schmidt / Max Boehme, GER, 44
3. John Pink / Stuart Bithell, GBR, 46
4. Nathan Outteridge / Iain Jensen, AUS, 46
5. Lukasz Przybytek / Pawel Kolodzinski, POL, 35

Results downloadable below

#49er – Belfast duo Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern continue to climb back up the leaderboard of the 49er European Championships in Portugal. Very light airs made for a tricky fourth day at the 49er and 49er FX regatta in Porto. After a long wait ashore for the breeze to fill in, the 49erFX sailors were sent home without any gold fleet finals racing today. By late afternoon a light breeze was blowing out to sea, and the 79-boat 49er men's fleet went out for two tricky races to complete their qualifying regatta before the gold fleet split.

Seaton and McGovern are now in 13th place having scored another nine and a three yesterday evening to move up from 18th overall. By contrast, the reigning Olympic Champions, Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen, suffered in the fickle conditions, falling from 3rd to 11th overall after scoring 13,22. Their big rivals, the reigning World Champions from New Zealand, keep on chipping away with some solid results.

Qualifying is now complete for both the men's and women's fleets, so Friday sees the start of Gold Fleet finals. The forecast is for better breeze, and you can watch all the action on the live TV broadcast which is scheduled for the start of racing this morning at 1030am local time HERE.

Top five
1. Jorge Lima / Jose Costa, POR, 24 points
2. Peter Burling Blair Tuke, NZL, 32
3. Lukasz Przybytek / Pawel Kolodzinski, POL, 35
4. Dylan Fletcher Scott / Alain Sign, GBR, 38
5. Jonas Warrer / Anders Thomsen, DEN, 39

Full results downloadable below.