Weekly Sailing Summary

AROUND THE WORLD

In a thrilling finish to leg eight of the Volvo Ocean Race from Galway to Marstrand, Sweden, Ericsson 4 pulled out all the stops to take a third leg win in a row. PUMA finished second and, after a heroic effort from the crew, Green Dragon clung on to third place, the same order of finish as for leg seven.

Telefónica Blue became wedged on a rock while leading the fleet at the start of leg nine from Marstrand to Stockholm. The boat hit the rock while racing at around 14 knots of boatspeed and was hard aground in one-metre swells.

After a tacking duel PUMA just beat Ericsson 3 into Sandhamn/Stockholm. Ken Read said, "It feels fantastic - we feel a little sad to spoil Ericsson 3's homecoming, but it's a great win, and a hard-earned win." A third place finish in leg nine is enough for Ericsson 4 to provisionally win the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09. More here.

KEEL BOATS

After six races in the Audi Winter Series 2009, Race Seven for some was a chance to break a tie in the pointscore or to try to score extra points over their nearest rival. With one race drop having been applied to the provisional pointscore, some divisions only have one to three points separating the leaders. Details here.

After taking the trifecta of line honours, IRC overall win and a new race record in the Audi Sydney Offshore Newcastle Yacht Race, Stephen Ainsworth's Loki is ready to do it all again in the Audi Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race, starting on Saturday 25 July. Find out more here.

Southern State sports boat sailors are looking forward to some warm water racing in the Meridien Marinas Airlie Beach Race Week on Pioneer Bay in August. It was cold in all of the major sailing ports south of the Tropic of Capricorn last weekend while the Whitsunday Passage and Pioneer Bay were a pleasant 'tropical shirt' sailing playground with temperatures averaging between 12 to 24.8 degrees. More here.

It was as if Trans Tasman rivalry between Australia and New Zealand had unwittingly surfaced when the Brisbane based yacht Lady Fay, owned by Gavin Bicknell, became the 100th entry lodged for this year's Audi Hamilton Island Race Week. More details here.

Scott Cavanough will sail his 6.5 m sloop Skippy Challenge in the Trans-Tasman Yacht Race. This classic event, the only race of its type in the Southern Hemisphere, will start from New Plymouth, New Zealand on April 4 2010 and finish off Pt Cartwright Mooloolaba some twelve days later. Find out more here.

INTERNATIONAL

Mirsky Racing Team (MRT) arrived in the America's Cup city of Valencia direct from Korea for two days of sailing on the Victory Challenge syndicate's America's Cup class yacht and training with ETNZ BlackMatch Racing, ahead of their next World Match Racing Tour event, the Troia Portugal Match Cup. More here.

A fifth place at the Korea Match Cup gives Minoprio's Kiwi team a one point lead over Team Origin in the World Match Racing Tour Championship. More here.

When Oscar Mead started the 3000 mile OSTAR as the youngest ever starter, he had already set his goal to be the youngest ever finisher. "It doesn't mean anything to be the youngest ever starter, that's do-able. Racing the Atlantic, and finishing, that's harder," he said. More details here.

The Giraglia Rolex Cup fleet was greeted by the sound of cannons firing and fife and drum marchers celebrating 'La Bravade of Saint-Tropez', one of the oldest traditions of Provence, which celebrates the bravery of the village's patron saint. More info here.

MULTIHULLS

Since January 2009 Gitana Team's shore crew has been transforming Gitana 11. The victorious trimaran in the Route du Rhum 2006 under the colours of the LCF Rothschild Group has currently been undergoing heavy structural modifications, with the 60 foot multihull soon to become a 75 footer. Details here.

OLYMPIC CLASSES

Harada Ryunosuko and Yoshida Yugo (JPN) won the Open men's 470 Class European Championship and Sime Fantela and Igor Marenic (CRO) won the title as the first ranked crew representing European countries. Giulia Conti and Giovanna Micol from Italy won the Open women's event, and the title. More here.

The Australian Sailing Team's 470 men's crew of Mathew Belcher and Malcolm Page finished fifth in the 2009 European Championships on Lake Traunsee in Austria, their second European regatta. Find out more here.

In 1949 on Lake Ekoln in Sweden, Rickard Sarby launched the first Finn at the Uppsala Kanotförening (Uppsala Canoe Club). It was the start of a journey that has seen the Finn used in every Olympic regatta since 1952. More here.

OFF THE BEACH

The Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron's popular school holiday program Sail & Play is running again these June/July school holidays. More info here.

On the final day of racing in the Sentosa Optimist Open Championship, Singapore, the sailors were divided into Gold, Silver and Bronze fleets. A good breeze filled the sea in the early afternoon which allowed the sailors to complete two races on a short course. More here.

After the Sentosa Open Championship teams from Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Thailand and Singapore, stayed on to take part in the inaugural Optimist Team Racing Championship. Details here.

Antoine Albeau and Valerie Ghibaudo were crowned the 2009 Costa Brava Champions as a tortuous last day saw nerves tested and tension right down to the wire. More info here.

The International Kiteboarding Association (IKA) has implemented a channel on Twitter to allow followers to keep informed about the latest developments in kiteboarding. More here.

NEWS BRIEFS

The Boating Industry Association of NSW has launched a scheme that will not only keep avid boaties busy through winter, but also help get their boats ready for the peak summer season. More here.

An original painting by Cornish artist Glyn Macey, depicting the little wooden boat Spirit of Mystery sailed by Pete Goss to Australia, is being auctioned to raise funds for a local charity. A limited run of 500 prints signed by the artist and Pete Goss are also available. More here.

Graeme Owens of Perth, Western Australia, was honoured in the Queen's Birthday Awards after an impressive history of over 50 years in the sailing world. More here.

Andrew Pindar, who has supported a broad range of sailing campaigns for the last 25 years, received an OBE at Buckingham Palace. More here.

MARINE INDUSTRY

Increased funding has been made available for recreational boating infrastructure projects under NSW Maritime's Better Boating Program. $5 million has been provided in the 2009-10 Program and applicants are invited to put forward projects they think may qualify. Details here.

Marine Queensland speaks out over concerns regarding the increased levels of pollution being reported in waterways following recent storms. Find out more here.

The Australian International Marine Export Group’s (AIMEX) seminars have received an excellent response with over 100 companies attending so far. More here.

AIMEX had a strong presence at the Korean International Boat Show. Details here.

Club Marine sponsors the upcoming AIMEX networking function on 30 July. More here.

French marine industry FIN launches a boat-recycling organisation APER (Association for Eco-Responsible Boating) to organise and promote the recycling of unused or unfit boats in France, as well as systems for the disposal of other kinds of waste resulting from marine leisure. More here.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

July 2 - 6 -- Melbourne Boat Show, Melbourne Exhibition Centre. Melbourneboatshow.com.au/

July 16 - 19 -- Adelaide Boat Show, Adelaide Convention Centre. Adelaideboatshow.com.au/

July 18 - Sail Indonesia Yacht Rally departs from Darwin. Sailindonesia.net/

July 25 - Audi Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race. Goldcoast.cyca.com.au/

July 30 - Aug 3 -- Sydney International Boat Show, Darling Harbour. Sydneyboatshow.com.au/

Aug 6 – 21 -- Festival Cairns - Telling Our Stories.

August 12 - 16 -- Perth International Boat Show, Perth Convention Exhibition Centre. Perthboatshow.com.au/

Aug 13 – 20 -- Airlie Beach Race Week, Meridien Marinas Abel Point Marina. Airliebeachraceweek.com.au/

Aug 21 – 29 -- Audi Hamilton Island Race Week. Hamiltonislandraceweek.com.au/

August 28 - 31 -- Brisbane International Boat Show, Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre. Brisbaneboatshow.com.au/

Sep 11-13 -- The Great Tropical Jazz Party on Magnetic Island follows on from Sunferries Magnetic Island Race Week, with many crews lingering on to relax after a week of competitive sailing. More info here.

Oct 8 – 11 – Mandurah Boat Show, Mandurah Ocean Marina. Mandurahboatshow.com/

Oct 17 - 18 -- Darwin Boat & Leisure Show, Darwin Convention Centre. Darwinboatshow.com.au/

Photograph: Joe Jiang /Green Dragon /Volvo Ocean Race: Telefonica Blue hits rock off Marstrand