2009 Snipe Junior Worlds Day 1

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Photos courtesy of Brian Stanford.
2009 Snipe Junior World Championship Offers Close and
Competitive Racing after Day 1

San Diego, CA (August 24, 2009) – San Diego Yacht Club, the host of the 2009 Snipe Junior World Championship, ordered up a beautiful day for 21 competing teams, representing 11 countries on day one of this biennial event. 42 sailors under the age of 22 competed in the ocean course off the coast of Coronado, outside San Diego Bay, where sailors were greeted with a cloudless, blue sky and the expectation of a building breeze.

The race committee ran 3 smooth races in a steady breeze peaking for the day at 12 – 15 knots. Mario Tinoco (BRA) and his crew Mateus Gonçalves dominated the first race, getting their week off to a good start. Tinoco has won the previous two Snipe Jr. World Championships, so his victory in race one was a sweet one. What is impressive about this win for Tinoco and Gonçalves is they were over early, and came back to re-start giving their competitors an instant lead. The Puerto Rican team of Marco Teixidor and Ricardo Latimer suffered a broken jib sheet in race 2, but were able to come back with a 2nd place finish in race 3.

The competition is close with no single team dominating the event, offering some exciting racing for all. Tomorrow should be a good day for both weather and competition as we add more races to the mix, defining the direction of this World Championship.

See the Results& Photos