MARKUS KOY / JRGEN SCHNHERR TO WIN RACE 2 AT 2022 Star World Championships MAKE NO MISTAKES.
Jrgen Schönherr (DEN) and Markus Koy (GER) won race 2 with a remarkable run of form, controlling the fleet from start to finish and finishing the day in fourth overall.
The leaders are Italy’s Diego Negri/Sergio Lambertenghi. The latter currently has two second-place finishes to lead above Paul Cayard (USA)/Frithjof Kleen (GER), with Tonci Stipanovic/Tudor Bilic in third.
Racing began at 1409 hours after a postponed start and a general recall. The 6-knot breeze held consistent throughout the 8-nm race, with a slight chop, strong current, incredibly close racing, and some outstanding performances. A terrible day for the five teams, which created a points mountain for themselves by adding a UFD penalty to their scorecards.
Schönherr/Koy chose the port pin end start because they expected the wind to turn left. While the shift did not occur, their positions and boat speed kept them ahead the entire race, with Negri/ Lambertenghi on their tail.
“We had a terrific day today,” Schönherr said of the pair’s ability to hold off a fleet of World Champions. “We had a great start, and then we had a tough fight with all the gold Stars on our tails.” We are pleased that we were able to maintain our lead.”
Schönherr stated on the track that today’s victory is only the second time he has won a race at a Star Worlds, the first being the final race at last year’s Worlds, where the pair placed fourth overall.
“We were leading the race from the start, and we were able to finish it as well, which was fantastic,” Koy continued. “The secret to our victory was that we had good upwind and downwind speed.” We were never under speed pressure, so we could sail tactically ahead of the others and control them.”
As Schönherr recognized, “Diego is always fast.” Negri/Lambertenghi were ever present in attack, building on every puff in the last leg to hunt down the race leaders. We’ll be overjoyed if we can keep in touch with him.”
Negri will face a challenge to defend his 2021 Star Worlds title, with a fleet full of former World Champions aiming to add another gold star to their trophy case and plenty of competitors vying for their first at this 100th Anniversary event. In an unusual twist to his title defense, Negri has been forced to rely on borrowed sails while his own are detained in Ireland; however, so far, the loaner set has not disappointed!
One of the numerous competitors excited about the event is the 2009 Star World Championships George Szabo, who says, “It’s the big wigs, it’s always so much fun.”
“You can’t run in the middle so much, you need to stay to the sides, and also, with so many boats, the water is more choppy, so you have to set the sails a little more full and a little looser to get out of the way sometimes,” Szabo said of the shift in approach while racing such a vast fleet. We have a two-mile-plus beat that is so much fun that you can’t find the mark for quite some time. Every slight shift multiplies dramatically because of your leverage on this vast racetrack. It’s fantastic.”
After the race, the racing rivalry fades away, and the deep-rooted camaraderie returns, with the typical Star Class spirit and socialising reinforced by tonight’s Doyle Sails-sponsored party.
Race 3 begins at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, September 13.
Provisional Top 10 Results in Star World Championships– after Race 2
1. Diego Negri / Sergio Lambertenghi (ITA 2021) – 4 pts
2. Paul Cayard / Frithjof Kleen (USA 1988) – 6 pts
3. Tonci Stipanovic / Tudor Bilic (CRO 1991) – 8 pts
4. Jørgen Schoenherr / Markus Koy (DEN 8532) – 13 pts
5. Eric Doyle / Payson Infelise (USA 1999) – 15 pts
6. Mateusz Kusznierewicz / Bruno Prada (POL 2019) – 15 pts
7. Augie Diaz / Brad Nichol (USA 8509) – 18 pts
8. Jim Buckingham / Phil Toth (USA 1958) – 21 pts
9. Jud Smith / Remi Hutchins (USA 1957) – 31 pts
10. Larry Whipple / Anders Ekstrom (USA 1922) – 33 pts
How to Watch 2022 Star World Championships:
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