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Paralympic Class Champions Named at 2008 US SAILING Rolex Miami OCR
// US SAILING
// February 1, 2008
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| Photo by Walter Cooper (US SAILING) |
MIAMI – Racing concluded Friday for three Paralympic classes (SKUD-18, Sonar and 2.4mR) at US SAILING's Rolex Miami OCR, and a final day of fleet racing for four Olympic classes (Laser, Laser Radial, Star and Yngling) determined the top-ten sailors in each who will advance to tomorrow's medal races. The world-ranking regatta is hosting 369 sailors from 34 countries, with many of those sailors preparing for the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games in China as members of their national teams.
In fact, all three overall winners in the Paralympic classes here will represent their countries in the Paralympic Regatta set for Qingdao, China, in September. They are the USA's Nick Scandone (Fountain Valley, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) in SKUD-18; Jens Kroker/Tobias Schuetz/Siegmund Mainka (GER) in Sonar; and Damien Seguin (FRA) in 2.4mR.
In SKUD-18s, which will debut at the 2008 Paralympic Games, Scandone/McKinnon-Tucker dominated, winning the regatta's first five races and two of the remaining six. The duo sat out today's last of two races because they had the series sewn up.
"We've had our boat the longest compared to the other teams" said Scandone, whose margins of victory were impressive in the races he and McKinnon-Tucker won, "so the extra time in the boat paid off." Scandone's long resume of sailing accomplishments, going back to before he was an ICSA Collegiate All-American and US SAILING's Rolex Yachtsman of the Year (2005), could also speak to why he has done so well. With progressive ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), Scandone says his focus between now and the Games is to get lots of rest between practice sessions with McKinnon-Tucker, which are more difficult to organize than for others. "Marblehead is about as far away as can be from Fountain Valley, but we'll stay in the game, stay healthy, and do our best to bring home the Gold."
Kroker, who could have bypassed sailing today since his team's score was mathematically insurmountable, felt that today's light winds would provide for good practice. "This will be the conditions of Qingdao, so today was very important for experimenting with our rig and sails, knowing that even if we were disqualified today we would still win overall." Kroker used to sail 470s before he took up Sonar sailing. "In the 470, I really felt it that I was missing a hand, but with the Sonar I am only at the helm (steering) and not pulling lines." His crew, new to sailing when they joined Kroker in 2006, makes him proud. "It has been a great achievement bringing them up to speed, and winning this regatta is again a top-notch achievement for us."
This will be Kroker's third Paralympics, and he notes that the competition level of Paralympic sailing has steadily risen throughout the world. "Many of these sailors here could win able-bodied championships."
Nowhere is Kroker's statement more true than with respect to the 2.4mR class, in which as many able-bodied as disabled sailors seem to sail. In fact, the 2.4mR class at the Rolex Miami OCR was open to both groups, attracting a half dozen top able-bodied sailors, which Paralympic sailors say helps them up their game. Seguin, France's Gold Medalist from the 2004 Paralympic Games, seemed to easily dominate, however, establishing his lead early in the 25-boat fleet. Asked if having already won a Paralympic medal took some pressure off here, Seguin said, "Not really. I want to do my best. It's a very big fighting group here, and it's a sport, period. Any number of countries has the ability to win the Paralympics."
About the Rolex Miami OCR
Established in 1990 by US SAILING, the Rolex Miami OCR annually draws elite sailors Olympic and Paralympic medalists and hopefuls from around the world. In non-Olympic years, the regatta is especially important as a ranking regatta for sailors hoping to qualify for the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics, which annually distinguish the top three sailors in each Olympic or Paralympic class. The 2008 Rolex Miami OCR consists of five days of fleet racing from Monday January 28 through Friday, February 1, and one day of top-ten medal racing (for Olympic classes only) on Saturday, February 2, replicating the new Olympic format that will debut in Qingdao.
Regatta Headquarters are at the US Sailing Center, where the Laser classes also will be located. The Stars will be hosted at Coral Reef Yacht Club, the Ynglings at Key Biscayne Yacht Club, and all Paralympic classes at Shake-A-Leg Miami’s facilities. The City of Miami has also joined to support the event.
In addition to title sponsor Rolex Watch U.S.A., the 2008 Rolex Miami OCR is also sponsored by: AlphaGraphics, Nautica, LaserPerformance, Gill, New England Ropes, Sperry Top-Sider, Extrasport, RIBCRAFT, Nikon, Harken, Team McLube, and Trinity Yachts.
On-demand video will be available after 9 p.m. each evening starting Thursday, January 31, at http://www.rolexmiamiocr.org/, where complete results also can be found. US SAILING's Rolex Miami OCR Top-Three Results
Day 5
2.4mR (25 boats) -- 12 races
1. Damien Seguin (FRA), 4-2-1-3-1-3-[11]-4-4-4-7-2, 35
2. Stellan Berlin (SWE), 2-7-2-4-2-6-7-2-[18]-8-5-5, 50
3. Paul Tingley (CAN), 1-9-[26/OCS]-2-4-1-3-10-8-7-4-12, 61
SKUD-18 (10 boats) -- 11 races
1. Nick Scandone/Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Fountain Valley, Calif./Marblehead, Mass., USA), 1-1-1-1-1-2-3-1-2-1-[11/DNS], 14
2. Scott Whitman/Julia Dorsett (Brick, N.J./Boca Raton, Fla., USA), [5]-3-2-2-2-5-1-2-1-2-1, 21
3. John McRoberts/Stacie Louttit (CAN), 3-2-3-4-4-1-[6]-4-3-3-6, 33
Sonar (11 boats) -- 10 races
1. Jens Kroker/Tobias Schuetz/Siegmund Mainka (GER), 1-3-2-2-1-2-2-1-[9]-5, 19
2. Bruno Jourden/Herve Larhant/Nicolas Vimont Vicary (FRA), 2-4-3-7-[12/DSQ]-1-6-5-4-1, 33
3. Paul McCarthy/Richard Whealey/Paul Ryan (IRL), 5-[9]-6-3-6-6-3-3-7-2, 41
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