Team Australia, representing the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, has won the opening round robin at the 2019 Youth Match Racing World Championship in Russia, losing only one of their 11 races across the past two days. They now have a clear lead over the chasing pack which includes New Zealand, Denmark and Poland.
Two flights of Round Robin 2 have also been completed, with the Aussies scoring two wins in each race.
It was another tricky day on Verkh-Isetskiy Prud, with another light and shifty north-easterly breeze driven by rain squalls throughout the day. It was another stellar day for Team Australia, who only dropped one race by a mere metre to the Danish, before picking seven victories across the day. The New Zealanders were the only team to go one better, remaining undefeated on Day 2 to climb from 6th to 2nd, with a score of 8-3 at the end of Round Robin 1, but still remain two points behind Australia.
Denmark and Poland are also on eight points, with Great Britain and America then trailing on seven points, all still in the fight for the semi-final berths. With still 75 per cent of Round Robin 2 to go though, it is anyone’s guess of who the top four will be.
“It was another solid day for us. We are happy with the progress we have made but know there is still a lot of work to do before the knockout stages. We made a few mistakes around the track today but they were good lessons for us and we’re looking forward to our remaining matches.” Commented bowman Harry Hall ashore at the end of Day 2.
Round Robin 2 will continue tomorrow in another light wind forecast but is expected to finish by midday Friday. Continue to follow racing live here over the coming days.
