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Friday 12 August – 2200 hours GMT
Extreme Sailing Series 2011
Cowes Grand Prix (England) – Act 5
Cowes synonymous with disappointment for Edmond de Rothschild Group
The final curtain has fallen this Friday over the Cowes Grand Prix. And once
again, the only English stage in the Extreme Sailing Series 2011 proved true
to form by providing windy and particularly fiercely disputed racing for the
twelve competing catamarans. For Edmond de Rothschild Group, who got off to
a perfect start in this fifth act by moving straight up to the top of the
provisional standing, the competition turned into a nightmare. Back down to
business following a collision on the second day of racing with Artemis
Racing, today Pierre Pennec’s crew had to retire from the Grand Prix before
the end of racing following another incident.
Setting out this morning to conquer what was still an accessible podium
place, Edmond de Rothschild Group saw its hopes go up in smoke during the
start of the fourth race after another collision. With the starboard bow
impacted and the bowsprit damaged, Pierre Pennec and his three crew bowed
out of this Grand Prix without being able to defend their chances. This
evening, there was great disappointment within the Gitana Team as the
skipper of Edmond de Rothschild Group explains: “Today, it’s the work of the
whole team, as much on shore as my crew on the water, which has been
destroyed by a decision which was made in the space of a few seconds. My
choice of course following our start on port tack in the fourth race of the
day had a very serious consequence. This morning, we were still battling for
a podium place and a chance to snatch back the head of the annual standing,
and this evening the disappointment is tangible. We’re going to have to
analyse the mistakes made here so we can set out with a sound base in
mid-September as the season isn’t over yet.”
It’s at the end of six days of competition, and not seven as initially
planned, that the Cowes Grand Prix has delivered its verdict. Indeed, given
the overly boisterous weather conditions on Wednesday, the race committee
had to resort to cancelling the races for the first time since the creation
of the circuit. The Wave Muscat takes victory in Act five of the Extreme
Sailing Series 2011, whilst Luna Rossa and Alinghi respectively complete the
top three spots. Forced to leave the race zone and as such incapable of
defending its chances, Edmond de Rothschild Group ranks eighth. This
position is all the more frustrating given that the crew of Edmond de
Rothschild Group had earlier demonstrated how at ease they were in the
breezy conditions which coloured this Cowes Week: “Despite our setbacks,
there are some positives at the end of this Grand Prix. We’ve done some very
good things here. Overall our starts were better than during previous Grands
Prix and we won a lot of races (ten in total), even though the fleet racing
distorts the scenario somewhat. I have a really good crew. My crew are
extremely competent, physical and technically minded. We had all the cards
to win this Grand Prix, but in the Extreme Sailing Series nothing is set in
stone and this Cowes Week serves as a reminder of that if there were such a
need”, concluded Pierre Pennec.
In the annual standing for the Extreme Sailing Series, the Kiwis from
Emirates Team New Zealand hang onto the lead in the championship, one point
ahead of Max Sirena’s crew. The catamaran fitted out by Baron Benjamin de
Rothschild has however managed to hold onto the third step of this
provisional podium place, despite the difficult week that Pierre Pennec,
Thierry Fouchier, Hervé Cunningham and Christophe Espagnon have just
endured.
There are four Grands Prix left to race to round of the 2011 season. The
crew of Edmond de Rothschild Group will be keen to erase the memory of this
result on English waters and just knuckle down so that they can regain their
previous form. Trapani, to the West of Sicily, is the next venue for further
confrontations from 14 to 18 September.
A recap of the collision with Artemis Racing
After an impressive introduction to play, Pierre Pennec and his crew had won
three of the four races run on the first day and were logically leading the
way in the 5th act, Edmond de Rothschild Group was stopped violently in its
tracks following a collision with Santiago Lange’s crew during the first
regatta of day 2. The two catamarans, both seriously damaged, had to return
to port and were lifted out of the water for repairs. However, the story
didn’t end there and the affair was carried through to a later conference.
On the morning following the incident, the Extreme Sailing Series jury
returned its verdict following protests lodged by both protagonists. Artemis
Racing was deemed responsible as it tacked too slowly which led to an
unavoidable collision for Pierre Pennec’s men. The remarkable work done by
the shore crew, made up of Marie Dixneuf and Cyril Ducrot, who weren’t
sparing in their efforts to enable the crew of Gitana Extreme to get back to
the competition as quickly as possible, was one of the real high points of
this Grand Prix. In one night, Marie and Cyril fabricated a new bow for
Edmond de Rothschild Group… Such a repair in so little time was quite simply
incredible. As such Pierre Pennec’s men were able to get back down to
business for the third day of racing with a boat ready to race and a redress
of 19.4 points awarded to them by the jury. However, that very evening,
Artemis Racing rejected the decision and put in a request for the case to be
reopened. Accompanied by several of Edmond de Rothschild Group’s direct
rivals, who came to testify against the men from Gitana Team, Santiago Lange
managed to cancel the initial judgement so that both boats were considered
to be at fault. Respectful of the jury and its decisions, the crew of Edmond
de Rothschild Group renounced the opportunity to make a counter appeal,
opting instead to do battle on the water rather than on shore.
Ranking for the Cowes Grand Prix after six days of competition
1. The Wave, Muscat (OMA) – 236 points
2. Luna Rossa (ITA) – 228,8 points
3. Alinghi (SUI) – 214 points
4. Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT) – 188 points
5. Oman Air (OMA) - 179 points
6. Team GAC Pindar (GBR) – 160 points
7. Emirates Team New Zealand (NZ) – 139 points
8. Edmond de Rothschild Group (FRA) – 135 points
9. Niceforyou (ITA) - 132 points
10. Aberdeen Asset Management (UK) - 126 points
11. Team Extreme (EUR) - 71 points
12. Artemis Racing (SWE) - 23 points
Ranking for the Extreme Sailing Series 2011 after five Grands Prix
1. Emirates Team New Zealand (NZ) – 44 points
2. Luna Rossa (ITA) – 43 points
3. Edmond de Rothschild Group (FRA) – 40 points
4. The Wave, Muscat (OMA) – 38 points
5. Artemis Racing (SWE) – 38 points
6. Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT) – 36 points
7. Alinghi (SUI) – 33 points
8. Oman Air (OMA) – 22 points
9. Team GAC Pindar (GBR) – 13 points
10. Niceforyou (ITA) – 12 points
11. Team Extreme (EUR) – 11 points
The Extreme Edmond de Rothschild Group supports the Joves Navegants
foundation
The family of Baron Benjamin de Rothschild has always had a passion for
nautical activities, a commitment embodied today by the Gitana Team. As such
the Edmond de Rothschild Foundations have quite naturally been sensitive to
the mission of Joves Navegants and touched by the profound collective
commitment to helping these young people in precarious situations.
Inspired by the methods of British Sailing associations, which help young
people in difficulty, some enthusiastic sailors who have settled in Palma,
Mallorca, decided to create Joves Navegants. Aware of the complicated
situation for certain youngsters on the island in serious economic and
family difficulties, they have chosen to share their passion. The foundation
organises several types of trips out to sea on the yacht, Galaxie. These
days out involve journeys of discovery, awareness campaigns for sustainable
development, participation in races and training aids to enable certain
youngsters to envisage sailing as a professional career.
The Edmond de Rothschild Foundation will be supporting Joves Navegants in
the organisation of trips out to sea during the summer, enabling the
necessary technical improvements to be made on the Galaxie and making it
possible for a team to take part in the “Ruta de la Sal” race in April.
Translated by Kate Jennings – Expression
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