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Extreme 40 Sailing Series 2012 - Muscat, 28.Februar 2012
www.extremesailingseries.com/ - Übersicht Muscat
Fotogalerie Muscat
Friday 2 March – 1715 hours UTC
Edmond de Rothschild Group secures third place in Oman
This Friday 2 March wasn’t the French crew’s day on Edmond de Rothschild
Group. Having led this Grand Prix from beginning to end, Pierre Pennec and
his men stumbled during the seven races run today on The Wave Muscat race
zone, to end up with third place in this inaugural event. Victory went to
the crew on Oman Air, whose helmsman was enjoying his first taste of the
Extreme Sailing Series circuit. Even though disappointment colours the
sentiment among the members of Gitana Team this evening, the crew of Edmond
de Rothschild Group know that there’s still a long way to go till the 2012
title is decided and the battle has only just begun.
Geared up for high tension, this fourth day of the Muscat Grand Prix
certainly didn’t disappoint, particularly with the wind gods having opted to
abandon the race zone in a bid to spice up the task in hand for the eight
competing crews. The light airs, which punctuated today’s seven races,
didn’t smile on the catamaran fitted out by Baron Benjamin de Rothschild.
Roughly treated from the opening race, Pierre Pennec and his crew didn’t
manage to reverse the trend, with the exception of the final race: “We
stuffed up the final day by linking together a series of mistakes and
penalties, but that’s the name of the game in this sport. Today didn’t pan
out as we’d have liked and these things happen. Despite all this, while the
crew could have given up, we finished second in the final race. It’s good
for the spirits and encouraging for the next stage to round off this Grand
Prix on a positive note. On a personal level, I’ve really enjoyed sailing
with this crew. We’re in the game and we have a team which has the potential
to win. As a competitor, you couldn’t ask much more than that”, admitted
Jean-Christophe Mourniac, as his team waited patiently at the foot of the
podium set up on The Wave’s beach.
For his part, the skipper of Edmond de Rothschild Group admitted that they
were on the edge this Friday, though he had absolutely no regrets about the
decisions made on the water: “we were in it to win it and I took risks which
were entirely my responsibility, particularly in the contact phases. This
was not our day today, but there will be a lot more that will turn in our
favour… I’m sure of that. We’re already learning from our mistakes and
that’s why we’ll leave Oman with a clear view of the points we need to work
on. We’re up and running and the way we’ve prepared the ground here gives me
confidence for the rest of the season.”
In fact, more than the third place gleaned this Friday, Pierre Pennec was
keen to highlight the work carried out by his crew. Indeed most of the group
is new to this competition for the 2012 season, with the arrival of two new
recruits and the change of position for Hervé Cunningham, one of the
cornerstones of the team: “Even though it may seem strange to say so, given
that we finished third, I’m very happy with this week of competition. I
thoroughly enjoyed myself on the water and even though I’m attacking my
fourth year in the Extreme 40, the past few days have been a steep learning
curve. The crew which was sailing here for the first time demonstrated great
potential in technical, human and mental terms. Despite the little training
we had in the build-up to this event, as a result of our respective
availabilities, the group has already made a great deal of progress and is
moving forward. Each of the crew has added their little stone – their rock –
to the overall structure, including Thierry Peponnet, who has shared his
experience as a coach with us in a simple manner. We picked ourselves up in
the races and dug deep in the final race as we could have ended up fourth,
so that just goes to show how strong the group is, which enabled us to
reindex united during the tricky moments.” This attitude underlines how
successful the integration of Bernard Labro (bowman) and Jean-Christophe
Mourniac (traveller) has been; backed up by Hervé Cunningham’s switch to the
position of headsail trimmer.
Pierre Pennec and Edmond de Rothschild Group are attacking their fourth year
in the Extreme Sailing Series circuit. As such they have enough experience
to know that consistency is the name of the game in this championship. It’s
a point stressed by Cyril Dardashti, general manager of Gitana Team: “A leg
victory was within our grasp but getting a podium place is still a very fine
performance. It’s important not to focus on a single event as there are
eight which make up the season and you have to be present at all of them to
win the title. Winning Grands Prix is always very important, but this year
our aim is clearly to add the Extreme Sailing Series title to Gitana Team’s
list of achievements. Outright victory is something the whole team want to
give the owners of the boat, Ariane and Benjamin de Rothschild, as well as
the Edmond de Rothschild Group, all of whom have shown unfailing support for
us.”
During the previous two seasons, Edmond de Rothschild Group has stood out
from the opening act of the year (Sète in 2010 and Muscat in 2011), but
victory in the annual championship has been denied them on two occasions…
Interestingly, Figaro sailors tend to refuse to win the prologue in La
Solitaire du Figaro, because history has it that the sailor who wins this
race never wins the outright title. Could it be that Pierre Pennec and his
men are caught up in superstition? Obviously the answer is no, but this
veiled message is worth pointing out.
The next meeting of the season will take the Extreme Sailing Series fleet to
the Olympic port of Qingdao, in China. The races for the second act will
take place from 17 to 20 April.
The two Omani boats have a place of honour on home waters
At ease at the front of the fleet from day one of the competition, Morgan
Larson has secured first place on the Omani podium this evening. It’s an
outstanding start for the American skipper who was helming Oman Air for the
first time. In so doing, he beat the second one-design to fly the flag of
the Sultanate of Oman, skippered by Leigh McMillan. Pierre Pennec saluted
the performance by his rivals: “There was a fine first place and a fine
second place and I’m stoked for them that they’ve ranked so well on home
waters. They will be serious contenders this season, but it comes as no
surprise. Oman Sail is a fine team which has been a key protagonist on the
circuit for some years and their victory is much deserved.”
The crew of Edmond de Rothschild Group
Pierre Pennec (Skipper / helm),
Jean-Christophe Mourniac (Trimmer and traveller),
Hervé Cunningham (headsail trimmer),
Bernard Labro (Bowman)
Adeline Chatenet
Thierry Peponnet (Sports coach)
Standing for the Muscat Grand Prix (after 29 races)
1. Oman Air - 165 points
2. The Wave Muscat - 159 points
3. Edmond de Rothschild Group - 155 points
4. Red Bull Sailing Team – 148 points
5. GAC Pindar – 138 points
6. Zoulou – 111 points
7. Alinghi – 109 points
8. Team Trifork – 95 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.
For further information:
www.jovesnavegants.org
Translated by Kate Jennings – Expression
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