2021 Optimist Worlds gets underway

Riva del Garda, Italy (July 2, 2021) – A typical Lake Garda Ora wind, blowing steadily from the South at approximately 12 knots of intensity, kicked off the first day of the 2021 Optimist World Championship, hosted by Fraglia Vela Riva.

The nearly three hundred sailors, representing fifty-eight nations, are divided into four different groups. The weather conditions remained stable during the afternoon, allowing the Race Committee to quickly start a new sequence of races and to bring to two, as scheduled, the total number of races scheduled for today.

Scoring two second place finishes, Gil Hackel (USA) holds a two point lead over six others, with Weka Bhanubandh (THA) and Rocco Wright (IRL) both posting a fifth and first to complete the day one podium.

Races will resume tomorrow at 1:00pm, with the second day of qualifying.

Event details – Results – Facebook

With a maximum of five athletes per nation, there are three consecutive days of qualifying on July 2-4 that will divide the fleet into Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Emerald groups for the final stages, scheduled for July 7-9. On July 5-6, the participants will compete within their nation for the Team World Championship.