Courtois wins Match Racing Worlds

French skipper Pauline Courtois with crew Maëlenn Lemaître , Louise Acker, Thea Khelif, and Clara Bayol won the 2023 Women’s Match Racing World Championship, held July 4-7 in Middelfart, Denmark. Eleven teams representing 6 nations competed in Blu26s, with Courtois winning her third consecutive world title.

The final day was very different from the previous windy days as the racing ended in almost dead calm conditions. After completing the best of five Semi-finals, the wind disappeared, requiring a postponement for almost two hours before the wind came back.

The Final and Petit Final were started with only minutes to spare before the 4 o’clock shut-off time, with the two matches to be decided by a winner-take-all single race.

In the Petit Final, Lea Richter Vogelius (DEN) gave Celia Willison (NZL) two penalties for a couple of windward/leeward situations, and make the Kiwi start early. So, the race was over before it had begun, as the Danes took off with a huge lead and won the bronze medal by several minutes.

In the final, Courtois was faster than Anna Ӧstling (SWE) off the starting line after an intense pre-start, and after a split start, she never looked back and won the final by a big margin.

Event details – Results – Photos

Competitors:
• Pauline Courtois, Maëlenn Lemaître , Louise Acker, Thea Khelif, Clara Bayol – FRA, World Ranking #1
• Anna Ӧstling, Anna Holmdahl, Linnéa Wennergren, Annika Carlunger, Jenny Axhede – SWE, World Ranking #2
• Celia Willison, Ruby Scholten, Charlotte Porter, Serena Woodall, Alison Kent – NZL, World Ranking #4
• Megan Thomson, Josi Andres, Anna Merchant, Chelsea Rees, Juliet Costanzo – NZL, World Ranking #5
• Sophie Otter, Hebe Hemming, Hatty Ward, Jemima Lawson, Alice Bradford – GBR, World Ranking #6
• Lea Richter Vogelius, Joan Wester Hansen, Louise Ulrikkeholm Bredvig, Sille Christensen, Josefine Boel Rasmussen – DEN, World Ranking #7
• Kenza Coutard, Lola Billy, Enza Geslin-Grimaud, Victoire Lerat, Sophonie Affagard – FRA, World Ranking #15
• Octavia Owen, Abbie Sanders, Kate MacAdorey, Jodie Martin, Yasmine Sfaxi – GBR, World Ranking #20
• Louise Kristine Olesen, Nora Berg, Mille Brandt Jensen, Line Mørkebjerg, Sara Keir Wright – DEN, World Ranking #21
• Kristine Marie Mauritzen , Helena Gustavs Formgren, Pernilla Lindnér , Christina Andersen , Emilie Nordby Lauritzen – DEN, World Ranking #22
• Julia Aartsen, Eva Asbeek Brusse, Nerine Usman, Ismene Usman, Svea Karsenbarg – NED, World Ranking #27