2023 Allianz Sailing World Championships – Day 5 - International Laser Class Association

The Hague, Netherlands – Two races were completed today at the 2023 Allianz Sailing World Championships. Both the ILCA 7 and ILCA 6 gold fleets had clear starts for race 7 in about 13 knots of breeze and two knots of current. The wind increased to about 15 knots for race 8, and the ILCA 7s unfortunately had some general recalls and black flags before starting. The following ILCA 6 fleet got off on race 8 smoothly.

On the ILCA 7 course, Great Britain’s Michael Beckett continues to lead the men after two consistent top-10 finishes today. However, Australia’s Tokyo gold medalist Matt Wearn also had two solid finishes today and is slowly closing the gap between him and Beckett. The battle between Beckett and Wearn is a familiar story, after the Olympic Test Event in July where Beckett led nearly the whole week until the very end when Wearn snagged gold. The sailing world is eagerly watching to see what happens with these two in the final races of this championship. New Zealand’s George Gautrey has climbed into third overall, after winning the first race of the day and dropping his score from race 8 (26). The second race win of the day went to Italy’s Lorenzo Chiavarini, who used to race as part of the British Sailing Team and sits in 11th overall.

2023 ILCA 7 Mens / ILCA 6 Womens World Championship. The Hague, NED. Photo: Suellen Hurling / Live Sail Die & ILCA

On the ILCA 6 course, the competition at the top is as tight as can be. Belgium’s Tokyo Olympian Emma Plasschaert narrowly passed Hungary’s two-time Olympian Mária Érdi on the leaderboard by one point, after Érdi had been leading all week. Plasschaert finished 15th and Érdi in 22nd in the first race of the day, which became Érdi’s dropped race, and race 8 was an improvement for both of them – Plasschaert crossing the finish line in second and Érdi in sixth. Switzerland’s Maud Jayet has been slowly and steadily climbing the leaderboard this week after an incredible performance yesterday (1, 2) and another steady day today of only top-10 finishes. Jayet is only six points behind Érdi heading into the final races of the championship. Today’s noteworthy performance came from 22-year-old Charlotte Rose of the United States, who finished in fifth in her first race and won race 8.

Tomorrow the final series continues, with two races scheduled for the gold fleets before a lay day on Saturday for the ILCA fleets. Medal races are scheduled for Sunday, August 20, and they will be livestreamed with commentary from Olympic gold and bronze medalist Lijia Xu.

ILCA 7 Results