WMR International Qualifying Regatta- Florida, USA

WMR International Qualifying Regatta – Florida, USA

February 1-5, 2012

Hosted by Key Biscayne Yacht Club (KBYC), Florida, USA from February 1-5 2012, the ISAF Grade 2 regatta will be the final chance for the Women’s Match Racing teams to qualify their country for the London 2012 Olympic Sailing Competition.

Just 12 places are available for the Women’s Match Racing at London 2012 so competition for places is fierce. As hosts Great Britain directly qualify for one quota in each event with the 2010 ISAF Women’s Match Racing World Championship winning trio of Lucy Macgregor, Annie Lush and Kate Macgregor already named as part of British squad for next year.

Eight places will be awarded at the Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships, which takes place from 3-18 December in Perth, Australia. The final three spots for the Women’s Match Racing Teams will be awarded in Florida with Member National Authorities who have not yet qualified the only ones who are eligible to enter.

Liz Baylis, Executive Director of the Women’s International Match Racing Association said, “WIMRA is delighted to be partnering with the Key Biscayne Yacht Club and Sail Sheboygan to host an event of this calibre.

“We anticipate some fantastic racing as teams compete for the last three available places for the London 2012 Olympic Sailing Competition. The pressure will be on, but that’s what fighting for an Olympic spot is all about.”

Skippers that meet the eligibility requirements and request an invitation by January 6 2012 will be invited to compete however no Member National Authority may have more than one entry. Up to 16 entries are permitted.

Day Four Press Release

Finland, Spain, and Denmark Qualify for the Olympics

The Final Country is Selected at the 2012 WMR International Country Olympic Qualifying Regatta

The final day of racing in Key Biscayne left one major question to be answered: Who will be the last country to qualify for a spot in the 2012 Women’s Match Racing Event at the 2012 Olympic Games? Denmark took and early 2-0 lead in the best of five series, but Argentina fought back with two wins to force a thrilling race five. In the final race, Denmark had a great start and led most of the race until 300 meters from the finish when the Argentinian’s were able to steal the wind from the Danes. The Danes stayed just enough in control until it was time to gybe for the finish and were able to hang on for the win!

In the other match on the water, Finland won all three matches over the Spanish to win the event. Although in most events the Finals on the last day are the premier match to watch, in this event all eyes were on the Petit-Finals to see who would be the last country to punch their tickets to the Olympics. The Argentinians and Danes did not disappoint the spectators!

Final Day’s Results:
Final: Finland defeats Spain 3-0
Petit-Final: Denmark defeats Argentina 3-2
The top three countries from this event (Finland, Spain, and Denmark) will will join the nine countries that have already qualified for the2012 Olympic Sailing Competition (Australia, France, Great Britain, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Sweden, Russia, and USA).

Final Standings: 1 – FINLAND – Silja Lehtinen, Mikaela Wulff, Silja Kanerva
2 – SPAIN – Tamara Echegoyen, Angela Pumariega, Sofía Toro
3 – DENMARK – Lotte Meldgaard Pedersen, Susanne Boidin, Tina Schmidt Gramkov
4 – ARGENTINA – Martina Silva, Ana Lucía Silva, María Trinidad Silva
5 – SLOVENIA – Vesna Dekleva Paoli, Katarina Kersevan, Lena Koter
6 – GERMANY – Silke Hahlbrock, Anke Lukosch, Maren Hahlbrock
7 – CANADA – Sharon Ferris-Choat, Caroline Kaars Sijpesteijn, Joanne Prokop
8 – CHINA – Ru Wang, Li Xiaoni, Pan Ting Ting
9 – BRAZIL – Renata Decnop, Gabriela Nicolino, Larissa Juk

The 2102 WMRICOQR have been hosted by Key Biscayne Yacht Club, WIMRA, and Sail Sheboygan with the support of North Sails.

Day Three Press Release

Emotional Day Three at 2012 WMR International Country Olympic Qualifying Regatta

Emotions ran high on the water as Olympic dreams came true for some and ended for others. Finland and Spain will be going to the Olympics in Women’s Match Racing and Germany and Slovenia will not. One more place remains to be decided on Sunday.

The teams hit the water on Saturday with six teams still vying for the four places in the semi finals. Lead changes were seen in nearly every match of the day as the teams fought to move on. As one umpire said “This is some of the best match racing I have seen – men or women – anywhere in the world.”

Finland, Spain, Denmark, and Argentina moved on to the Semi Finals while Germany and Slovenia did not.

Stage 2 Results:
1- Finland: 8 wins – 2 losses
2- Spain: 7-3
3- Denmark: 5-5
4- Argentina: 4-6
5- Germany: 3-7
6- Slovenia: 3-7
The Semi Finals saw Finland and Argentina’s knockout series go all the way to a fifth and deciding race with Finland victorious 3-2 and Spain defeating Denmark 3-1 in their series By winning their Semi Finals, Finland and Spain have earned the right to send a team to the Olympics. Argentina and Denmark will compete on Sunday for the last berth.

Semi-Final Results:
Finland defeats Argentina 3-2
Spain defeats Denmark 3-1
The Finals and Petit-Finals will be sailed on Sunday in the waters off Key Biscayne.

The top three countries from this event will will join the nine countries that have already qualified for the2012 Olympic Sailing Competition (Australia, France, Great Britain, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Sweden, Russia, and USA).

The 2102 WMRICOQR is hosted by Key Biscayne Yacht Club, WIMRA, and Sail Sheboygan with the support of North Sails.

Day Two Press Release

Strong winds and tough competition proved to be the knock out punch for three of the nine teams as they were eliminated from the 2012 Women’s Match Racing International Country Olympic Qualifying Regatta.

The winds on Biscayne Bay whipped up for the second day of racing at the 2012 Women’s Match Racing International Country Olympic Qualifying Regatta as the first stage was completed and the second stage began. Six countries (Finland, Spain, Slovenia, Germany, Denmark, and Argentina) advanced from the initial round robin stage and 3 countries were eliminated (Canada, China, and Brazil).

Results at the end of Stage One (initial round robin of nine teams):

1- Finland: 8 wins – 0 losses
2- Spain: 5-3
3- Slovenia: 5-3
4- Germany: 5-3
5- Denmark: 4-4
6- Argentina: 4-4
7- Canada: 2-6
8- China: 2-6
9- Brazil: 1-7
Racing continued for the top six countries who advanced into the second stage – a double round robin of the six teams where each team sails against the other twice. A little more than half of that stage was completed as the teams battled in the fresh 20 knot winds on Biscayne Bay.

Stage 2 Results (through 6 of 10 flights):

1- Finland: 5 wins – 1 loss
2- Spain: 5-1
3- Slovenia: 3-3
4- Denmark: 3-3
5- Argentina: 2-4
6- Germany: 0-6

At the end of Stage Two the top four teams will advance to the semi-final knock out stage. Racing will continue through Sunday in Key Biscayne.

The top three countries from this event will will join the nine countries that have already qualified for the2012 Olympic Sailing Competition (Australia, France, Great Britain, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Sweden, Russia, and USA).

The 2102 WMRICOQR is hosted by Key Biscayne Yacht Club, WIMRA, and Sail Sheboygan with the support of North Sails.

Day One Press Release

Nine teams from nine countries (Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Slovenia, and Spain) began the day with equal chances to advance to the second round, but after 9 flights (27 races) five teams have at least one foot in the door to advance and four teams are on the brink of elimination. Finland (Silja Lehtinen) tops the leader board with an undefeated score of 5 wins. Next comes Spain, Slovenia, and Denmark with 4 wins each and Germany with three wins. Canada, Argentina, and China have 2 wins each and Brazil has one win.

The three flights remain in the first round robin will be sailed on Friday on Biscayne Bay. The top six teams will then advance to the second stage of the regatta: a double round robin in which the six teams will sail against each other team twice. The top four teams will advance to the semi-final knock out stage.

The 2102 WMRICOQR is hosted by Key Biscayne Yacht Club, WIMRA, and Sail Sheboygan with the support of North Sails.