Pawel Tarnowski won the World Cup regatta. Bronze for Przybytek and Piasecki!

The Princess Sophia Cup World Cup regatta in Mallorca ended with great success for Polish sailors. In the windsurfing iQFoil class, Pawel Tarnowski (Sopot Sailing Club) won the gold medal, while in the 49erFX class the bronze medal was won by Lukasz Przybytek and Jacek Piasecki (AZS AWFiS Gdansk – Academy of Physical Education and Sports in Gdańsk).

The medal races with the participation of the top 10 athletes, competitors and crews in each of the 10 regatta classes were to be held on Saturday, 6 bm. however, at the most important moment of the regatta, the sailors’ plans were thwarted by the wind, or in fact its absence.

Such was the case in the windsurfing iQFoil class. Pawel Tarnowski, as the leader after the elimination series, advanced directly to the final race and waited quietly for the two rivals he was to face in the fight for medals to emerge. But he didn’t live to see it, because due to lack of wind the judges cancelled the entire medal series, which meant that the Pole could enjoy the gold medal. His victory was unquestionable – he won as many as 6 of the 10 races played and confirmed his excellent form.

Recall, Pawel Tarnowski in February this year won the title of world vice-champion in Lanzarote, and in March he took 2nd place in the regatta of the iQFoil Games series. He triumphed in the Princess Sophia Cup World Cup regatta for the third time in his career – previously in 2017 and 2018, still in the RS:X class.

– I am very happy not only with the result, but also with the fact that I was able to maintain the leading position from the first race to the last. The number of races won is also gratifying. At this top level this is of great importance when it comes to fighting for medals in major events. The form is there and I believe I will keep it until the end of the season, and its peak is expected to come in August at the Olympic Games,” says Pawel Tarnowski.

In the 49er class, three Polish crews did a great job from the beginning of the regatta. Łukasz Przybytek and Jacek Piasecki, Mikołaj Staniul and Jakub Sztorch (all AZS AWFiS Gdańsk) and Dominik Buksak and Szymon Wierzbicki (AZS AWFiS Gdańsk / AZS Poznań) all advanced to today’s double-scoring medal race with the top 10 crews. Przybytek and Piasecki sailed the most evenly, entering the medal race from second place.

The 49er class had more luck with the wind. It was blowing weakly, the wind was variable and unstable, but the race managed to go ahead. Łukasz Przybytek and Jacek Piasecki sailed well, finishing fourth in the race, but their fiercest rivals did even better.

The race was won by Hernan Umpierre Odini and Fernando Diz Becerra (Uruguay), thanks to which they overtook the Poles in the overall classification and won the silver medal. Gold for the titled Spanish crew – Diego Botin le Chever and Florian Trittel Paul in the last three world championships won twice the bronze and once the silver, they are also 2022 European champions, and at the Tokyo Olympics they finished 4th.

– We are satisfied with the whole regatta, because we sailed steadily, equally made few mistakes, and the conditions on the water were quite tough. The wind was usually unstable and unpredictable, so every decision on the water had its weight. We are most satisfied with our starts, it’s an element we have been working on a lot lately, and I’m happy that there are results. Now ahead of us is the World Cup regatta in Hyeres, France. There we expect much stronger wind, so there will be an opportunity to show our capabilities in completely different conditions,” says Lukasz Przybytek.

In the 49er class, Dominik Buksak and Szymon Wierzbicki were classified in 5th place, and 8th place went to Mikołaj Staniul and Jakub Sztorch. Three Polish crews in the top 10 of the World Cup regatta, topped by one medal, is a confirmation of the strength of the Polish 49er and a big headache for the Olympic Preparation Decision Team, which will recommend a crew to represent Poland at the Olympic Games.

Source: PortalMorski.pl
photos: PZŻ