Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Barby MacGowan, Media Pro Int’l for Rolex, 401-849-0220, barby.macgowan@mediapronewport.com;
Marlieke de Lange Eaton, US SAILING, 401-683-0800,
MarliekeEaton@ussailing.org
US SAILING's
2008 Rolex Miami OCR
Tunnicliffe Rules in Laser Radials
Miami, Fla. (January 28, 2008) – Perfect first-day conditions greeted
sailors at US SAILING's Rolex MIami OCR, where 369 Olympic and Paralympic
sailors from 34 countries are competing in four Olympic classes (Laser,
Laser Radial, Star, and Yngling) and three Paralympic classes (2.4mR,
SKUD-18 and Sonar). As an International Sailing Federation Grade 1 event,
the regatta figures into world rankings, and some countries are selecting
their 2008 Olympic and Paralympic teams based on results here.
One sailor who doesn't have to worry about whether she'll make it to Qingdao
in August is the USA's Olympic representative in the Laser Radial class and
US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics member Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.).
After winning the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Sailing in October,
Tunnicliffe changed her focus. "I used to have one drive--to win the Trials.
Now I have a new drive; it's to win in China." The Florida sailor today won
the second of her class's two races after finishing third in the first. The
performance put her in first place overall for the day. "It was only 7-9
knots, which made for tricky sailing," said Tunnicliffe, acknowledging that
China will have similar wind conditions but with much more chop and swell
than Biscayne Bay had to offer today. "It's still early," she said about
this regatta. "With it being light and fluky, it's still wide open."
In second overall after today's racing was Paige Railey, another Floridian
(Clearwater) whose name seems magnetically drawn to Tunnicliffe's whenever
they enter the same events. Railey swapped out with Tunnicliffe to win
today's first race and then finished fourth in the second. After she
finished behind Tunnicliffe in the Trials, she decided to go "back to the
basics and have fun with sailing." She re-set her goals, both long-term (the
2012 Olympics) and short-term (the Laser Radial Worlds in New Zealand this
March). "This regatta is part of my build-up to peak at the Worlds," said
Railey. "It's too early to tell what will happen here. The fleet is
completely stacked with good sailors."
Great Britain's Penny Clark sits in third overall, having to watch the
Americans closely as well as four of her own national teammates who are,
like Clark, still trying to secure for themselves their country's single
Olympic Laser Radial spot. "Whoever goes from our team, there is huge medal
potential," said Clark," because of how good everyone is, and we have a
strong squad. Come China, we will be a pretty hard force to be reckoned
with."
Great Britain sports the third largest competitor contingent here with 15
entries; the USA has 50, while Canada has 33. In the Laser Radial class
alone, 11 Canadian women are competing, all with Olympic aspirations for
down the line. "It's individual competition, but we like it when our
teammates do well," said Jessica Lombard (Montreal), who humbly sits in last
place while Canadian Lisa Ross has secured seventh.
The Star class is the largest with 70 entrants, which each day are split
into blue and yellow fleets. After Wednesday, they will be re-designated as
gold and silver based on their combined overall scoring and the top ten in
the gold fleet at the end of fleet racing on Friday will move on to the
Olympic medal races on Saturday. The other Olympic classes, as well, will
participate in top-ten format medal races, while Paralympic winners will be
determined by fleet racing standings calculated through Friday.
About the Rolex Miami OCR
Established in 1990 by US SAILING, the Rolex Miami OCR annually draws elite
sailors Olympic and Paralympic medalists and hopefuls from around the world.
In non-Olympic years, the regatta is especially important as a ranking
regatta for sailors hoping to qualify for the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics,
which annually distinguish the top three sailors in each Olympic or
Paralympic class. The 2008 Rolex Miami OCR consists of five days of fleet
racing from Monday January 28 through Friday, February 1, and one day of
top-ten medal racing (for Olympic classes only) on Saturday, February 2,
replicating the new Olympic format that will debut in Qingdao.
Regatta Headquarters are at the US Sailing Center, where the Laser classes
also will be located. The Stars will be hosted at Coral Reef Yacht Club, the
Ynglings at Key Biscayne Yacht Club, and all Paralympic classes at
Shake-A-Leg Miami’s facilities. The City of Miami has also joined to support
the event.
In addition to title sponsor Rolex Watch U.S.A., the 2008 Rolex Miami OCR is
also sponsored by: AlphaGraphics, Nautica, LaserPerformance, Gill, New
England Ropes, Sperry Top-Sider, Extrasport, RIBCRAFT, Nikon, Harken, Team
McLube, and Trinity Yachts.
On-demand video will be available after 9 p.m. each evening starting
Thursday, January 31, at www.RolexMiamiOCR.org, where complete results also can be found.
About Rolex Watch U.S.A., Inc.
Since Rolex Watch U.S.A. first presented timepieces to America's Cup
defenders in 1958, the company has consistently recognized and encouraged
excellence in every important arena of competitive sailing, including
supporting the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics, US SAILING championships,
disabled sailing, and offshore, one-design and women's events. In 2008,
Rolex will sponsor over 20 prestigious yachting events globally, including
New York Yacht Club Race Week at Newport presented by Rolex and the US-IRC
Rolex National Championship, Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup, Rolex Big Boat Series,
Rolex Capri Sailing Week, Rolex Farr 40 World Championship, Rolex Fastnet
Race, and the Rolex Sydney-Hobart Yacht Race.
About US SAILING
The Rolex Miami OCR is organized by US SAILING, national governing body of
the sport. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island,
the organization provides leadership for the sport of sailing in the United
States. US SAILING offers training and education programs for instructors
and race officials, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and
communities, issues offshore rating certificates, and provides
administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country,
including National Championships and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Sailing
Teams. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.
(end)
US SAILING's Rolex Miami OCR Top-Three Results
Day 1
Laser (24 boats) -- 2 races
1. Maciej Grabowski (POL), 2-1, 3
2. Kyle Rogachenko (Collegeville, Penn., USA), 1-4, 5
3. Charlie Buckingham (Newport Beach, Calif., USA), 4-6, 10
Laser Radial (39 boats) -- 2 races
1. Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla., USA), 3-1, 4
2. Paige Railey (Clearwater, Fla., USA), 1-4, 5
3. Penny Clark (GBR), 6-2, 8
Star (70 boats) – 2 races
1. Flavio Marazzi/Enrico De Maria (ITA), 2-1, 3
2. Hamish Pepper/Carl Williams (NZL), 1-3, 4.
3. Elvind Melleby/Petter Morland Pedersen (NOR), 6-2, 8
Yngling (28 boats) -- 2 races
1. Song Xia Qun/ Li Xiao Ni/Yu Yan Li (CHN), 2-8, 10
2. Sarah Ayton/Sarah Webb/Pippa Wilson (GBR), 6-6, 12
3. Sally Barkow/Debbie Capozzi, Carrie Howe (Nashotah, Wisc./Bayport,
N.Y./Grosse Pointe, Mich., USA), 3-10, 13
2.4mR (25 boats) -- 3 races
1. Damien Seguin (FRA), 4-2-1, 7
2.,Stellan Berlin (SWE), 2-7-2, 11
3. Carl Horrocks (Point Pleasant, N.J., USA), 3-4-4, 11
SKUD-18 (10 boats) -- 2 races
1. Nick Scandone/Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Fountain Valley,
Calif./Marblehead, Mass., USA), 1-1, 2
2. John McRoberts/Stacie Louttit (CAN), 3-2, 5
3. Scott Whitman/Julia Dorsett (Brick, N.J./Boca Raton, Fla., USA), 5-3, 8
Sonar (11 boats) -- 2 races
1. Colin Harrison/ Russell Boaden/Graeme Martin (AUS), 3-1, 4
2. Jens Kroker/Tobias Schuetz/Siegmund Mainka (GER), 1-3, 4
3. Bruno Jourden/Herve Larhant/Nicolas Vimont Vicary (FRA), 2-4, 6