Wednesday, December 6, 2017

EURUS Wins Brazilian J/24 Championship

J/24 Brazil Championship off Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)- The 2017 edition of the Brazilian J/24 Championship took place over two weekends off Rio de Janeiro, hosted by YC Rio de Janeiro.  The racing took place on the infamous bay, with the huge seaside city in the background, famed for its Copacabana and Ipanema beaches, the 38 meter tall “Christ the Redeemer” statue atop Mount Corcovado and Sugarloaf Mountain, the granite peak (more like a huge rock) with cable cars to its summit.

Brazil J/24 Championship- Sugarloaf Mountain in Rio de Janeiro, BrazilThe regatta had a great turnout, with eleven teams competing for national honors.  The teams were treated to a range of conditions, but mostly sea breezes from the east/southeast that were a result of nice clear, warm days, with hardly a cloud in the sky.  There was one day that was a bit light, cloudy, and mostly overcast all day long.

In the end, it was a very close battle for the top three boats, with the results going all the way down to the wire on the last day.  After starting out with an OCS, Ronaldo Senfft’s crew on EURUS (Andrea & Leticia Nicolino, Adhara Ginaid, and Carlos Eduardo Brandao) sailed fast and conservatively, sailing the most consistent series in the top three to win the regatta counting only top four finishes for a total of 18 pts net.

J/24 sailing off Rio de Janeiro- Christ the RedeemerAlso starting with an OCS and winning four races was Fernando Tover Gioia’s team on MALABAR (Mauricio Santa Cruz, Rafael Pariz, Joao Pedro Soute de Oliviera, and Sergio Almeida), could not overcome a mid-series streak of bottom half finishes to settle for the silver with 22 pts net.

Rounding out the podium was Murilo Borges’ BRUSCHETTA with crew of Tatiana Almeida, Jorge Bueno, Matheus Goncalves, and Mario Tinoco.  They sailed well and consistently; posting all top five finishes in their final tally, but only enough to secure the bronze with 24 pts net.   Sailing photo credits- Fred Hoffman    For more Brazilian J/24 Class sailing information Add to Flipboard Magazine.