(Strängnäs, Sweden)- The first event of the Swedish J/70 Sailing League (the Allsvenskan) took place on the Lake of Strängnäs, about 40 miles west of Stockholm. During Friday and Saturday, Strängnäs offered nice racing conditions with a good wind of 4–6 m/s, mostly sunny, warm, and comfortable. But, on Sunday it was not possible to sail because there was never any wind.
“Strängnäs really showed its best side on Friday and Saturday with fantastic conditions. Sailing on a lake instead of out on the sea often gives more whimsical winds. Hunnebo mastered these best while Särö, who were newcomers to the Allsvenskan 2018, continued to impress,” said the regatta Chairman Isabelle Lindsten.
It was SFS Hunnebo that won the premiere round of the Allsvenskan that was settled this past weekend in Strängnäs. But, there’s was not an easy victory as they won on a tie-breaker over Särö Sailing Club at 23 points apiece. The countback determined the win, with SFS Hunnebo’s six wins bettering Särö’s four wins in the twelve races each team sailed.
For the SFS Hunnebo team from Hunnebostrand, just over ten kilometers north of Gothenburg, it was their first major win in the Allsvenskan. The team was comprised of Magnus Lundgren, Urban Lagnéus, Julia Edvardsson, Kajsa Mattsson and Peter Busck.
The win for SFS Hunnebo was not entirely unexpected. The victor’s winning skipper was Magnus Lundgren, he had the record for most race wins in a row while sailing for Gottskär SC in 2017, when he led his team to eight straight wins. Nevertheless, they were offered good competition from the Särö team (Tobias Bergqvist, Christian During, Björn Palmquist, and Lisa Rydbacken).
The competition amongst the top four was exceedingly close. While the win was determined on a tie-breaker, the Hjuviks BK sailing club was just two points back for the bronze, while the past champions KSSS took fourth place just another two points back; just five points separating the leaders from 4th place!
The Allsvenskan series sails four regattas and the next round is held in Limhamn in Malmö in two weeks (May 31-June 2). The third competition is in Örnsköldsvik from August 23rd–25th and the last is Västerås from September 13th to 15th. Follow the Swedish J/70 Sailing League on Facebook here For more Swedish J/70 Sailing League information Add to Flipboard Magazine.
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