France's Leading Lady Graceful & Dominant
Annapolis, MD (June 5, 2010) - Close racing on-board precisely matched J/22s in hot, shifty wind conditions through the final contests of the semi-final and five-match final rounds in the 20th annual BoatU.S. Santa Maria Cup international women's match-racing regatta produced a similar result to last year, with the French team skippered by Claire Leroy topping San Franciscan Genny Tulloch and her team 3-2 to retain Leroy's title as champion for another year.
In the semi-final pairings, which were all tied up at the end of Friday's racing, Tulloch and her crew, including Molly Carapiet, Katie Pettibone, and Jen Chamberlin, outfought Sally Barkow and her crew this morning, going on to win the series 3-2, while Leroy made short work of Floridian Anna Tunnicliffe and her team in just two more races to earn the spot to race Tulloch and defend her title.The final series was a nail-biter, with Tulloch coming from behind in the second race to beat Leroy, and solidly in the lead throughout to win the fourth race, but Leroy and her team, including Elodie Bertrand, Marie Riou, and Claire Pruvot, were able to hold the challengers off for a second straight year and win the other three. In the Petit-Final, Anna Tunnicliffe beat Sally Barkow 2-0. For more Santa Maria Cup sailing and regatta information
