(Punta del Este, Uruguay)- With the advent of a new J/70 builder in
Buenos Aires, Argentina, the momentum for the class continues to grow
across South America. Building on that enthusiasm, the YC Punta del
Este in Uruguay hosted the inaugural J/70 South American Championship in
the spectacular waters off the famous resort- known as the “Riviera” of
Latin America.
Ten
boats from Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay participated in the five race
series. It was clear the Brazilian team BRA 757, led by Rodrigo Duarte,
was comfortable in the local wind and sea conditions, posting an
unassailable record of 4 1sts and a 3rd for a commanding win. Not far
off their pace was the top Uruguayan team URU 780, skippered by Aldo
Centanaro, posting a very consistent 2-3-4-1-3 for 13 pts to easily take
the silver.However, who was going to fill out the final bronze position on the podium was another story altogether! Remarkably enough, six teams were in contention going into the last race separated by just 4 pts!! After the furious thrash around the race track, the winner of that battle was URU 75 sailed by Sebastian Rana on a tie-breaker over URU 759 skippered by Matias Garcia on 28 pts each. And, only one point back, the balance of the top five was also settled by a tie-breaker; with URU 779 skippered by Philippe Umpierre taking the 5th spot over URU 777 helmed by Felix Leborgne at 29 pts each! For more Uruguay J/70 fleet sailing information
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