#annalisemurphy – Annalise Murphy has won Eurosaf Gold again on Lake Garda this afternoon in a commanding display of heavy air sailing with five race wins in the past week. Twice in a fortnight the Irish Olympic Sailing team is returning home from an international regatta with a medal, a sign of good progress after some early 'rusty' performances this season.

Two weeks ago in France it was the 49er duo Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern but this afternoon it's was reigning European Laser Radial Champion Annalise Murphy's chance to shine.

Some on Lake Garda had come to an early decision about the winner in the Laser Radial fleet with Annalise winning twice on Saturday to give her a 16–point lead on Silvia Zennaro ITA going into today's final. In the end the National Yacht Club sailor easily defended her 2013 Italian Eurosaf crown, taking out Zennaro in a pre–start manoeuvre at the medal race. Later she would tweet: 'Medal race went to plan!'

Murphy shrugged off a first race 33rd result on Tuesday to overhaul her 39–boat fleet with a sizeable overall lead.The Dubliner won five of the eight races, admittedly in a fleet devoid of some of her fiercest Olympic rivals, but nevertheless a convincing performance that concluded with a sixth in today's final.

Delighted to win here at Lake Garda! Medal race went to plan! All packed up now just before the lightning storm! pic.twitter.com/7WCtPhtLUT

— Annalise Murphy (@Annalise_Murphy) May 11, 2014

Unfortunately, the Irish 49er (Afloat's Sailors of the month for April) duo were unable to make amends for a boat handling error yesterday as the 49er medal race was cancelled today leaving them in fourth overall at Italian Olympic week. 

Full results for all classes here

The next round of action for the Irish Olympic sailing team (and another medal?) is in a fortnight's time at Holland's Delta Lloyd regatta.

#eurosaf – Two race wins moves Ireland's Annalise Murphy up seven places overall in the second day of Italian Olympic week on Lake Garda. The Laser Radial European champion made it a clean sweep in races three and four to lie 14 points off the overall lead held by Amelie Riou of France.

In the mens 49er class Ireland's Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern have also moved up to second overall after counting a 3 and 4 in today's races.

In the women's 49erfx class Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey are 18th after four races sailed. 

Results and regatta site here.

Racing continues tomorrow.

#olympicsailing – Dublin's Annalise Murphy lies 15th overall from 39 starters after the first day of Italy's only round of the Eurosaf sailing cup. The National Yacht Club sailors is counting a 33 and a 4. Belfast lough team mates Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern, Afloat's Sailors of the Month for April, are 11th in the mens 23–boat 49er fleet.

The Lasers began the Olympic Week on Lake Garda with three races sailed in a moderate 12–knot 'Ora' wind. In the mens division, Robert Scheidt BRA took the lead in the good-qualitiy Laser Standard fleet ahead of Nick Thompson GBR.

In the Lasers Radial, Anne-Marie Rindom DEN has taken the lead after two races, in front of Silvia Zennaro ITA and Amélie Riou FRA. 

In the womens 49erfx class, Dun Laoghaire pairing Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey are 21 from 28 competing.

Results here.

#irish49er – Their meteoric rise from 33rd to 11th in the ISAF Global Rankings for the 49er Olympic Class gave international recognition to the April achievement of Belfast Lough's Ryan Seaton (24) and Matt McGovern (26). They brought home the Silver Medal from the ISAF World Championship in Hyeres on France's Mediterranean coast, and although it was a high-achieving month for Irish sailing generally at home and abroad, it makes them clear winners of the Afloat.ie Sailors of the Month title for April.

This is no flash-in-the-pan success. Seaton, who calls Carrickfergus home, and longtime sailing partner McGovern from Bangor on the other side of the lough, have been genuine contenders in this demanding class since the buildup to the 2012 Olympics, when they emerged in the front ranks. While they're well aware that sailing conditions in Brazil in 2016 will be very different from the brisk weather which helped them to start making their mark at Weymouth two years ago, their campaign is steadily developing.

Next up for the busy duo – who have admitted it took a day or two for the full significance of their silver to sink in – is a series of majors in Europe as the 2014 season develops. It's a hectic pace with the Garda EuroSAF Championship from May 8th to 12th, the often blustery Delta Lloyd Regatta in The Netherlands (May 21st to 25th), and Sail for Gold at Weymouth in the first week of June. It's all serious challenges coming down the line. But for now we salute Ryan Seaton & Matt McGovern, Sailors of the Month for April 2014.

#swchyeres – Irish Olympic skiff sailors Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern from Belfast lough won silver medals at the ISAF World Cup climax in France this afternoon. After sailing a most consistent series all week the Irish pair finished 2nd, 3rd, and 7th in today's final three medal races to be second overall putting them eight points clear of Australia's Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen. Peter Burling and Blair Tuke from New Zealand took the Gold. A total of 80 of the world's top 49er class sailors were competing at the event in Hyeres.

Burling and Tuke (NZL) made it two ISAF Sailing World Cup regatta victories in a row with another dominant display.

The Kiwis sealed the deal in the opening race of three stadium style races as they took the first bullet and Burling was delighted to pick up his second consecutive World Cup gold, "I'm pretty stoked to take the win. We had a pretty big lead but it was mathematically possible to lose it so we made sure we did the job in the first race and had a bit of fun in the last two.

"It was really great to get out in the lead in the first race and just be able to sail away.

"We're definitely really happy with how we backed up Palma with another win."

 Seaton and Matthew McGovern and the Irish team were all smiles after racing. "It was a great week and obviously the result tops it all off," said McGovern.

"What a great week of sailing in Hyères. It's been six days of brilliant breeze and sunshine. It couldn't be any better in every respect."

Seaton and McGovern finished a disappointing 35th in Mallorca just weeks ago and hit back hard to show the fleet what they are all about, "We came here and we knew we had to hit the ground running. We couldn't have two bad weeks in a row so it was full on, 'put the engines on' and go as fast around the course and keep the mistakes to a minimum."

Dun Laoghaire's Annalise Murphy raced in the Laser Radial medal race and finished seventh overall but it ISAF Sailing World Cup Melbourne winner Tatiana Drozdovskaya (BLR) entered the Medal Race with a three point lead over Evi Van Acker (BEL).

Van Acker relinquished her lead the day prior having sailed the wrong course and counted a high score that handed Drozdovskaya the advantage going into the last day.

Van Acker went out with intent and sailed a superb race that she lead from off to take the bullet and gold as she explained, "I just had a strategy that I discussed with my coach and everything just worked out.

"I was the only one starting at the pin end. Everybody else was middle of the line or boat end so I was happy I was down there so could have a good start. 

"I played the left side more than the others and I was in front from the beginning. Once you're sailing in front it's no so hard, if you're at the back it's quite difficult."

Hyères is one of Van Acker's favourite venues as she was thrilled to take the regatta victory, "Hyeres is always the toughest World Cup to win. I've managed to win it only once before and now it's really nice to win it for a second time because it's a difficult venue. 

"It's my first win in a very long time so I'm really happy. I had a lot of fans on the water, all the team went out and it was great fun. I'm really happy that I could make up from my stupid mistake yesterday."

Marit Bouwmeester (NED) finished the Medal Race in second which was not enough to move in to silver medal position as Drozdovskaya held on to second podium spot with a third.

#swchyeres – Sailing a consistent series that counts no result out of the top ten after nine races (3 7 7 6 2 8 (10) 3 3), has put Ireland's Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern into  second overall at the ISAF World Cup in Hyeres. Now  just 11 points off the overall lead the Irish skiff duo's result thus far is a stand–out performance in the 80–boat fleet.

The Irish pair finished a disappointing 35th at ISAF Sailing World Cup Mallorca but impressed in the gold fleet today with a discarded tenth and two thirds. After racing Seaton said, "It's the second regatta for us this year and we're just getting back into it.

"It was a pretty solid day. We really wanted to get good starts and try to be consistent and it turned out to be quite a good day. It was very tricky with the fleet really close and the racing's really good. Everybody's trying to get prepared in the build-up to the Santander Worlds and the fleet is getting more competitive."

See short interview with Ryan Seaton in the above ISAF vid.

With a full complement of races completed thus far the leader boards are shaping up nicely with fine margins between the world's top sailing talents.

After a short morning postponement the 1,111 sailors were greeted with an increasing 13-17 knot westerly breeze as well as a smooth sea state. Racing kicked off shortly after 12:00 local time.

After seven races in the Laser Radial class, Annalise Murphy has also moved up from 15th to 12th overall with a gold fleet win in race seven this afternoon to bring her to within six points of the top ten in her 79–boat fleet.

But It's now a familiar picture in the Laser Radial with Evi Van Acker (BEL) and Marit Bouwmeester (NED) battling it like old times.

A second and a third apiece ensures Van Acker leads on nine points with Bouwmeester on 11 points.

Tatiana Drozdovskaya (BLR) holds on to third overall following a ninth and a fifth.

Belfast's James Espey is 75th in his 123–boat  mens Laser fleet after six races.

Ireland's new women's skiff combination have retained their teens position, Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey lie 17th from 42 after nine races in the 49erfx Olympic debutante class.

Racing commences at 11:00 local time on Thursday 24 April as the sailors enter a critical point of the regatta.

swchyeres – There are big improvements in results for the Irish Olympic sailing team in France this week as the qualification stages of the ISAF Sailing World Cup in Hyeres concluded today with Gold fleet racing tomorrow. Ryan Seaton & Matt McGovern are fifth overall, Annalise Murphy Sailing is 15th and Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey 18th in the 49erfx.

It was an up and down day for Ireland's Annalise Murphy in the final round of the world cup as she took an opening win in the blue fleet before suffering a scoring penalty in the second of the day as she dropped from the leading positions to 15th overall, "I was over the start line in that last race which is a bit unfortunate but I'm still happy enough," explained Murphy after racing. "I'm putting everything I've done in training into racing in this regatta. I'm happy with how I've been racing but just unfortunate I was over a little bit early."

Murphy came agonisingly close to taking a medal at the London 2012 Olympic Sailing Competition, losing out in a way four shoot out for the medals. Since then she's been working hard with the 2014 ISAF Sailing World Championships this September on her mind, "Santander is the important one with it being a big world championship and the Olympic qualifiers. Hopefully I can stop making mistakes and get it all right there.

"It's much earlier in this cycle with it being two years before the Olympics. The last cycle it was eight months before and it's a big difference. It was good for me because if it had been two years out in the last cycle I probably wouldn't have qualified the country as I was still very young. This time I'm really looking forward to it."

Murphy is 29 points behind Van Acker but with six races and a Medal Race on the horizon anything can happen.

Belarus' Tatiana Drozdovskaya had a consistent day on the water posting two second places and is third overall. Results here. 

I had a 1st and a 3rd today...unfortunately I was over the start line in the second race so got disqualified. 3 more days of fleet racing!

— Annalise Murphy (@Annalise_Murphy) April 22, 2014

The qualification stage at ISAF Sailing World Cup Hyères has drawn to an end with gold fleet racing on the minds of the world's best top sailors over the next three days.

Conditions at the fifth and final regatta of the 2013-2014 ISAF Sailing World Cup series could not have been any better on the second day of racing.

"Champagne sailing" and "glamour conditions" were the buzz words of the day used by the 1,111 sailors from 59 nations as an easterly breeze in between 10-12 knots with steady waves ensured a full complement of races across ten Olympic and two Paralympic fleets.

Also most certainly through to the gold fleet is Ireland's 49er pairing Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern who  count a stunning set of top ten results (3 6 7 6 2 (8)) to lie fifth overall.

Dylan Fletcher and Alain Sign (GBR) continued to display excellent consistency in the 80-boat 49er fleet as the two day qualification stage came to an end with six races in excellent conditions.

Fletcher and Sign took two race wins and a fourth in the blue fleet and lead Peter Burling and Blair Tuke (NZL) by three points.

On the day Sign said, "It was pretty glamorous conditions for 49er racing, probably about 11-12 knots and it was exciting, straightforward fun.

"We kept our tactics simple. We had pretty good boat speed today and we were just monitoring what the fleet were doing and not getting into trouble and that paid off for us."

Twenty five 49ers will take to the gold fleet whilst the remaining racers will be split into silver and bronze fleets. Sign is now looking forward to the action and facing ISAF Sailing World Cup Mallorca gold medallists Burling and Tuke, "We're pretty happy with how it's gone but there's quite a long series to go with the gold fleet tomorrow. That's when it all matters.

"We've worked out that we haven't actually sailed against the Kiwis in a qualifying series for the last six events. We know we've got the boat speed and it's not all about the Kiwis and the Aussies, there are quite a lot of boats out there that can get it."

The Brits took bronze behind Burling and Tuke and Jonas Warrer and Peter Lang (DEN) in Mallorca and whilst it's still early stages they are well on track as Sign concluded, "From our goals set in the winter we were aiming to try and medal early on in the season and that would give us the step forward so we know what we need to work on through the rest of the summer and then hopefully at Santander get a medal."

Race wins in the yellow fleet went the way of David Evans and Ed Powys (GBR), who picked up two and Burling and Tuke. Marcus Hansen and Josh Porebski (NZL) picked up the fifth race bullet in the blue fleet and are third overall. Resuts here.

Royal Irish women's pairing Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey are 18th from 42, a significant ranking at their second only ISAF regatta. 

#TrofeoSofia – The harsh reality of the mid week split hit home this morning as the Trofeo Princesa Sophia fleet was separated into gold and silver fleets for the next stage of the regatta, the finals series. Only Ireland's James Espey still has a chance of medal race participation come Saturday, for everyone else on the Irish Olympic Sailing Team it is time to salvage some honour in Palma's silver fleets.

But for both of Ireland's Laser sailors today's third day of racing never happened with the 2.4mR, Laser, Laser Radial and RS:X's unable to race due to light winds on their course. This left Ireland's Espey and Annalise Murphy ashore contemplating a truncated series tomorrow.

But London 2012 team–mates Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern did get to race  – and in breeze – the Belfast duo taking a second in the only race of the day for the 49er silver fleet to lie 44th from 79. At the top of this highly competitive skiff fleet, 2013 49er World Champions Peter Burling and Blair Tuke (NZL) have moved into the lead.

In the 49erfx class, Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey, also sailing in silver, lie 44th. 

Dublin Bay sailor Ross Hamilton is 65th overall in the Finn class. 

Full results here

#TrofeoSofia – James Espey is the only member of the Irish Olympic Sailing Team to qualify for this morning's gold fleet racing at the ISAF Sailing World Cup Trofeo Princesa Sofía in Palma. The Belfast dinghy sailor scored seventh in yesterday afternoon's race five to give him three top ten results to bring him up to 24th overall in his massive 144–boat fleet.

The results scored 10, 13, 8, 27 and 7 are all the more satisfying for the Royal Ulster sailor given they were produced in difficult light winds, conditions that have frustrated his Irish London 2012 team–mates and have consigned them to silver fleet participation for the rest of the regatta.

The shifty winds kept the sailors busy all day with bands of wind up to 14–knots then down to 6–knots coming down the course areas of the fourth ISAF World Cup event.

Fleets are now split into gold and silver for the final three days before the medal race on Saturday.

After four races Annalise Murphy counts 32, 46, 48 and a 31 to be placed 86 from 96. It's a big disappointment for the Irish Laser European champion especially given her light wind preparations at the Rio Olympic venue itself last season plus there are forecasted strong winds expected later this week, sailing conditions which the Dublin 'Breeze Queen' relishes.

One race in the split 96-boat Laser Radial fleet sees Murphy's long time rivals Marit Bouwmeester (NED) head into gold fleet racing two points clear of Great Britain's Chloe Martin.

Bouwmeester finished second in the yellow fleet whilst Martin took a third in the blue fleet as the top two spots remain unchanged.

"It was a nice day even though it was quite a long day on the water because we got a good race in and now we can do gold fleet racing," said Bouwmeester. "There are so many girls here and the racing is really good. It should be a fun three days in the gold fleet which will be nice."

Despite setting the early pace Bouwmeester isn't getting carried away, "I'm just trying to sail as best as I can, learn as much as I can and then if I win I would like that but if not then there has to be more work done."

The days race wins went to Daphne van der Vaart (NED) in the blue fleet and Anne Marie Rindom (DEN) in the yellow fleet.

Racing got off to a late start in the afternoon with a light morning breeze ensuring Palma Bay resembled a shiny pane of glass. When the first race got underway after 14:00 local time a moderate 5 knot breeze that picked up to 10 knots saw the light wind specialists continue their strong early form. 

On a separate course, with scores of 19, 31, 23, 22, 25, and 19, Belfast lough 49er duo Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern lie 51st from 79. 

Last night 49erfx Irish newcomers, Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey, who are making their Rio campaign debut in Palma reflected on their overall position of 44th from 50 on twitter: 

"Tough day for us at the office. A wee bit soul destroying when the things you can't control attack and you're left to fight back... Today was not our day. We have come away from it with the positives which were good speed and starts again. We will be competing in silver fleet for the rest of the regatta which will be an excellent opportunity to practice what we need to and take the most we can from the rest of the week. We got this ... Just need to give it time and have patience!

Unfortunately our result on the score board doesn't show how much our sailing has improved and how far we have come this winter but we are happy and feel like we are making gains and couldn't be prouder!"

The girl's Royal Irish club–mate Ross Hamilton is 72 from 92 in the Finn dinghy.

How to handle the super tricky conditions experienced so far in Palma are captured in this youtube account by British Finn sailors Andrew Mills and Giles Scott.

Racing begins this morning at 11am with an easterly wind of 5 knots shifting to a southerly position and increasing to 14 knots this afternoon and possibly more.

Full results here

#TrofeoSofia_en – In a light air day when risks ran high Annalise Murphy's arch rival Marit Bouwmeester (NED) picked up two race wins and leads the Laser Radial fleet. The Dubliner had to be content with a 32, 46 and 48 to place 88th out of 96 in what has been a disappointing opening day of racing for Ireland at the 2013-2014 ISAF Sailing World Cup regatta in Mallorca, Spain. 

Racing in the yellow fleet the Dutch sailor took two close victories over Chloe Martin (GBR) in Race 1 and Tina Mihelic (CRO) in Race 2. Bouwmeester finished second in the third race of the day to solidify her leading position. Martin got the better of Bouwmeester in the final race and sits second.

In the blue fleet, in which Annalise is drawn, race victories went to ISAF Sailing World Cup Qingdao gold medallist Dongshuang Zhang (CHN), China's Min Gu and Sweden's Josefin Olsson. The Swedish sailor sits on three points tied with Martin and Zhang.

But there are still seven races left to sail so the massive regatta that has over 1130 sailors competing in 11 classes is far from over with double races scheduled until Friday. Tomorrow is another qualification day for prized gold fleet places.

It appears conservative racing was order of the day but so far the light winds have not suited any of the seven competing Irish crews.

Best of the Irish was James Espey in the Laser class, the Belfast single–hander lies 30th after scoring a 10, 13 and 8 in his 144 boat fleet.

Espey's London 2012 team mates Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern are 57th from 79 after three races.

Newcomers Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey lie 39 from 50 and Royal Irish clubmate Ross Hamilton lies 82 from 92.

Full results are posted here. The forecast for Tuesday is for slightly more winds up to 11 knots.