Annalise Murphy (NYC) retired in today’s final race of the ILCA Laser Radial World Championships in Melbourne Australia. It is understood that she received two yellow penalty flags (illegal movement Rule 42) which requires mandatory retirement. Consequently, she fell from 8th overall to 12th but she still leads the Irish Olympic selection trials by 28 points over (Aoife Hopkins) HYC who finished 40th overall.
In the silver fleet, Aisling Keller (LDYC) was 14th in the final race and 54th overall, while Eve McMahon (HYC) was black flagged and finished up in 78th position.
The trials now move back to Europe to Palma’s Princesa Sofia regatta at the end of March.
Murphy will be hoping for a continuation of the stronger breezes that she enjoyed in Melbourne, while her competition will want to see more typical lighter winds.
Full results here
It may have been a case of "saved by the wind" for Rio Olympic champion, Marit Bouwmeester. The three-time world champion led by 24 points overnight but saw her margin trimmed to just two points after the first race of the final day. A big wind shift caught a number of the top sailors out, and Bouwmeester, who received a yellow flag (penalty turns), finished 29th. This became her second "drop" but brought into play a 24th from yesterday.
When asked why she was penalised she said, "Too much rocking. I was thinking 'I deserve a yellow flag' and I got one."
Gold fleet went into sequence again, still with the chance of two more races, but the wind continued to die and back to the south-east. At 3 pm, the deadline for racing to start on the final day, the AP over A was flown and a relieved Dutch woman made her way back to the clubhouse.
Bouwmeester, who was famous for always training on her own, has recently joined three other women in the Dutch squad and all four finished in the top 10. Maxime Jonkers was second, just two points behind, while Daphne van der Vaart was seventh and Mirthe Akkerman was 10th. Norwegian Line Flem Host took third and defending champion Anne-Marie Rindom, who became ill during the event, was fourth.
Provisional Top 10
1. Marit Bouwmeester, NED, 42 points
2. Maxime Jonker, NED, 44
3. Line Flem Host, NOR, 45
4. Anne-Marie Rindom, DEN, 57
5. Magdalena Kwasna, POL, 58
6. Josefin Olsson, SWE, 60
7. Daphne Van Der Vaart, NED, 67
8. Manami Doi, JPN, 67
9. Emma Plasschaert, BEL, 69
10. Mirthe Akkerman, NED, 71
