Displaying items by tag: Finn Lynch
Finn Lynch Slips Back in Laser Worlds Gold Fleet
Finn Lynch slipped down the leaderboard of the Laser World Championships on day one of the gold fleet series. Scoring a 36, 30 and 19 in the 42-boat fleet, he now lies 28th overall. Compatriots Liam Glynn and Ewan McMahon are 19th and 39th respectively in the silver fleet.
Two Olympic medallists and the sailor who holds second place overall made it tough for themselves in very testing conditions at the ILCA Laser Standard Men’s World Championship today.
Double Olympic champion Robert Scheidt (BRA), London 2012 silver medallist Pavlos Kontides (CYP) and Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Bernaz were all black-flagged after the race committee had been forced into numerous general recalls.
With all sailors able to drop their worst race from their overall score, it hasn’t yet ruined their regatta. But they know they can’t afford another bad one.
It was a cold, wet and windy day in Melbourne, with the pressure slowly building from 18 knots to around 25 knots by the end of the afternoon, blowing from the south. No sailing was possible yesterday, so three races were sailed today, making it physically and mentally demanding for the sailors.
One man who appeared unfazed by the weather and the pressure was competition leader Philipp Buhl (GER) who had scores of 2,3 and 5 to go with his four race wins from previous days. Buhl has extended his lead over Bernaz to four points, but the Frenchman now has the spectre of the 42 point black flag to carry into the final day. He knows that one bad race will drop him out of medal contention.
“I was disappointed when I saw that I had been black-flagged,” he said. “I thought I was OK, and we will ask (the race committee to review the tapes). I know which race will be my drop now. I just had to get two good results in the other races and I did that.”
Buhl echoed the comments of other sailors, who said that it had been a very tiring day. “It was extremely exhausting,” he said of the three-race programme. “But I am pretty happy with how things went.”
Australian Matt Wearn has moved into third place after another solid performance. Today he was 4th, 8th and 2nd to be 11 points behind the Frenchman but a clear 10 points ahead of fourth-placed Briton Elliott Hanson, who would appear to have done enough to secure his first Olympic team spot.
“It was hard work,” Wearn said of the day’s sailing, “Made harder when you miss the shift off the start in the first two races. I had to work harder than I’d like to get back into it.”
This had been an extremely close championship during qualifying, but the gaps are now starting to appear. Three more races are scheduled for tomorrow’s final day, with conditions likely to be similar to today.
Those who are able to recover best from today’s gruelling workout are likely to top the leaderboard, while further down the fleet there are still man-on-man battles to decide who goes to the Olympic Games.
Results can be found at http://sailingresults.net/sa/results/overall.aspx?ID=80326.1
Thunderstorms Cancel Racing at Laser & 49er Worlds
The fourth day of racing at the ILCA Laser Standard Men’s World Championship was abandoned today, owing to a series of thunderstorms that swept across Port Phillip Bay.
Scheduled to be the first day of Gold Fleet racing, which brings together the best 42 sailors at the event, it instead became a day of watch and wait for the race committee.
At 3pm, as the second of the fronts carrying thunder and lightning appeared on the horizon, Race Director Peter Merritt ordered AP over A to be hoisted on the Sandringham Yacht Club flagpole, signalling no further racing for the day.
With their Lasers already packed away to prevent damage from the storms, sailors and support staff made a beeline for the exit gate, looking to get home before the rain began to fall in earnest.
The race committee has announced that racing will start an hour earlier than scheduled on Saturday and Sunday, with three races now scheduled for those days.
If they are successful, the full complement of 12 races will be sailed.
After six races of qualifying, Phillip Buhl (GER) leads the regatta with a score of 6 points after discarding a 4th placing in the opening race of the regatta. Jean-Baptiste Bernaz (FRA) is two points further back, with Tonci Stipanovic (CRO) in third. Only 15 points separate first from tenth, ensuring interesting racing for the remainder of the Championship.
Ireland’s Finn Lynch, lies in 22nd place, 36 points behind the leader. Ewan McMahon (63rd) and Liam Glynn (73rd) will compete in the Silver fleet.
Results can be found at http://sailingresults.net/?ID=80326
Meanwhile, in Geelong a similar fate beset the 49er, 49erFX Worlds. With no racing on Friday, February 14 due to summer storms that wreaked havoc with the breeze, Saturday’s final day of the 49er, 49er and Nacra 17 2020 World Championship looks like this:
Schedule:
- Two gold fleet races for all three fleets commencing from 0955hrs
- Two silver and bronze fleet races immediately following
- Three medal races commencing from 1355hrs in the following order: Nacra 17, 49erFX, 49er
Saturday’s forecast is promising - wind out of the south-west building to the class’ upper limit of 25 knots, a figure that also takes into consideration the sea-state, which is not a factor at this flat-water venue. Showers are forecast and the hope is they will clear early and not hinder the breeze once again.
Summer storms passed over and around the host city, bringing thunder, rain and lightning, and leaving sick breeze in each frontal system’s wake. The race committee took off on boats after 4pm thinking there was a chance of a late green light, but it was not to be.
Gold Fleet Racing for National Yacht Club's Finn Lynch at Laser Worlds
The National Yacht Club’s Finn Lynch, supported by Viking Marine, rounded off the 2020 Laser World Championship qualifying series with a 7th and a 20th, discarding the latter, to qualify for the 42 boat gold fleet in 22nd place.
Compatriot Ewan McMahon of Howth Yacht Club improved his overall position by 13 places to lie 63rd and will complete in the silver fleet. Belfast Lough's Liam Glynn in 73rd place also sails in the silver fleet.
The six-race final series runs Friday through Sunday, two races per day.
Results here
National Yacht Club's Finn Lynch Continues Top 20 Form at Laser Worlds
With races completed, Irish Laser sailors Finn Lynch and Ewan McMahon are lying 20th and 76th respectively. Irish champion Liam Glynn of Belfast Lough is 80th.
The National Yacht Club's Lynch continued his day one performance with a 14th and 4th, while Howth Yacht Club's McMahon added 27th and 21st places to his tally.
On a day of strong but shifting winds, Germany’s Philipp Buhl and Jean-Baptiste Bernaz from France found a little more speed than the rest of their competitors to finish the second day tied at the top of the Laser World Championship standings.
With the 124 sailors split into three fleets of around 40, Buhl and Bernaz each won both their races today to sit on just three points after discarding their worst result from yesterday.
With the discard coming into play after four races, the leader board remains tight. There are just eight points separating the top 10.
Buhl said he was happy with how his speed went. “It was a speed race today. The wind was shifty, so good starts also helped. In the second race I thought I had more speed than anyone, but when I looked around Wearny (world number one Matt Wearn) was right on my shoulder. It was a lot of fun, but exhausting.”
Bernaz echoed the comments about speed, saying he had recovered from a yellow flag (issued by the on-water jury) that forced him to do penalty turns and had used his speed to get back into the lead.
“The second race was a dragster, where we all banged the left corner. But I was leading from the beginning. I am very happy.”
Overnight co-leaders Tonci Stipanovic (CRO) and Finn Alexander (AUS) hold equal third position, two points behind the leaders. Both finished mid-teens in the first race of the day, which they could discard, then followed up with a second placing each in race four.
The big movers were Australians Luke “Swifto” Elliott and Matt Wearn who both discarded a sixth place from yesterday. Elliott scored a win and a second place in yellow fleet while Wearn had two seconds behind Philipp Buhl in red fleet.
Elliott said that qualifying was just about getting into gold fleet. “I had a couple of good races and it’s nice to be racing well, but really it’s the second half (of the regatta) that matters.”
Further down the fleet, the battles continue among countrymen for Olympic selection.
Britons Michael Beckett and Elliot Hanson are separated by a single point, in 10th and 11th respectively while 2016 Rio representative Nick Thompson had a slightly better day, moving up from 29th to 26th.
New Zealand’s Thomas Saunders holds a five point lead over Rio bronze medallist Sam Meech, but Meech is putting together a very consistent regatta – he has been fifth in all four races he has sailed.
The Hungarian team also has a selection dilemma on their hands, and it’s very personal. The country has qualified for a spot at the Olympics but is yet to select its sailor – which will be one or other of the Vadnai brothers. At this early stage Benjamin, who is ranked 31st in the world, has a healthy 17 point lead over his higher-ranked brother Jonatan.
The Laser format calls for a 12 race series, with sailors being divided into gold, silver and bronze fleets after six races of qualifying.
The forecast for tomorrow is for strong winds, which should ensure that the final two qualifying races can be completed. Unfortunately, the forecast for Friday, Saturday and especially Sunday afternoons is for lighter winds that could be variable in direction. However, this is Melbourne, where weather can change quickly, so race management is not too worried – yet.
With a tight top 10, the coming days should make for fascinating viewing.
Provisional Top-10 results after four races:
1. Philipp BUHL (GER) 3 pts.
2. Jean Baptiste BERNAZ (FRA) 3 pts.
3. Tonci STIPANOVIC (CRO) 5 pts.
4. Finn ALEXANDER (AUS) 5 pts.
5. Luke ELLIOTT (AUS) 6 pts.
6. Matt WEARN (AUS) 8 pts.
7. Rutger VAN SCHAARDENBURG (NED) 8 pts.
8. Filip JURIŠIC (CRO) 4 9 pts.
9. Thomas SAUNDERS (NZL) 10 pts.
Results can be found at http://sailingresults.net/?ID=80326
Irish Laser Olympic hopeful, Finn Lynch, lies in 22nd place after a 14,3 score in the first day of racing at the Laser World Championship in Melbourne, Australia. Compatriots Liam Glynn and Ewan McMahon are 91st and 102nd respectively. Australian Finn Alexander and Rio Olympic silver medalist Tonci Stipanovic of Croatia are tied after the first day of racing.
The National Yacht Club's Lynch who is supported by Dun Laoghaire's Viking Marine was targeting a higher place in Race 2 but overstood the top mark in the final round. While Olympic Qualification is not available for Ireland at this event, form here should carry forward to the next (and final) qualifier, the Sailing World Cup event in Genoa, Italy, April 13-19.
The first day started slowly, with all three fleets held onshore while the race committee waited for an almost non-existent westerly to back to the southeast and freshen. This it duly did, and the first race got underway at 3:30 pm in 8-10 knots from the SSE. By the time the second race started at around 5 pm, the wind had freshened to 15 knots and was relatively steady from the south.
German, Philipp Buhl, is in third place on five points — two points ahead of London 2012 silver medalist Pavlos Kontides. Ranked number one in the world, Australian Matt Wearn is in 10th overall, seven points from the lead. “It was a pretty average day,” said Wearn. “I made it look harder than it needed to be.” Wearn also felt he was hunted a bit, as the sail numbers being used have been issued in order of the latest world rankings. “People see the number one on the sail and want to take you out. In both races there were passing lanes, but I couldn’t find them.”
Defending champion Tom Burton of Australia also had an average day by his standards, with a 7th and a 13th which leaves him tied for 29th overall. “I sailed OK but the results don’t show it,” he said. “In the second race I was third around the top mark then got caught up in a big group going slow and couldn’t get myself out of it.”
Tomorrow’s forecast is for stronger winds which could increase to just under 25 knots by Thursday.
Top-10 after 2 races:
1. Finn ALEXANDER (AUS) 3 pts
2. Tonci STIPANOVIC (CRO) 3 pts
3. Philipp BUHL (GER) 5 pts
4. Pavlos KONTIDES (CYP) 7 pts
5. Jean Baptiste BERNAZ (FRA) pts
6. Tadeusz KUBIAK (POL) 9 pts
7. Luke ELLIOTT (AUS) 9 pts
8. Elliot HANSON (GBR) 10 pts
9. Benjamin VADNAI (HUN) 10 pts
10. Matt WEARN (AUS) 10 pts
Full Results here
Finn Lynch v Ewan McMahon Battle at UK Laser Event
For Irish Olympic Laser fans there was a taste of what's to come next season in the mens Laser Class last weekend in Portland Harbour on the English South Coast. Irish Tokyo trialists Finn Lynch (23) and Ewan McMahon (20) finished only a point apart at a UK World and European Qualifying event.
The pair, along with 2018 Irish champion Liam Glynn, are still seeking a nation berth after the disappointment of the Worlds in Japan in July. There's one chance left and if successful in Genoa's World Cup round next April it will produce a three-way trial between them for the single Olympic spot.
And if the weekend results from the Dorset coast are anything to go by, Lynch of the National Yacht Club and McMahon of Howth Yacht Club appear to be already locked in a battle royal.
It is McMahon's first senior season in the Laser and already the 2016 Radial world silver medalist is challenging the 2016 Rio Rep, Lynch.
130 Laser sailors raced under blue skies in Portland Harbour with some great breezes, even if shifty conditions led to up and down results for some.
Glynn looked completely off the pace in 16th place after counting a DNS and a DNC in the Standard fleet but Lynch and McMahon finished fifth and sixth respectively and were only a point apart overall after six races. Results are here
Also competing in Portland was 2018 Masters World Champion Mark Lyttle who finished 20th.
More on the Q system for Ireland in the mens Laser is here
Lynch Only Narrowly Misses Medal Race at Olympic Test Event in Japan
A strong finish by the National Yacht Club's Finn Lynch in the Laser class was not enough to secure a medal race position at the Ready Steady Tokyo Event this week. A fourth top ten placing however in the final race of the Official Olympic Test event will greatly encourage the County Carlow native. He finished fifth in the final race and 13th overall in an exceptionally strong field.
The Laser Radial class have also finished their fleet racing. A promising first mark rounding by Aisling Keller ultimately did not materialise in the final result. Despite showing moments of class, no doubt Aisling and Aoife Hopkins will have a long "to do" list before competing again next week at the World Sailing World Cup in the same venue.
Royal Irish's Saskia Tidey took a third for Team GB in the 49erFX and now looks set to sail for Britain at Tokyo 2020. More here.
Light winds mar final day of Ready Steady Tokyo
Only the 470 Women's Medal Race went ahead, starting just after 16:00 local time, and it was French duo Camille Lecointre & Aloise Retornaz who clinched gold.
Other gold medals went to Hungary, Sweden, Belgium and Australia.
Wind speeds did not top 8 knots all day, with a dying 5-knot breeze present in the afternoon which began to decrease towards the end of the 470 Women's race.
Racing in the Finns had already been abandoned for the day, while the Laser Radials managed to start a race but had to abandon it halfway through.
The Lasers and 470 Men went out onto the water with good intentions, but the decision was soon made to call off all racing for the day.
Ahead of the 470 Women's Medal Race, Lecointre & Retornaz led Hannah Mills & Eilidh McIntyre (GBR) in a reverse scenario to the recent Hempel World Cup Series Final in Marseille.
Agnieszka Skrzypulec & Jolanta Ogar (POL) were 10 points off in third, with home favourites Ai Kondo Yoshida & Miho Yoshioka (JPN) and Silvia Mas & Patricia Cantero (ESP) still in with a chance of a medal.
With just a point between the French and the British, it all came down to the Medal Race - and it was the French who executed a perfect performance.
Final top three results:
470 Men
1. Mathew Belcher / William Ryan, AUS, 25
2. Anton Dahlberg / Fredrik Bergstrom, SWE, 27
3. Jordi Xammar Hernandez / Nicolas Rodríguez García-Paz, ESP, 38
470 Women
1. Aloise Retornaz / Camille Lecointre, FRA, 38
2. Eilidh McIntyre / Hannah Mills, GBR, 47
3. Agnieszka Skrzypulec / Jolanta Ogar, POL, 51
49er Men
1. Blair Tuke / Peter Burling, NZL, 53
2. Dylan Fletcher-Scott / Stuart Bithell, GBR, 64
3. Pawel Kolodzinski / Lukasz Przybytek, POL, 68
49FX Women
1. Martine Soffiatti Grael / Kahena Kunze, BRA, 57
2. Helene Naess / Marie Ronningen, NOR, 62
3. Saskia Tidey / Charlotte Dobson, GBR, 62
Finn Men
1. Zsombor Berecz, HUN, 24
2. Nicholas Heiner, NED, 47
3. Giles Scott, GBR, 48
Laser Men
1. Jesper Stalheim, SWE, 60
2. Tom Burton, AUS, 63
3. Hermann Tomasgaard, NOR, 65
Laser Radial Women
1. Emma Plasschaert, BEL, 79
2. Marit Bouwmeester, NED, 82
3. Maria Erdi, HUN, 88
NACRA 17
1. Ruggero Tita / Caterina Marianna Banti, ITA, 54
2. John Gimson / Anna Burnet, GBR, 66
3. Ben Saxton / Nicola Boniface, GBR, 68
RS:X Men
1. Mengfan Gao, CHN, 50
2. Mattia Camboni, ITA, 61
3. Piotr Myszka, POL, 64
RS:X Women
1. Yunxiu Lu, CHN, 42
2. Charline Picon, FRA, 46
3. Katy Spychakov, ISR, 53
Full results here
Ireland's only chance of a medal race finish at the Ready Steady Tokyo, the Olympic Sailing Test event in Enoshima this week lies in the men's Laser class with National Yacht Club sailor Finn Lynch today who is three points outside the top ten in 14th place overall. Lynch is on 90 nett points with tenth overall, and the last medal race place currently on 87 points.
On the Laser and Laser Radial courses (where Ireland is represented by both Aoife Hopkins and Aisling Keller), two races were completed yesterday. Irish sailors each had one very good race, but then, unfortunately, followed up with high scoring second races.
Both classes have two races scheduled today.
49er and 49erFX
Annalise Murphy and Katie Tingle in the 49erFX completed another encouraging day on the water securing their third top five result and finish the regatta in 13th overall.
Likewise, in the mens 49er class, first-timers Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove (49er) of Howth Yacht Club have grown into the regatta this week, and had a solid day on the water - they finish in a very credible 15th place overall.
Ireland has so far only qualified in the Laser Radial Class for Tokyo 2020 next year, so this test event has been another important learning curve on the road to the final qualification regattas later this year for the skiffs and next March for the men's Laser campaigners.
Results are here and read how Irish 2016 Olympian Saskia Tidey secured a nomination for Britain for Tokyo 2020 here
Finn Lynch Knocking on the Door of Top Ten at Tokyo Test Event
The National Yacht Club's Olympic Laser sailor Finn Lynch continues to sail consistently at the midway point of Ready Steady Tokyo, the official test event for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games hosted by the Japanese capital and is 11th overall, edging closer to medal race participation by the end of the week.
it is becoming growingly apparent that versatility and consistency will determine Olympic champions in a years time and with that Lynch is proving his worth in Enoshima this week, if only he (or Ewan McMahon or Liam Glynn) can manage to qualify Ireland at next year's do-or-die final test in March.
After Day 3 of the Olympic Test event Annalise Murphy and Katie Tingle in the 49erFX had four races, with two 4th places pushing them up to 16th place.
In the 49ers, they also completed four races, with Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove getting an 8th place and a 6th.
And in the Laser Radials where they've now completed six races, Aoife Hopkins and Aisling Keller are in 26th and 29th places respectively.
At Ready Steady Tokyo – it’s fair to say that all 353 athletes here have been put through their paces so far.
Day 3 produced a different bout of weather to the previous two days, with shifting winds and tricky conditions shaking up the standings somewhat.
The variety of racing scenarios faced by the sailors will provide them with plenty of experience for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in one year’s time; the old regatta adage of "consistency is key" certainly applies here.
One team who have demonstrated this with a typically professional performance so far are reigning Nacra 17 Olympic champions, Santiago Lange and Cecilia Carranza Saroli (ARG).
They won two of today’s four races to move up into second place, also picking up a fourth and a 12th (discarded).
And though Lange was disappointed to finish the day with their worst result of the week, he believes they have both taken a lot out of a varied three days of racing.
"It was a really difficult day – really tiring for an old man!" he said.
"It’s a shame we ruined the day a bit in the last race, but overall we are happy; we sailed well with some really good racing.
"It seems like sailing in Japan is about getting used to difficult conditions and performing.
"Today we were expecting the wind to die to a sea breeze, but actually the last race was in some of the strongest winds.
"We need to be really focused to understand what the wind does every day, so we learn something for next year."
Ruggero Tita & Caterina Banti (ITA) remain in front, despite also picking up their worst result of the week today (ninth). John Gimson & Anna Burnet (GBR) move into the top three with a race win, while Iker Martinez & Olga Maslivets (ESP) took the fourth win of the day.
There’s a new leader in the Laser fleet; Jesper Stalheim (SWE) has risen to the top with a string of consistent results.
Picking up two seconds and a third today, and with his discard a 15th from earlier in the week, he’s knocked Sam Meech (NZL) off top spot.
Assessing the week’s mixed conditions, and up against a strong fleet, Stalheim knows it will be difficult to maintain his good form so far.
"Apart from a bit of a shocker in the second race, I’ve had a really good week," he said.
"We’ve had a bit of everything. Today we had a shifty offshore wind, whereas on the first day we had epic southwest winds and big waves.
"It looks like there will be two more light wind days coming up, so we’ll see what they get!
"Both of the Aussies and Sam [Meech] have been quite consistent so far. They’re really strong – they’ve been the strongest throughout this season.
"It will be hard to keep them behind me, but I’ll try my best!"
The Swede has a nine-point lead over Meech, who won one of today’s three races, with Matt Wearn (AUS) in third.
William De Smet (BEL) and Chris Barnard (USA) won the other two races of the day.
In the Laser Radial fleet, a 32nd-placed finish for Maria Erdi (HUN) sees her lose her lead, as she already has a discard of 35th from yesterday.
Emma Plasschaert (BEL) now leads the way, ahead of Sarah Douglas (CAN), who won one of today’s races to move up into second.
Marit Bouwmeester (NED) and Svenja Weger (GER) picked up the other race wins.
The 49ers got four races in, and Kiwis Peter Burling & Blair Tuke have regained top spot with two second places and a third.
Lukasz Przybytek & Pawel Kolodzinski (POL) move down into second, despite winning a race, while Benjamin Bildstein & David Hussl (AUT) keep third after picking up two wins today.
Mathieu Frei & Noe Delpech (FRA) bagged today’s other race win.
The 49erFX fleet now have nine races under their belt after also completing another four today, and Charlotte Dobson & Saskia Tidey (GBR) keep their lead, topping off with a win to build a 10-point advantage.
Martine Grael & Kahena Kunze (BRA) stay second, with Alexandra Maloney & Molly Meech moving into the top three having collected a race win today.
The day’s other two victories were taken by Helene Nass & Marie Ronningen (NOR) and Tamara Echegoyen & Paula Barcelo (ESP).
Elsewhere, Mat Belcher & Will Ryan (AUS) have taken top spot off Jordi Xammar & Nicolas Rodriguez (ESP) in the 470 Men, who took a win apiece today.
Anton Dahlberg & Fredrik Bergström (SWE) stay third, with the top three 16-points clear of the rest of the pack.
Paul Snow-Hansen & Daniel Willcox (NZL) claimed the day’s other race win.
It’s tight between the top two in the 470 Women’s fleet, with just a point separating Ai Kondo Yoshida & Miho Yoshioka (JPN), who won the final race of the day, and Hannah Mills & Eilidh McIntyre (GBR).
Camille Lecointre & Aloise Retornaz (FRA) are nine points behind the Brits in third, with Linda Fahrni & Maja Siegenthaler (SUI) and Haiyan Gao & Mengxi Wei (CHN) claiming the day’s other two victories.
In the RS:X Men’s fleet, Mengfan Gao (CHN) went from third to first, collecting a race win along the way.
Thomas Goyard (FRA) and Mattia Camboni (ITA) follow, with Piotr Myszka (POL) & Mateo Sanz Lanz (SUI) also winning races today.
Yunxiu Lu (CHN) continues to dominate in the RS:X Women, with a 12-point lead over second-placed Katy Spychakov (ISR), who won the last of three races.
Charline Picon (FRA) moves down into third, while Stefania Elfutina (RUS) took two victories today to move within a point of her in fourth.
And on Day 3 of racing in the Finn fleet, Zsombor Berecz (HUN) is back in front ahead of Giles Scott (GBR), with a race win taking him nine points clear of the Brit.
Andy Maloney (NZL) triumphed in the day’s other two races and he is now within two points of third-placed Nicholas Heiner (NED).
Racing continues tomorrow at around 12:00 for all fleets, apart from the Laser Radial, 470 Men and 49er who begin at 14:00.
After teething problems all the results are here
There was disappointment for Ireland as Finn Lynch's 2019 bid for a Tokyo berth sank in the final races of the Laser World Championships in Japan earlier today.
Australia’s Tom Burton, the Olympic Gold medalist from Rio, took the title followed closely by teammate Mathew Wearn.
Ireland's Rio rep, Lynch (Bennekerry, Co. Carlow) was best placed to achieve qualification (the top five unqualified countries go through this week) but has ended the championship in 40th overall in the 148-boat fleet, 11th unqualified country and some 56-points off the tally required. Results are here.
Ewan McMahon (Howth, Co. Dublin) placed a solid 50th for his debut at senior level world championship while Liam Glynn (Bangor, Co. Down) in only his second worlds made the top 100.
"For sure, the result is disappointing, especially after such a strong season," commented James O'Callaghan, Irish Sailing's Performance Director. "However, sport always has highs and lows, the key thing now is to bounce back and be ready for Genoa.”
Last Chance for Ireland in Genoa
Unfortunately, Ireland also missed out on qualification last year when the first 14 nation places were allocated at the 2018 World Championships in Aarhus. This represented 40% of the 35 boat Olympic Laser fleet.
The Laser Men’s European sailing teams who qualified in Aarhus 2018 were;
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Great Britain
- Norway
Six non-European countries also qualified for Tokyo in Aarhus. Those were;
- Australia
- Brazil
- New Zealand
- Peru
- South Korea
- United States
In addition, Japan as a host nation automatically qualifies for the Games meaning 15 of 35 places were already booked coming into the pre-Olympic season.
In Japan today, a further five berths were decided between the 44 unqualified nations from 58 competing. These are:
- Sweden
- Argentina
- Russia
- Hungary
- Guatemala
This leaves 15 places to complete the Olympic fleet.
These will be available at Continental Qualification events throughout the remainder of 2019 and moving into 2020. Full details of how these places will be distributed are in the Tokyo Qualification System document that is downloadable here but for Ireland, the news is that there are just two European places left and these will be decided next year in Genoa.
The following five European countries, (who have still not qualified their country) all finished ahead of Ireland today so Ireland will have to overhaul all but one of these to win a Tokyo berth in Genoa next April 13-19.
- Slovenia
- Switzerland
- Spain
- Netherlands
- Belgium
It'll be a tough nut to crack especially as both Belgium and Spain beat Ireland at the 2018 World Championships too yet the Italian venue is where Lynch performed so well earlier this season.
Read Afloat's coverage of the 2019 Laser World Championships in one handy link here