Germany's sailors claimed four medals in the Olympic classes on the final day of Kiel Week, despite light winds cancelling eight of the twelve scheduled medal races on Wednesday 24 June.
The 49erFX gold went to Canada's Georgia and Antonia Lewin-Lafrance, who won two medal races in which positions changed constantly. Champagne poured from a neoprene sock after they crossed the line. "We love Kiel Week with its excellent German organisation," said the crew member immediately after finishing. Estonia's Helen Pais and Helen Ausman took silver.
Behind them, the racing turned dramatic. Sophie Steinlein and her Kiel-based crewmate Catherine Bartelheimer claimed bronze after a tie with Denmark's Johanne and Andrea Schmidt was resolved under Appendix A 8.1 of the racing rules, comparing first-place finishes. Germany's Marla Bergmann and Hanna Wille, the Olympic sixth-place finishers from Hamburg and Kiel, were the fastest boat in the final but finished sixth overall.
Switzerland's Joshua Richner and Nilo Schärer won the 49er gold, holding off Israel's Illy Wureit and Yuval Barnoon in a tight final. "The final was incredibly tense mentally, but we stayed focused and concentrated on ourselves," said Schärer. "We're obviously thrilled that we still managed to win gold." The Swiss were less enthusiastic about the new Olympic format, even if it delivered them the top step. Bronze went to Americans Nevin Snow and Ian Macdiarmid. Germany's Richard Schultheis and Fabian Rieger finished eighth after a seventh in the first race ended their medal hopes.
The wind failure fell hardest on the ILCA classes. No further races were possible, leaving Kiel's Ole Schweckendiek and Philipp Buhl, who had been running fourth and fifth, without a shot at the podium. The ILCA 7 title went to Italy's Attilio Borio ahead of France's Lorenzo Mayer and Denmark's John Frederik Wolff. In the ILCA 6, Denmark delivered a one-two through Helena Wolff and Anna Munch, with Italy's Chiara Benini Floriani taking bronze.
Kiel Weather World meteorologist Sebastian Wache explained the conditions plainly. "The weak gradient wind worked against it for a long time," he said, "there were repeated lulls and strong wind shifts." The sea breeze that typically fills in during summer never established itself, even close to the Kiel Fjord entrance.
The Nacra 17 fleet also stayed in port. Great Britain's John Gimson and Anna Burnet were named Sailing Grand Slam champions without a final race, winning convincingly ahead of Sweden's Emil Jarüdd and Hanna Jonsson. Australians Ruben and Rita Booth, tied on points, took bronze.
The Flying Dutchman World Championship, following its opening ceremony the previous evening, got no racing away on Wednesday. Race director Stephan Giesen postponed the start twice before cancelling the opening event altogether, with racing rescheduled to begin at 11:00 AM on Thursday.
