2020 ILCA Laser Standard World Championship in Melbourne, Australia - Day 4
by Laser 2020 Media 14 Feb 18:16 NZDT
9-16 February 2020
Wild weather sweeps Sandringham Yacht Club, meaning no sailing at the Laser World Championships on Friday Feb 14. © Jon West Photography
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 5 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 separates first from tenth, ensuring interesting racing for the remainder of the Championship.
Full Results can be found here.
Download the Laser 2020 app for up-to-the-minute information: