Rafael Lasso: “This occasion served the Island as a test for what will come in 2024 with the dispute of the World Cups and qualifiers for the Olympic Games”
Lanzarote dressed up again to host one of the sailing events that make the Island a world nautical epicenter. The third edition of the Lanzarote International Regatta left nine days of competition at the highest level, bringing together numerous athletes who are fighting to gain a foothold in the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Rafael Lasso, CEO of Marina Rubicón, positively values the development of the third occasion of the event. “We are very satisfied with the result of the competition in every way. This year we have had the presence of the current world champions in the six Olympic sailing classes that we had in the water and a great media team that has done an enormous job of disseminating the event and Lanzarote itself”.
The organization had its sights set on the world championships that will be held next year in the waters of Lanzarote. For this reason, for Lasso this occasion “served as a test for what will come in 2024 with the dispute of the world championships and qualifiers for the 49er, 49erFX and iQFOil games in Paris for men and women.” Quite a challenge for the organization, which has the approval of participants, federations and the international committee itself.
And the riders find on the Lanzarote coast the ideal conditions to meet Olympic-sized objectives. The weather on the island invites this, concentrating the most demanding athletes in the month of February, because they find here the opportunity not to pause the season or even start earlier than expected. In fact, as this latest occasion of the competition on the island of volcanoes has shown, forecasts never fail, even managing to exceed expectations.
Without going any further, the closing day last Friday was lived out with special enthusiasm, with more than 350 participants of 39 different nationalities, who wore faces of great satisfaction after having been part of a quality competition, which is why many pay repeat visits to the Island every year.
The strong wind and the big waves were noticeable from the first day. The 470 Olympic class had a thrilling finish, with Jordi Xammar and Nora Brugman atop the podium by just one point’s difference. They were followed by another Spanish couple, Silvia Mas and Nico Rodríguez, who left third place to the current world champions, the Swedes Anton Dahlberg and Lovisa Karlsson.
Brits Freya Black and Saskia Tidey dominated in the women’s 49erFX class. Meanwhile the silver went to Italy thanks to the great work of Jana Germani and Giorgia Bertuzzi, who managed to beat the Americans Steph Roble and Maggie Shea.
Meanwhile, the Union Flag was once again at the top in the men’s category thanks to gold in the 49er class for Jamer Peters and Fynn Sterrit, followed by New Zealand’s Logan Dunning Beck and Oscar Gunn; and Austria’s Keanu Prettner and Kajob Flachberger.
There was also time for the Nacra 17 and iQFOil classes to start, leaving some memorable images with the landscape of Lanzarote as a backdrop with a landscape and weather that also caused many of the spectators and fans to come out to cheer and support the riders.
It was the French who found the best way to make the most of the constant Lanzarote wind, so Billy Besson and Noa Ancian ended up taking the gold in Nacra 17, while the Argentinians Mateo Majdalani and Eugenia Bosco fought with prize money to stay second, ahead of the New Zealanders Micah Wilkinson and Erica Dawson.
For their part, the Israeli women’s team started iQFOil as favourites, having been regulars on their preparatory visits to Lanzarote. Although the Spanish Pilar Lamadrid, who also trains and competes on the island, managed to put up a good fight with a good fourth place, the podium ended with Shahar Tibi with the gold medal, Sharon Kantor with the silver medal and Maya Morris, bronze.
This was the conclusion of a new edition of the Lanzarote International Regatta, a competition that is already a regular feature on the calendar of the sporting elite after witnessing how the high degree of organisational work of an event of international stature is equally compensated by the spectacular geography and meteorology of Lanzarote. A consistent review if we take into account that it is the international athletes themselves, competitors from all over the world, who describe their experience on the island with countless compliments.
Concluía, así, una nueva edición de la Lanzarote International Regatta, competición que ya forma parte del calendario de la élite deportiva tras ser testigos de cómo el alto grado de trabajo organizativo de un evento de talla internacional está del mismo modo compensado con la espectacularidad de la geografía y meteorología de Lanzarote. Reseña de consistencia si tenemos en cuenta que son los mismos deportistas internacionales, competidores a lo largo del planeta, quienes se encargan de describir con innumerables halagos su experiencia en la isla.
