Fog hinders McCann’s Optimist European Championships progress

A twelfth and 31st scored in the first two races of the boy's gold fleet finals yesterday dropped Royal Cork's James McCann one place to 14th overall at the Optimist European Championships off Dún Laoghaire.

McCann was on a roll in the sub 10-knot conditions and had moved up to 10th overall after the first race but a threatening sea fog in the afternoon brought a sudden end to the second race of the day when it enveloped the Royal St George course on Seapoint Bay.

Race officers made the quick decision to shorten the race at a leeward mark, a legitimate but controversial decision that led to protests from competitors last night.

Dropped

A 25th and 47th in the first two races of the girl’s gold fleet has dropped local

Clare Gorman

of the

National Yacht Club

back two places overall to 32nd.

Team-mates Gemma McDowell and Alix Buckley are 40th and 46th respectively. Ireland is one of only three countries from the 44 competing to have qualified three girls in this 51-boat gold fleet.

The combined fleets of 254-boats were escorted back to Dún Laoghaire harbour by safety craft after it became apparent the fog was not going to lift. Racing was abandoned, meaning race eight for both silver and bronze fleets were postponed until today.

The overall leader in the boys fleet has eked out a healthy double-digit lead. France's Enzo Balanger has 14 points over one-time leader Kasper Nordenram of Sweden.

Defending champion Tytus Butowski has surged back up the rankings by winning yesterday's final race and lies third overall,19 points off the lead.

Five-point cushion

In the girl’s fleet, Romania’s

Ebru Bolat

has a five-point cushion over Spain’s Iset Segura.

After delivering a full programme to date there was some disappointment that racing was lost yesterday afternoon.

Depending on today’s weather Royal St George organisers say it may still be possible to reschedule the lost races into today’s penultimate programme before tomorrow’s finale.

This morning’s forecast promises gusty 15-knot winds, conditions which have served the Irish team well so far.