It was a nice home match for the German national sailing team at Kiel Week. The DSV fleet was the most successful nation in the Olympic classes on Wednesday with three wins, two second places and four third places, ahead of Estonia with one win and one second place and four other countries with one win each. In the Paralympic classes, the two German teams with Heiko Kröger and the Sonar team led by Jens Kroker were unrivalled and added two more victories to the German tally.
Although the 120th edition of the world's largest regatta was weak in some disciplines due to clashes of dates with European title fights and the lack of World Cup status, which the organisers want to continue to fight for, it nevertheless challenged the squad sailors in a variety of ways.
For example, laser sailor Philipp Buhl. Germany's Sailor of the Year won his third Kiel Week title in a row. "It was a must-win," said coach Thomas Piesker, "but you have to do it first." Buhl was the most sought-after interview partner for the press in Kiel and said: "There was a lot of media coverage for me here at this Kiel Week. It's not easy to keep focussing on the sport. But that's exactly what I want to practise, because after all I want to compete at the Olympic Games and it's even more turbulent there. It was also fun to give something back to my partners here on my home turf for their commitment and trust."
Buhl's hat-trick, which had already been in his sights before the first starting signal, succeeded after initial missteps with a concentrated catch-up performance, a tactically clever strategy and second place in the doldrums of the medal race on the final day. Kiel Laser returnee Tobias Schadewaldt secured third place on the podium behind Karl-Martin Rammo from Estonia with some outstanding performances. Buhl and Schadewaldt provided a nice scene when they congratulated each other on the water. At the time, both had believed that their second and third places would be enough for a German double victory. However, the Estonian had made up one place in the meantime and Tobi Schadewaldt was ultimately one place short of second place.
After the award ceremony, Buhl said with a view to the failed European Championships a few weeks ago: "I haven't always sailed as cool this year as I did here in Kiel. But I'm particularly pleased that my friend Erik Heil and I have finally won the same regatta. We set out to do that a long time ago and now it's finally happened." Buhl has big plans for the World Championship of the Olympic classes in Santander, Spain, in September, where the sailors in Audi Sailing Team Germany will also be looking to secure their places on the national starting grid for the 2016 Olympic Games with the fresh tailwind from Kiel: "I want to get back on the podium!"
Before Buhl's triumph, 49er sailors Erik Heil and Thomas Plößel had already celebrated their first Kiel Week victory with a somersault off the boat and a dip in the fjord. "We are really happy! I hope that we can continue on this course until the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro," said Thomas Plößel, who his helmsman Erik Heil credited with a large part of the joint success due to "brilliant tactical decisions".
Annina Wagner from the Potsdam Yacht Club and Elisabeth Panuschka from the Bayer-Uerdingen Sailing Club were the first German team to achieve their third victory in the Olympic classes in the morning in the 470. The duo, who have not been back in the same boat for long, seemed energised throughout the week and were delighted with two victories on the day. In the medal race, the women started a furious race to catch up after a supposed early start and a corresponding adjustment and were actually able to oust the Austrian leaders Lara Vadlau and Jolanta Olgar from first place by winning the race. "We have rewarded ourselves for the hard work of the last few months," said Elisabeth Panuschka from Krefeld.
Also remarkable was the successful final spurt of the Berlin 470 sailors Jasper Wagner and Dustin Baldewein, who won the Kieler Woche silver medal race, beating none other than Olympic and World Champion and World Sailor of the Year Matt Belcher from Australia with his foresailor Will Ryan into third place, while gold went to Greece.
The two German teams in the Paralympic disciplines topped their good record of nine podium places in the Olympic classes with their 100 per cent success rate. The Paralympic winners Heiko Kröger from Jersbek and the team led by Berlin skipper Jens Kroker won their classes 2.4mR and Sonar with aplomb. Following the commissioning of the new ramp in Kiel, which also allows disabled athletes unhindered access to their boats, the races in the Sonar class were held for the first time as part of Kiel Week. The organisers are therefore already expecting a significantly greater response from international Sonar circles next year than at this premiere.
A look at the winners' lists of the International German Sailing Championship revealed a result that could have come from a Hamburg championship. Owners and their crews from the Hanseatic city won in all three classes. In the large ORC 1 class, Harm Müller-Spreer's Carkeek 47 "Platoon" from the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein with tactician Markus Wieser from Starnberg won by a clear margin over the competition. Christopher Opielock's "Rockall IV" secured the title in the middle ORC 2 class. In the smallest class ORC 3 and 4, Max Gurgel's "Solconia" from Hamburger Segel-Club won by two points after a highly exciting duel with Axel Seehafer's "Sportsfreund" from Kiel up until the seventh and final race. A total of 59 yachts took part in this title series and gave a good foretaste of the World Championship in August, for which a record number of more than 170 starters have already registered. "We are experiencing a boom like we haven't seen for years," said Dr Wolfgang Schäfer, Chairman of the DSV Sailing Committee. "It looks like our years of work are finally bearing fruit. And now we have to reap the rewards."
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
