The German Olympic sailors got off to an impressive start at the 123rd Kiel Week on Wednesday: Olympic bronze medallists Vicky Jurczok and Anika Lorenz from the Seglerhaus am Wannsee club took the lead in the 49erFX women's field. Their club mates Frederike Loewe and Anna Markfort took the lead in the 470 women's field. Simon Diesch and Philipp Autenrieth from Württembergischer Yacht-Club sailed to third place in the men's 470. The Austrians David Bargehr/Lukas Mähr are in the lead ahead of the Olympic champions Mathew Belcher and Will Ryan.
In the Laser Radial, Svenja Weger is in second place after two races, as are the mixed crew Jan Hauke Erichsen and Ann Kristin Wedemeyer in the Nacra 17 and Heiko Kröger in the Para World Sailing World Championship. Kröger had already won the title in the open one-man keelboat class 2.4mR in the first part of the Kieler Woche; he now has the rare chance to win a second title at a Kieler Woche as part of the Para World Championship. "I would like to have both titles," said Kröger, who is in second place after day one behind the Czech Daniel Bina, who performed surprisingly well in light winds, and ahead of Paralympic winner and perennial rival Damien Seguin.
In the 49er, Erik Heil and Thomas Plößel, the bronze medallists from Rio, from the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein are in third place after three races (14, 1, 3) behind the second-placed Brazilians Robert Scheidt and Gabriel Borges. Scheidt is the most successful Olympic sailor of this Kiel Week, having won gold twice and a total of five medals at the Olympic Games. "It's not surprising that he's so far ahead in these light winds," said Erik Heil, "he sees all the wind edges and can simply do it." Local heroes and European champions Justus Schmidt and Max Boehme initially had to settle for 31st place in their first regatta together after a year off.
The frontrunners are New Zealanders Josh Porebski and Trent Rippey. Until 2016, Porebski was the sparring partner of the new America's Cup superstar Peter Burling, who sailed to their first Olympic victory together with Blair Tuke in Rio de Janeiro before now shaking up the Cup establishment off Bermuda. Max Boehme said with a wink: "It suited the Kiwis today, because the conditions in Kiel were like off Auckland: offshore and shifty winds." In the Laser, world number one Philipp Buhl initially found himself in 26th place on the first day after finishing third and 19th in his preliminary round group.
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
