European Championship 49er, 49er FX and Nacra 17: Olympic bronze medallists miss out: "It wasn't our day"

When European or world title competitions in the skiff disciplines or in the foiling Nacra 17 catamaran are on the agenda, German successes have been a regular feature in recent years. These three fast-paced boat classes have become the German Sailing Team's favourite disciplines. This quality was even worth three medals at the Olympic Games in Enoshima, Japan, last summer. It was a different story at the European Championships in Aarhus, Denmark, this week. On closer inspection, however, the comparatively poor performance of the DSV athletes is likely to be a temporary phenomenon in many cases.

Alica Stuhlemmer: "The stitched laceration was not the reason"

The German Olympic sailors have finished the European Championships in the three fastest Olympic boat classes 49er, 49er FX and Nacra 17 without any medals. Olympic bronze medallists Paul Kohlhoff and Alica Stuhlemmer had started the European Championship medal final of the top ten catamaran crews on Sunday in third place after a strong week. However, because they only finished ninth, they dropped back to seventh place in the final standings. In the battle for a podium place, foresailor Alica Stuhlemmer suffered a stitched laceration to her knee, which she had sustained the day before in a collision on deck. "The wound had to be stitched up with a few stitches in hospital yesterday evening. It really hurt and perhaps didn't help today in the final, but it certainly wasn't the reason why we sailed badly," explained the 22-year-old sports soldier from Altenholz robustly. "It just wasn't our day. We made too many mistakes."

Initially well placed, the Kiel duo quickly dropped back to tenth place in the medal race after positioning themselves on the less favoured right-hand side of the course in shifty conditions. They were able to make up one place in the short race, but this was not enough to defend third place. Despite the disappointment of seventh place, Germany's best Nacra 17 crew ended the series on a positive note. Alica Stuhlemmer said: "We have shown that we have learnt a lot from Kiel Week. We're still getting too many knocks, but things are improving and we're having a lot of fun. The Italians are showing us the way forward. We have work ahead of us." The Italian Olympic champions Ruggero Tita and Caterina Banti demonstrated the way forward with an incredible nine race wins in 14 races and a dominant European Championship gold medal. After the medal final, the Azzurri had only 21 points in their World Championship account. Second-placed New Zealanders Micah Wilkinson and Erica Dawson won silver with 86 points.

Coach Max Groy: "I assume that both crews will be in top shape for the World Championships"

In the 49er and 49er FX classes, the German teams were unable to shine at these title fights. Tim Fischer/Fabian Rieger (Norddeutscher Regatta Verein/Verein Seglerhaus am Wannsee), 2018 World Championship bronze medallists in the same area, were the best GER crew in the field of 89 49ers in 16th place, while the otherwise strong Jakob Meggendorfer/Andreas Spranger (Bayerischer Yacht-Club) retired shortly after the halfway point due to a coronavirus infection in the crew in the run-up to the European Championships.

Skiff coach Max Groy said: "Jakob and Andi's performance is due to the coronavirus situation. We didn't want to overdo it after the illness and preferred to make sure that they were fully recovered for the World Championships in Canada in the first week of September. Tim and Fabian are also still catching up after a long break and their sensational return at Kiel Week. With as much wind as here in Aarhus, they are simply missing some training time. I assume that both crews will be in top shape for the World Championships." In the absence of the Japan bronze medallists Erik Heil/Thomas Plößel (Norddeutscher Regatta Verein), who are taking a break due to their studies but are also planning for the World Championships in Canada at the beginning of September with coach Marc Pickel, their well-known Spanish training partner Diego Botin secured European Championship gold in Denmark with his new foreship Florian Trittel.

Catherine Bartelheimer: "The 2024 Olympics is our goal, and we're giving it our all"

Following the retirement of Olympic silver medallists Tina Lutz/Susann Beucke (Chiemsee Yacht Club/Norddeutscher Regatta Verein), the women's 49er FX is undergoing a generational change. The young crews have to step on the gas to close the still clearly recognisable gap to the world's best as quickly as possible, because ideally they want to secure their national starting places for the 2024 Olympic Games as early as next year at the World Championships. The best German result at the European title fights in Denmark in the 70-boat fleet was achieved by 21-year-old helmswoman Inga-Marie Hofmann and Catherine Bartelheimer (Düsseldorfer Yachtclub/Segelclub Inning am Ammersee), who sailed to 25th place. Catherine Bartelheimer's summary: "On the whole, we are satisfied. Our goal was to reach the gold fleet. We achieved that. It was tricky to sail with lots of gusts and turns, as you know Aarhus is. We know what we need to work on. The Paris 2024 Olympics is our goal and we're giving it our all." Three places behind them, Maru Scheel and Freya Feilcke (Kieler Yacht-Club) finished the series in 28th place after 14 races. Freya Feilcke said: "We had two good qualifying days, but then narrowly missed out on the gold fleet. That was a bit disappointing. You have to swallow that first. The 2024 Olympics is the goal, and we will do everything we can to catch up with the world's best. I think we have a strong group and can manage the generational change together." Brazilian double Olympic champions Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze won gold at the open European Championships.

Click here for the European Championship results (please click!).