On the evening before the World Championship final, Berlin's Erik Heil and Thomas Plößel were still in fourth place. They were still nine points behind the Austrians in third place. But helmsman Erik Heil sensed a chance for his team to finish on the podium. "I somehow have the feeling that tomorrow will be a good day. But that's just a feeling..." And the day turned out well. The crew from the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein opened the medal race strongly and never relinquished the lead they had quickly taken until the finish. That was enough to secure a bronze medal.
Erik Heil was particularly pleased with the final day: "The day could hardly have gone better for us. But we also had a bit of luck in a tight situation with the Austrians at the start. They hooked us because I didn't see them coming. Then they protested against us, but got the penalty themselves because the jury didn't think we had enough time and space to keep clear. It could have turned out differently..." National coach Marc Pickel said after the award ceremony in Geelong: "Erik and Thomas did a great job here. But the Austrians also put in a great series, for which we congratulate them. They are a very likeable crew and we enjoy training with them."
After winning silver at the 2019 World Championships, Heil/Plößel once again proved their world-class credentials with the bronze medal and are clearly among the podium contenders on course for Enoshima. Although the official Olympic nomination is still pending, Heil/Plößel are mathematically unbeatable in the national Olympic qualifiers with 55 points after the first two of a total of three qualifying regattas. Their friends and sparring partners Justus Schmidt and Max Boehme from the Kieler Yacht-Club sailed to ninth place in Phillip Bay off Geelong, scoring 21 points for their elimination account so far. As the third elimination regatta in Palma de Mallorca only has a maximum of 25 points up for grabs, Schmidt/Boehme can no longer turn the tide. Erik Heil said: "This is also causing very mixed emotions for me today, because we were a great team for eight years."
America's Cup high-flyers Peter Burling and Blair Tuke secured their sixth world championship title in Australia. World Championship silver went to the Spaniards Diego Botin and Iago Lopez Marra, the sparring partners of Erik Heil and Thomas Plößel. Benjamin Bildstein and David Hussl finished an unfortunate fourth. With 20th place in the eleventh race, they had already torpedoed their own previously outstandingly sailed series. With sixth place in the medal final, the Austrians were unable to defend the bronze medal they had hoped for against Heil/Plößel despite a furious race to catch up after the penalty at the start and had to admit defeat in the battle for third place on the podium, one point behind the Germans.
In the 49erFX, Tamara Echegoyen and Paula Barceló benefited from Charlotte Dobson and Saskia Tidey capsizing in the thrilling final battle for the World Championship crown. Gold and silver thus went to Spain and Great Britain. For the versatile Echegoyen, who was already 49erFX World Champion in 2016, was once a member of the world class in match racing and had competed in the Volvo Ocean Race on "Mapfre" in the meantime, the second World Championship title marked a successful comeback in the Olympic skiff discipline for women. Vicky Jurczok and Anika Lorenz catapulted themselves to fifth place in the World Championships with their second place in the medal race. Tina Lutz and Lotta Wiemers (Kiel), who stood in for Susann Beucke after she broke her fibula, sailed to ninth place at the World Championships. The performance must be rated highly, as Wiemers had not sailed 49erFX for two and a half years before her "fire brigade deployment" and only had a few weeks of training time to prepare for the World Championship task. In the Olympic elimination, Jurczok/Lorenz were able to significantly reduce their deficit after the 2019 World Championships, which they lost and scored no points in. However, Lutz/Beucke (Wiemers) still lead by a clear 28:16 points after two of three elimination regattas. A maximum of 25 points can be earned for a win in the final elimination regatta off Palma de Mallorca in the spring.
In the Nacra 17, Great Britain's John Gimson and Anna Burnet not only benefited from their own outstanding performance and victory in the medal race, but also from the thrilling Australian duel between Nathan and Haylee Outteridge and Jason Waterhouse and Lisa Darmanin. The two crews from Down Under fought another thrilling duel in their home waters for just one Nacra 17 ticket for their country. Former 49er Olympic champion and America's Cup competitor Nathan Outteridge and his sister won silver against their compatriots Waterhouse/Darmanin, who took bronze. Paul Kohlhoff and Alica Stuhlemmer, on the other hand, narrowly missed out on the medal race due to a capsize shortly before the finish in the last race before the medal final, finishing level on points with tenth-placed Finns Sinem Kurtbay/Akseli Keskinen. Helmsman Kohlhoff said: "That was a very disappointing end. But we'll be back at it again in a fortnight' time. And we're going full throttle again to achieve our goals off Palma."
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
