World Championship 49er, 49erFX, Nacra 17: Two skiff medals possible before the World Championship thriller on Sunday

The German sailors could have done better on the final day of the 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 World Championships, but they could have done worse. On the most difficult day of racing so far, Erik Heil and Thomas Plößel had to surrender their previously commanding lead to the Olympic champions and top favourites Peter Burling and Blair Tuke from New Zealand. Weak starts, but some outstanding catch-up races meant that the Berliners, who race for the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein, dropped back to second place. However, Heil/Plößel successfully defended their medal chances, twelve points behind the Kiwis and 24 points ahead of Great Britain's Dyland Fletcher-Scott/Stuart Bithell ahead of the last two races of the main round and the medal final on Sunday.

For 49er helmsman Erik Heil, the mixed results of his crew on Saturday (12-15-10) did not come as a complete surprise. His team could not afford a premature start in difficult conditions due to the cancellation following the broken oar at the start of the World Championships. The previous world championship leaders were correspondingly cautious and, like the majority of their fleet, also struggled to read the complicated wind conditions on the new Takapuna course that day. "After our good series so far, it was clear that we would have a day with less favourable conditions. But we weren't tense, rather relaxed. But our starts were obviously extremely bad. And we didn't quite understand what was required on the Takapuna course that day. It was difficult to pin down a plan. Despite a bad start, our last race of the day was the best because we went from 24 to ten on the second cross. Overall, we could have been hit much harder. It always looked worse at the start than it was at the finish. We remain calm and focussed on ourselves."

The New Zealander's relief and enjoyment of the successful sailing day are clear to see: His team took the lead from Heil/Plößel on Saturday just in time for the final day. The Kiwis showed all their class, especially when winning the last race

Heil paid tribute to his great rivals from New Zealand on Saturday evening in Auckland: "A series like Peter and Blair's today in these conditions with the results 10-5-1 is legendary as far as the points balance is concerned. It was clear that the locals and favourites would have a good day like this at some point when everyone else was having a bad one. That's their strength. But we'll just step on the gas on Sunday. With a few good races, we'll be back in contention and have the chance of a 'metal battle'. Anything is possible." Twelve points separate the second-placed Germans from the New Zealand high-flyers, who now start the final day in the yellow jersey, ahead of the last two races of the main round and the subsequent medal final of the top ten on Sunday morning (local time).

LUTZ/BEUCKE ALSO RETAIN MEDAL CHANCES

In the women's 49erFX, Tina Lutz/Susann Beucke (Chiemsee Yacht-Club/Hannoverscher Yacht-Club) slipped back to fourth place on the same difficult day, 18 points behind the third-placed Danes Helene Næss/Marie Rønningen. In the lead on equal points ahead of the Brazilian Olympic champions Martine Grael Soiffiatti/Kahena Kunze are the Dutch women Annemiek Bekkering and Annette Duetz (both 76 points). Foresailor Susann Beucke reported: "That was a very, very difficult day. The whole bay had good wind and the race committee sent us to the exact spot where two wind systems were battling it out. The wind was coming from everywhere and it was hard to tell what was going to happen next. But we're proud of the fact that we didn't feel any pressure today, despite the red lycra we'd given away. And we're very keen to put the shirt back on after tomorrow." The Germans' challenge could not be more clearly formulated. "The good thing," says Beucke, "is that we have two more races tomorrow and then the medal final. So it's far from over yet."

THE MOST IMPORTANT TASK IN NACRA 17 HAS BEEN FULFILLED

Paul Kohlhoff and Alica Stuhlemmer are in 13th place in the Nacra 17 mixed catamaran world championship field ahead of the two final races and the medal final on Sunday. They have completed their most important task and secured a place on the German Sailing Team's entry list for the 2020 Olympic Games. "The big goal for this event has been achieved, so we are already satisfied with that. Overall, of course, we expect much more from ourselves in the future. In hindsight, you can see that we went into this series very defensively in some races and with the sole aim of securing the national ticket. In some places this also led to wrong decisions in terms of the overall result, which we can only be satisfied with if we are at least in the top eight. Even more would have been possible. So tomorrow we'll attack again and see what we can do. Of course, we want to reach the medal race."

Here to see the results.