After happy sailing days in dream conditions, the final day was all about fun on land and the acclaimed award ceremony of the GIDJM. At the award ceremony with Schleswig-Holstein's Minister of the Interior Sabine Sütterlin-Waack and the President of the State Parliament Kristina Herbst, young athletes from eight federal states and the host countries Sweden, Denmark and Ukraine were invited to the winners' podium in the overall and age group rankings.
In theOptimists The 14-year-old Swede Henric Wigforss, for whom the series was half a home game because his mother is from Germany, came out on top. After just one small slip-up, the young helmsman from the Royal Swedish Yacht Club won the championship ahead of Denmark's Frederik Dam Hastrup (Skovshoved Sejlklub) and Levian Büscher from the Düsseldorfer Yacht-Club. Büscher was delighted with his bronze medal and said: "I'm really happy with that. There are two people ahead of me who were also ahead of me at the World Championships. I am the first German. I have achieved my goal."
AP via Alpha: the winning signal for the best
The new champions in theTeeny class would have been ready on the final day to take on the competition on the water once again. But when "AP over Alpha" was set for the cancellation of all further races, Jona Lotta Hahn and Svea van Raden took it in their stride: "It didn't really matter whether we were still sailing or not. Because first place was pretty safe. But now we are very proud, because our opponents were strong," said the happy helmswoman. Looking at the results so far this season, her foresailor added: "It wasn't entirely unlikely that we would be among the front runners." The pair can now count on many reactions from various clubs. Although they compete for SV Speichersee Emsland, their home clubs are based in Bremerhaven and Borkum. For the Berlin chasers Niko Becker and Timo Orth (Touren-Segler-Vereinigung) and Jeanne Lemme/Theska Hagen (Touren-Segler-Vereinigung), the cancellation meant that there was no chance of an attack. However, the points gaps were already clear before the final day.
Leif Lüders learnt of the cancellation of the races on the final day and thus also of his triumph in theIlca-4 classHe was sitting on his boat, fully focussed, and had just received one last motivation from his coach. The tension quickly gave way to a beaming face. The helmsman from the Kieler Yacht-Club said: "My score with the German Youth Championship is now completely settled. After missing out on a medal last year, winning gold is great. And that in my last regatta in the Ilca 4." With the upcoming step up to the next larger class, Ilca 6, Leif Lüders wants to gain experience at the highest level and compete at the German Championships in Greifswald. "I'm assuming that I won't finish that far ahead. It's a shame that Ole (Schweckendiek, editor's note) is already switching from the Ilca 6 to the Ilca 7. He's a great sailor and I would have loved to have competed against him in a few regattas." With Tom Struve in second place, the organising Kieler Yacht-Club can celebrate a double victory in the Ilca 4. Franz Lasch from Segel-Club Fraternitas came third.
Ole on everyone's lips: the young KYC helmsman rushes from success to success
He is sailing from victory to victory this year and is already highly rated: With a flawless GIDJM record up to second place in the last race, Ole Schweckendiek once again proved to be the dominator in theIlca 6. Because he was able to cancel second place, the Kiel sailor only brought wins into the classification. The likeable and ambitious KYC helmsman was a little disappointed with the small luxury problem: "I was quite annoyed that something like this happened in the last race," said Schweckendiek, who had to give way to Willy Sörensen (MSC) once. Sörensen had already won the KÜZ regattas the previous weekend. But at the GIDJM everything went in Schweckendiek's favour, who sailed safely ahead. "It was easy," explained the European champion and third in the Youth Worlds, who is already flying to Portugal for the U21 World Championships on Friday to compete in the Olympic boat class Ilca 7. "I'm hoping for lighter winds," the lightweight hopes for his first international appearance in the new Olympic class. Paul Porthun and Willy Sörensen, two talented sailors from the Mühlenberger Segel-Club on the Hamburg Elbe, finished second and third off Schilksee.
In theEurope There was a double victory for two athletes from Seglervereinigung Hüde: Antonia Richter won ahead of Larson Schütze. Third place went to Nils Wittich from the Altona-Oevelgönne Sailing Association.
Two brothers step on the gas: Anton and Johann Sach dominate in the 29er
In the 29er, the brothers Anton and Johann Sach once again came out on top. "It went well," said Johann, summarising the series from his point of view in his typically succinct manner. Together with his brother Anton, he dominatesthe 29er event for quite some time. In Kiel, a 19-point lead over second-placed Carl Krause/Max Georgi from Rostock and seven race wins underlined their dominance in the last regatta of the year for the Sachs. "There are hardly any big international regattas left. We probably won't be travelling to the one on Lake Garda," announced Johann from the Lübeck Yacht Club. For now, after many sailing events, school is back at the top of the list of activities. However, the Sachs can't do without sailing completely and are already training in the 49er FX alongside their 29er commitment. "We are now sailing on two tracks. Before we get serious in the 49er FX, we'll train on our own first," says Johann, hinting at the next steps towards the Olympic 49er. The sons of cat expert Christian Sach (Zarnekau) are being carefully introduced to the new boat class. The junior skiff aces celebrate their second German championship title in a row at the GIDJM. Behind second-placed Carl Krause/Max Georgi (Rostocker Segelverein Citybootshafen), the Bavarians Moritz Wagner/Ole Guntermann (Deutscher Touring Yacht-Club/Diessner Segel-Club) followed at a respectful distance.
Success after a serious accident: Johann Emmer/Jannis Liebig win in the 420
Speed and composure were the two success factors of the new420 champion Johann Emmer and Jannis Liebig from Berlin. The duo, who compete for the Seglerhaus am Wannsee club and the SV03 Berlin, also want to carry both into the future. Helmsman Johann Emmer said: "Now we know how to do it. This is our first big win. We just have to stay calm and utilise our speed." The Berlin native learnt his newfound perspective on racing after a serious accident on a yacht. He only recovered from the open basilar skull fracture a week before the championship - and immediately hit great form off Schilksee. "But I still need a little time to realise it all," reflected Emmer. Second-placed Leonard von Holtum and Josh Berktold from Essener Turn- und Fechtclub had already tipped their hats to Emmer/Liebig's performance the day before. Third-placed Lysander Winter and Constantin Bötsch (Norddeutscher Regatta Verein/Bayerischer Yacht-Club) were delighted to have won a medal in the final sprint.
One of the cries of joy on the final day of the GIDJM in Schilksee came from Johan Rohner. "German Youth Champion indeed!" exclaimed Mia Sophie Aldag's co-skipper. The Berliner couldn't even have dreamed of this a week ago. It was only the cancellation of his coxswain's coxswain that earned him the IDJM in the Pirate. "It's amazing after seven days of knowing each other and five days of sailing," he said happily. His helmswoman was also somewhat incredulous: "It's quite a relief after all the tension. Many people have asked: 'Why are you so fast?" She was unable to give an exhaustive answer: "A lot of things have just fallen into place this week." There had already been celebrations among the Pirate sailors the evening before. After the decision, there was a long queue of well-wishers for the surprise winners. "The team spirit in the Pirate class is incredible," said Mia Sophie Aldag from the Hamburg Sailing Club, who won with her spontaneous foresailor from the Spandauer Jollensegler club ahead of Lissa Müncheberg/Charlotte Meyer (Akademischer Segler-Verein zu Rostock/Segel-Club Ribnitz) and Aike Braje/Marie Luise Bark (Segel-Club Münster/Wassersport-Verein-Güstrow).
There was never any doubt about Jakob Ditzen's superiority in the new youth surfing championship class. However, two early starts in the Open Windfoil put a dent in the 17-year-old's series of victories and second places. "I have to work on that, because something like that can be expensive," said the Berlin self-critic. "Apart from that, though, I gave it my all. I went into this championship well prepared and I thought I had a chance of winning the title. Because Elias (von Maydell, editor's note) and I have the most experience in the field. The conditions were okay during the days, but there could have been more pressure."
With the possibility of three strike results in the 15 races sailed, Jakob Ditzen confidently took gold ahead of club mate Elias von Maydell from Windsurfing Verein Berlin. Meno Büchler from Surf Club Kiel came third. Now the winner, who celebrates his 18th birthday in October, is already looking ahead: "From Kiel we're heading straight to Lake Silvaplana for the iQ Foil Youth and Junior Worlds. I want to be in the gold fleet there. And in October, I'm also planning to take part in the Senior Worlds in Brest." Click here for all GIDJM results (please click!)
The "oldies but goldies" are now taking over the baton from the successful youngsters: the anniversary regatta of the Olympic classes begins on Wednesday in the same area off Schilksee. The Tempest class will kick things off. You can also find all the information about "50 years of the Olympics" in YACHT 17. Click here for the latest information about the historic sailing festival with active participants from the past and well-known current sailing greats (please click!).
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
