Of the six German boats in the European Championship fleet of 55 starters from seven nations, three finished on the podium. The 50 per cent success rate looks like a promise with a view to next year's ORC World Championship in Kiel. Jan Opländer's 15-year-old Swan 45 "Katima" narrowly missed out on the A podium of the ORCi European Championship in fourth place after winning the opening race in the longer offshore race and coming third in the shorter offshore race. The GP 42 "X-Day" with skipper Lars Hückstädt sailed to 5th place in Class A.
Michael Berghorn: We were delighted to have six bullets in the Up & Downs
The joy in the German camp on Saturday at the Royal Norwegian Yacht Club (KNS) was correspondingly great. "Halbtrocken 4.5" owner Michael Berghorn said: "We have trained hard this year and invested many weekends. When you manage all the manoeuvres so well and have a very low error rate, then you have all the tactical options. And with every victory, your self-confidence naturally grows a little more. When things go right, they go right. That was the case here in Norway. We're delighted with the title and are a happy crew!" Berghorn also raved about the Oslo Fjord: "The sailing area and landscape here are a dream." Like many German sailors, Berghorn's team already has their sights set on next year's ORC World Championship in Kiel from 4 to 12 August: "Of course we have the World Championship in mind. That's the next big top event. And Schilksee is our home harbour, the Kiel Yacht Club our home club. That's even more special. But with successes like this one here at the ORCi European Championships, expectations are also rising and some people are already looking in our direction ..."
Jens Kuphal: That's amazing!
"Intermezzo" owner Jens Kuphal, whose crew beat Norwegian Landmark class rival "White Shadow" to second place in the battle for the title by just one point, said: "It's amazing. In 2013, we were so far behind with our first Dehler at the German Championship that they had to wait for us. Now, ten years later, we are European champions. That shows: You have to keep at it. I am very proud of the whole team, of each individual. Robert Stanjek has led us here as a team." Kuphal attributes the golden result at the ORCi European Championships to the well-coordinated team: "We only had two egg timers over the course of a week. That was everything." The "Intermezzo" crew was particularly pleased to have represented the Landmark class so successfully at this ORCi European Championship. "We even had an evening here with Claus Landmark and are very proud to now be part of the Landmark community and the history of the Landmark class," says Kuphal.
The Norwegian hosts of the ORCi European Championships have been showing daily clips from the title fights on YouTube. The final video was not yet ready at the time of publication.
All other videos can be found on YouTube by entering the search term "ORCi European Championship 2022". In Class C, the Estonian Ancona 340 "Katariina II" won without any German participation, ahead of its compatriots on the J 112 E "Matilda 4" and the modified First 36.7 "Team Pro4U" from Sweden.
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
