Despite a series of cancellations and a lot of waiting on the water and on land, Laser helmsman Philipp Buhl is starting the final two days of the Laser European Championship off Gran Canaria today with a lot of enthusiasm. The sports soldier from Sonthofen has positioned himself well for the final sprint in six races so far out of a total of 125 starters from 41 (!) nations, is only two points behind the leading British world champion Nick Thompson (12 points) and is tied on points with the Argentinian Julio Alsogaray in third place, thus maintaining his title chances.
The German Vice European Champion and Vice World Champion from 2015 had already made a strong start to the Olympic season with a victory in the pre-regatta for the European Championships and is now showing once again that he is one of the contenders for Olympic medals six months before the regatta in Rio. With new partner EWE, Buhl remains the greatest hope for the Olympics, because no one sails as reliably among the world's best as the helmsman from the Alpsee Immenstadt Sailing Club. "We've trained well and made good progress," says Buhl coach Thomas Piesker. "Now it's important to keep working hard. With the current conditions, the European Championships are good training for Rio."
In the European Championship field of almost 100 Laser Radial women, 20-year-old Lena Haverland is the best German starter in 40th place after qualifying, with Svenja Weger in 41st place behind her ahead of the last two days of the regatta. The front runner is once again the Dutch silver medallist from the 2012 Olympic Games: Marit Bouwmeester, who is aiming to recapture the Olympic gold she so narrowly missed out on four years ago in August, is sailing for the title off Gran Canaria.
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
