Olympia: GER sailors hold their own in the heat and doldrums battle, Kördel is lucky
Tatjana Pokorny
· 29.07.2024
The German national sailors have so far not been very impressed by the hot light winds in the Olympic bay of Marseille. All four GER crews and windsurfing soloists required for the start of the Olympic regatta are in the top ten after two days. The two German skiff duos are even lurking in promising positions in fourth overall after the first half of their main round up to the final.
Windsurfer Theresa Steinlein also made a promising start to the Olympic premiere in her class on Monday in fifth place overall. Sebastian Kördel finished tenth in the men's only iQFoil race. The windsurfing giant from the German Sailing Team took the cancellation of the entire first day of racing, the postponements, the waiting and also his tenth place on the second day in his stride. "It's not the end of the world. At least I didn't catch any letters," said the 33-year-old with a smile. He was referring to any BFDs (early start disqualifications) or DPIs (penalties).
Today was a bit more difficult for us until we got used to the new choppy surface" (Hanna Wille)
Bergmann/Wille fourth despite early start
The young 49er FX sailors Marla Bergmann and Hanna Wille, who had made such a brilliant start to their Olympic premiere the day before, suffered such a BFD in race four on Monday, before finishing 16th in race five and ending the day in seventh place on an upward trend. The weaker result for the day compared to the outstandingly successful start only dropped Bergmann/Wille down one place in the intermediate classification, as others were also struggling. To the delight of the Olympic hosts, France's Sarah Steyaert and Charline Picon took the lead in the FX women's event.
Foresailor Hanna Wille commented on her crew's performance halfway through the main skiff round to the final: "Today was a bit more difficult for us until we got used to the new choppy wave. We got the hang of it in the third race." Helmswoman Marla Bergmann said after the early start disqualification on Monday: "I think we were a bit stressed and nervous in the first two races today with the changed conditions. That's natural when you have a position like ours - and you don't want to lose it."
In the sailors' hindsight, it was the choppy wave from the front and the current from behind that combined to give them the early start. Although they stumbled on the day, they did not fall and continued to defend their excellent position in the Olympic field.
Meggendorfer/Spranger move up to fourth place
The 49er sailors Jakob Meggendorfer and Andreas Spranger from the Bayerischer Yacht-Club have worked their way up to the same promising position as the skiff sailors from the German Sailing Team. Helmsman Jakob Meggendorfer said after a total of six races for his team: "Right from the start, we had resolved not to put ourselves under any pressure. We want to sail with the desire to race and enjoy the Olympics. That's the best way to maximise our performance."
The boys simply enjoy sailing, and that is reflected here" (Max Groy)
49er coach Max Groy said: "It was very rolly in the fleet today. The conditions were very challenging with very light winds. The guys did really well and got through the day with very good results. They simply enjoy sailing and that is reflected in the results. It was a good day for us and we're looking forward to tomorrow." The German 49er duo were worthy of a few comments from the international reporters, as were Marla Bergmann and Hanna Wille's bravura performance as the youngest 49er FX crew in the Olympic fleet.
If a national Olympic committee is wondering whether it's worth sending a team that doesn't look so promising, then look at Jakob Meggendorfer and Andreas Spranger" (World Sailing)
Even the world federation wrote impressive words about the German 49er sailors Jakob Meggendorfer and Andreas Spranger, who were only nominated by the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) on 2 July at the request of the DSV, under the headline "The Germans continue to justify their place":
"If a national Olympic committee is wondering whether it's worth sending a team that doesn't seem so promising, then look at Jakob Meggendorfer and Andreas Spranger. Perhaps it's the fact that they didn't even know whether they would be allowed to compete at the Games until the beginning of the month that gives them the freedom to just go for it. No pressure. Meggendorfer and Spranger improved over the course of the day and finished fourth overall with 12, 8, 3 points."
Luck in misfortune for Sebastian Kördel
Sebastian Kördel, the German iQFoil windsurfing world champion from 2022, has only had one chance to shine so far. At the Olympic premiere of the men's iQFoil fleet, only one slalom has been completed over two days. The second race had to be cancelled due to fading winds. Sebastian Kördel was not too sad about this, as he had made the "stupid mistake" of jibing around the reach buoy in light winds. "That's never worked before and didn't work well there either," he said with a smile.
When asked about his mood at the Olympics and whether he had already experienced any personal Olympic moments, the 31-year-old top athlete from the North German Regatta Club talked about two remarkable experiences for him: "On Sunday, I sailed out at the same time as the Frenchman Goyard. There were cheers and chants from more than ten thousand people on the beach - for him, of course. For a moment, you imagine that the cheers are also for you. A great moment!"
After the total cancellation of the windsurfing opener on Sunday, Kördel had a second lucky moment on Monday. "My harness broke before the race today. It was lucky that we were able to replace it before the start." After a few days with a cold, Kördel said that he still "lacked a bit of juice in his muscles" on Monday. But he feels he is on the right track. The only Olympic iQFoil race so far was won by France's co-favourite Nicolas Goyard ahead of the reigning Italian world champion Nicolo Renna, to the delight of the 12,500 paying spectators and countless other fans on the beach and in Club 2024.
Steinlein in 5th place in the iQFoil
Sebastian Kördel's team and club mate Theresa Steinlein made a determined start to her and the iQFoil women's Olympic premiere on Monday. With places 3 and 11, the windsurfer from Wörthsee placed fifth, putting her right up there with the world's best. Her report from the course after hours of postponed starts and hot races: "You mustn't forget: It was a mega tough day because we had to wait so long. It's hard to stay motivated. We did two slalom races today, which went really well for me. That was super important for me."
I always think: if the first day goes well, then the week will be good too" (Theresa Steinlein)
Five races for the men's and women's windsurfing fleets are scheduled for day three of the Olympic regatta on Tuesday. The skiff fields are challenged in three races each. Click here for the ARD livestream with Peter Carstens and Susann Beucke on 30 July.
