With this year's victory in the Wallygator World Cup off Porto Cervo as tactician of the "Y3K", 57-year-old Thomas Jungblut from Hamburg crowned a successful career in which he became one of the best-known German sailors.
The story of Jungblut also makes the development of German sailing in the post-war years transparent. At the time, the arch-conservative sailing association was faced with a horde of long-haired young revolutionaries from 1968 who, among other things, branded the association's statutes as anti-constitutional, hoisted the Soviet flag at the Nato base in Olpenitz and celebrated DKP election parties.
The OK dinghy scene, from which Hanse boss Michael Schmidt and Alinghi designer Rolf Vrolijk emerged, among others, really shook up the scene. And Jungblut was its star as world and vice world champion in the class.
Today, he sells North sails, which can reach the value of a Porsche Carrera. He belongs to the formerly hated establishment. But he can live with that. Now in the new YACHT, available in newsagents everywhere.
