A strange day in Torbole

12/05/2023

With a very unstable wind between 6 and 20 knots and a water surface covered with seaweed and other unidentified floating objects, the Torbole PWA World Cup in Italy finally started on Thursday with a day that smiled on the Dutch sailor Femke van der Veen and the Frenchman Alexandre Cousin.

Known for its two dominant winds, the Peler in the morning and the Ora in the afternoon, Torbole has been out of action for the last few days due to a low pressure system clinging to the Alps. After the calm and almost continuous rain of the previous day, Eole finally deigns to make an appearance this Thursday. On the programme: 6 to 20 knots, very irregular in strength and direction, and rain that brought floating objects that were not always identified, not to mention some seaweed that made the race even more uncertain.
All these parameters combined and integrated, the starts became decisive with competitors pushing and of course the (many) early starts that animated this morning. In the men's final of the day, 5 of the 8 competitors were sanctioned, leaving only Nico Prien, Michele Becker and Alexandre Cousin on the water to decide the day's winner. Cousin, a rather discreet kid who was up against two Youtubers, used his speed to win. The reigning World Champion, Maciek Rutkowski, had to settle for 4th place in this first elimination, alongside Matteo Iachino, Amado Vrieswijk and the young 17-year-old Will McMillan, who qualified for his first final. Bruno Martini completes the top 8. Among the favourites, Enrico Marotti and Pierre Mortefon had to settle for 9th and 10th place...

The women, 11 of them, went straight into their finals and the start of the season couldn't have been better for the French rider Justine Lemeteyer, who won the first final of the day ahead of the English rider Sarah Jackson and the Dutch rider Femke van der Veen. But as in the men's race, the pressure was on at the start line and in the second and final race of the day, 7 of the 11 women were sanctioned for starting too early. 5 start attempts later, Femke van der Veen won ahead of Frenchwoman Maé Davico and Sarah Jackson, all 3 of whom are now on the provisional podium for the event. Reigning World Champion Marion Mortefon had a timid start with a 6th place, another 9th place and a modest 8th place in the provisional overall standings...
Despite the less than optimistic weather forecast for Friday, everyone remains hopeful that the wind will come back and that they won't be stuck with these meagre results for the moment...