The fickle mountain winds brought challenges for all the teams, but MRT found themselves on the wrong side of the shifts in most races.

The day was full of highs and lows, and the last race of the day against BlackMatch Racing saw plenty of both.

MRT lost the start and conceded a penalty, but with some neat shiftwork they managed to get themselves ahead at the top mark. Extending their lead around the track it looked as though they could wipe off their penalty and keep the lead, but now it was Minoprio’s team who worked their way back into the game, and forcing the error at the top mark they sailed away to a comfortable win.

Tomorrow MRT will race the rest of the teams who are all fighting to be the King of the Mountain

Quarter Final Pairings:

• Jesper Radich (DEN) Vs. Francesco Bruni (ITA)
• Ian Williams (GBR) Vs. Magnus Holmberg (SWE)
• Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Vs. Damien Iehl (FRA)
• Ben Ainslie (GBR) Vs. Mathieu Richard (FRA)

]]> http://www.mirskyracingteam.net/2010/07/09/watch-mirsky-racing-team-at-match-cup-sweden-live-here/feed/ 0 http://www.mirskyracingteam.net/2010/07/08/mirsky-racing-team-on-top-at-match-cup-sweden/ http://www.mirskyracingteam.net/2010/07/08/mirsky-racing-team-on-top-at-match-cup-sweden/#comments Thu, 08 Jul 2010 08:22:29 +0000 admin http://www.mirskyracingteam.net/?p=1044

Strong winds and sunshine prevailed yet again on the second day of Match Cup Sweden, suiting MRT’s style who went through the day undefeated.

The local Perth derby was first on the agenda, with Black Swan Racing’s Keith Swinton facing off against the Mirsky Racing Team. The two teams grew up racing each other and know all the tricks to take the other team out. It was MRT who got the better of Swinton in this race though, leading off the line and pushing hard in to the rocks to extend their lead and take the first of 3 wins for the day.

The next two races against Magnus Homberg and the up and coming kiwi Reuben Corbett played out similarly, with MRT leading off the line, and playing the course to extend their lead.

Tomorrow the team has the day off racing, before the quarterfinals start on Friday.

And from the Official Tour News Room…

Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team, Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team and Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar headed back into buzzing Marstrand safe in the knowledge that they have a place in the quarter finals combat. These three sailors are on a roll with Mirsky at 6-1, Williams at 5-1 and Richard at 5-2. Also with a confident charge at joining the quarter finals fray are Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAM ORIGIN sitting snugly on 5-2 and new face to the 2010 Tour, Damien Iehl (FRA) French Match Racing Team, who has found his feet quickly and sits on 5-1.

Mirsky who is now based out of Sweden was quick to mention the lay day scenario for Stage 5,

“Last year and also this year we’ve got the same problem, we have a day off before the quarters because there are 2 regattas at once the men’s and women’s. This is a unique thing to Sweden it doesn’t happen anywhere else, you get lots of breaks so we are going to have to try and stay focused and not get too distracted with all the island distractions out here in Marstrand and make sure we are ready for the boys. We’ll probably be racing someone who has sailed on Thursday and that’s going to be really tough for us”.

Setting aside the distractions of Sweden, MRT hit the water to take 3 wins from 4 races.

This year’s format is cut throat, with four teams from two groups advancing through to the quarterfinals, which means that all the teams need to be in top shape from the get go.

The first race for MRT didn’t go well, with Ian Williams from GAC Team Pindar winning the race at the start, and then showing off exactly how to navigate around this difficult arena to extend to the finish.

MRT took notes into the next races and won all three in a row against the sailing power houses from TeamOrigin and Yanmar Racing Team, but it was the surprise talents of the local Berntsson Sailing Team that pushed MRT to the limits.

The fiery Swede Johnie Berntsson came out hot, and throughout the race was constantly keeping the game tight, but when he picked up a penalty for hitting the top mark MRT switched into a tight defensive mode and just lead into the finish.

Tomorrow will see MRT finish the round robin with the first three races of the day on. First up, the local derby against Perth’s new talent, Keith Swinton and his Black Swan Racing team.

Newly appointed WMRT Chief Executive, Jim O’Toole, commented on the deal which will also see the new official apparel range made available to the general public via the Sail Racing online store, “This is a key new relationship for the Tour. Sail Racing’s brand concept fits perfectly with the plans we have for the ongoing development of the Tour brand. We share core values such as creativity and innovation and look forward to building our clothing business to mutual benefit”

Sail Racing has worked with some of the most successful sailing events in the world such as; the Volvo Ocean Race and Nokia Oops Cup.  The specialist sports clothing brand has also been associated with the Swedish America’s Cup Victory Challenge Team, the Audi/Q8 Team racing a TP52 in the Audi Med Cup as well as Red Bull Extreme Sailing.

Henric Wikestam, Managing Director at Sail Racing is pleased to have formed a partnership with the world’s leading professional racing series and noted the significance of this latest development for the company, “Partnering with such a successful sports brand is a very positive step for Sail Racing, we have watched the Tour’s recent growth under the new leadership team with keen interest and are ready to be part of the ambitious global expansion plans. We are very excited to provide the Tour team with a clothing range which we are convinced will appeal to all members of the WMRT community including officials, teams, media and fans”.

Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team, one of only 9 selected international 2010 WMRT Tour card holders, has also been signed up to wear the brand and will be endorsing the ‘Sail Racing 50 KTS Race Edition’ this season.  Currently ranked 6^th on the official ISAF World Match Racing Tour standings after finishing 2^nd place overall at last year’s Tour, Mirsky is delighted with the partnership, “it’s great to be associated with a strong brand like Sail Racing, they have realized the future direction of sailing and are always one step ahead of the competition in terms of design, fashion and quality.  It is the same direction in which our team is heading”.

Sail Racing also selected the esteemed Swedish racer, Magnus Holmberg (SWE) Victory Challenge, to help develop their technical lines since the inception of the company.  Holmberg, who has been ranked No.1 in the World Match Race Tour standings and was crowned ISAF Match Racing World Champion from 2000-2001, is a key member of the Sail Racing clothing test team.  The triple Olympian also has two America’s Cup campaigns under his belt and has been dedicated to match racing since 1991, this year he is again taking part in a number of the 2010 Tour Stages.  This Tour veteran has initiated Sail Racing’s inclusion in a number of high profile sailing projects and is the important link between the World Match Racing Tour and the leading sports clothing line.

The World Match Racing Tour line of Sail Racing Clothing will in the near future be available for purchase by the general public via the online store at www.sailracing.com.

Another fine day in Portimao, and another fine day for MRT as they carry on their form from yesterday to win all today’s races.

With unfavourable weather having plagued this year’s Portugal Match Cup, the threat of cutting the format down is looming. This means that the round robin could turn out to be more important than usual, with the winner of the round possibly fast tracking through to the semi finals.

Luckily the slow start to the morning’s racing didn’t have an effect on MRT today as they burst through the gates against Aleph Sailing Team’s French veteran Bertrand Pace. An aggressive start left Pace in the wake of the Australians as they sailed off to carry on their winning spree.

“I guess we are sailing well, but we haven’t quite reached our peak yet, and we are looking to strengthen the way we perform” said MRT’s Welsh pitman Tudur Owen. “I hope we get to sail the quarterfinals tomorrow, because we are really enjoying sailing here this week and want to keep on going as much as we can. It would be a shame to have to cut back on another format this year…”

Torvar said in the official tour release:

“We feel comfortable in the SM40 boats, our crew work together is really good, we’ve been sailing as a unit for a few years now and it just feels easy that way.  It’s just the Round Robin but to be leading this stage is really nice, there are still a few more races to go and we want to be first, hopefully we will get to race an easy person first in the quarters”.

Day 3: Current Round Robin Standings

Once again racing was delayed as the seabreeze couldn’t settle in, and the teams were left to soak up the sun in this picture perfect arena.

The racing wasn’t quite so easy however, with Team Azzura’s Francesco Bruni looking to draw the day’s first blood. Both teams were pushing to the limits to get the advantage off the line, and finding some speed, MRT managed to force Azzura to tack off to the unfavoured side, and with this slight advantage the Australian’s managed to lead through to the finish.

The final race of the day saw a rematch of the Korea Match Cup semi finals with MRT seeking revenge on the French Match Racing Team, lead by Mathieu Richard. A feisty prestart saw MRT lead marginally off the line after a daring stunt by skipper Torvar Mirsky got them in front.

“It was pretty touch and go as to whether we were going to fit in the small gap between Richard’s boat and the committee boat, but luck was on our side and the boys did a pretty good job to get us up to speed without getting a penalty” said Torvar Mirsky after the day’s racing came to a close.

“We were really happy with our last race against Richard, but also the whole day. We are sailing well, but I still think we have some room for improvement.”

Day 2: Current Round Robin Standings

Racing was delayed this morning, giving the sailors the chance to bathe in the beautiful Portugese sun. Finally racing got underway late in the afternoon, and the event was underway in the season’s first glimpse of strong breeze.

When it was MRT’s turn to step onto the boats, the wind slowly began to fade, but remained steady for their first race against Spain’s Manu Weiller. After a solid prestart, MRT managed to get to the favoured side of the course and fend off the Spaniards attacks to take their first wind.

The second race against Victory Challenge’s Magnus Holmberg didn’t run as smoothly, with the Swedish Match 40 veteran sailing smart to beat the Australian team.

“Obviously it wasn’t ideal to lose to Magnus, but he pulled off some interesting moves that we have put into our memories for next time” said Tactician Kyle Langford. “We are really happy with everything though. It is a great race track with a great backdrop and these boats are a lot of fun to sail, so we are staying positive going into tomorrow morning’s races.”

Day 1: Current Round Robin Standings

• Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing 3-0
• Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team 2-0
• Francesco Bruni (ITA) Azzurra 2-0
• Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar 2-1
• Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing 2-1
• Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team 1-1
• Magnus Holmberg (SWE) Victory Challenge 1-1
• Bertrand Pacé (FRA) Aleph Sailing Team 1-2
• Alvaro Marinho (POR) Seth Sailing Team 1-2
• Björn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global Team 0-2
• Manuel Weiller (ESP) Team Iberdrola 0-2
• Eugeny Neugodnikov (RUS) Team Synergy 0-3

MRT took down the World Champions 2-0 in the quarter finals to advance to the semis tomorrow.

Finishing the Round in 4th place, MRT were paired up against BlackMatch Racing when nobody opted to race the two young guns. The intense rivalry between the two up and coming stars shone through in the best of 3 series.

The first race saw MRT lead off the line, bouncing BlackMatch Racing to the unfavoured side of the course. Minoprio managed to keep the heat on MRT, however the Australians defended well to extend their lead. It wasn’t until the final downwind that any doubt of MRT’s victory was put into the minds of the spectators as their spinnaker began to tear. Minoprio pounced on Mirsky, trying to force him into putting more pressure on the sail, but fortunately they had enough of a lead to take out the first of two wins.

The second race played out similarly, with strategist Graeme Spence teaming up with tactician Kyle Langford to piece together the shifts perfectly, taking Mirsky through to the semi finals.

“The boys had their best day of the whole regatta today” said MRT’s coach Rob Bell. “They clearly had their heads switched on to the tricky conditions here in Korea. They are certainly on a roll and are looking like they will be a force to reckon with in tomorrow’s semi finals against Mathieu Richard.”

Watch the racing live tomorrow at http://www.mirskyracingteam.net/video-channel/live-video-from-korea-match-cup-2010/

When there is no live stream, footage of the week can be viewed at http://sportzzone.tv

After low tide brought a different cause for delayed racing on day 3, MRT came out strong to defeat Team Italia’s Paolo Cian, dubbed “The Little General” for his fiery displays of Italian Passion.

Day 3: Current Round Robin Standings

• Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing 6-2
• Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar 6-2
• Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing 5-3
• Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team 5-3
• Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team 5-3
• Johnie Berntsson (SWE) Berntsson Sailing Team 5-5
• Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Gill Global Team 5-5
• Francesco Bruni (ITA) Azzurra 4-4
• Bertrand Pacé (FRA) Aleph Sailing Team 4-6
• Phil Robertson (NZL) WAKA Racing Team 4-6
• Paolo Cian (ITA) Team Italia 3-7
• Park GunWoo (KOR) Busan Match 2-8