APRIL 2004 - Finn

APRIL 2004
Finns in Rio • New formats • Future decisions

From Conception...
...To Perfection
Contacts
Sales: Tel: + 33 (0)2 43 05 69 21
Fax: + 33 (0)2 43 05 43 47
Email: finn@suntouched.co.uk
Manufacturing: Tel: + 36 27 538310
Germany & Scandinavia
Handelsagentur DREIPUNKT – André Budzien
Fon +49 (0385) 3924378
Fax: +49 (0385) 3925786
Email: budzien@t-online.de
Mobile: +49 (0178) 2184971
North America
Lemieux Boats
Tel: 1 905 331 0817 Fax: 1 905 331 8081
email: Lemieux@direct.com
• Designed by an expert team using
state of the art design techniques.
• Slim profile for optimum
aerodynamics
• Manufactured using new high grade
materials
• Extensively tested in all sailing
conditions
• Highest quality finish and durability
only available from Pata Willetts
The New Profile Mast from Pata Willetts Marine
Website: http://www.suntouched.co.uk
Finns and all you need for sailing fast!
Delivery possible at good prices to nearly all major regattas.
Marina Dellas, Segelbedarf, Weskampstr. 10, 26121 Oldenburg, Tel/Fax: +49 441 884765
marina@dellas.de
Images from Rio: ‘Starboard!’; Richard Clarke; Racing in the harbour; Michael Eller, Ben Ainslie with Gold Cup. Opposite page: Penny
and Ralph Roberts on Corcovado; Sebastien Godefroid. Photos: Marco Antonio Rezende/COB and Nuno Caminada

is the official publication of the
International Finn Association
Executive Committee of IFA 2004
President
Philippe Rogge
Koning Boudewijnstraat 11, B-9000, Gent
Belgium
Tel: +32 9 244 5188
Fax: +32 1 683 4875
Email: philippe@rogge.com
President of Honour
Gerardo Seeliger c/o ACNO
21 rue d'Artois, Paris 75008 France
Tel(W): +33 1 42 56 21 71
Vice-President – Sailing
Ali Enver Adakan
Badstr. 46, 8590 Romanshorn, Switzerland
Tel (Turkey): + 90 532 275 58 20
Tel (Switzerland): +41 79 600 24 32
Email: ae.adakan@gmx.ch
Vice-President – Development
Clifton Webb
31 Gulf View Road, Murrays Bay
North Shore, Auckland, New-Zealand
Tel: +64 9479 3638
Fax: +64 9 479 3687
Email: Clifton_NZL27@compuserve.com
Vice-President – Masters’ Fleet
Rolf Lehnert
Sonnenhalde 26
D-88161, Lindenberg, Germany
Tel: +49 838 17116
Fax: +49 838 182614
Email: Rolf.Lehnert@allgaeu.org
Executive Director
Corinne McKenzie
3 Impasse de la Bousquette
66370 Pezilla la Riviere, France
Tel: +33 680 924 895 (m)
Fax: +33 468 380913
Email: ifinna@compuserve.com
Honorary Treasurer
Martijn van Muyden
Honingerdijk 67 A, 3063 AK Rotterdam
The Netherlands
Email: mvmuyden@worldonline.nl
Chairman Technical Committee
Richard Hart
26 Lower Spinney, Warsash, Southampton
Hants SO3 9NL, England
Tel: +44 1489 575327
Fax: +44 1489 576908
Email: Richard@Hart331.fsnet.co.uk
IFA Chief Measurer
Jüri Saraskin
Lossi 1A, Tallinn, EE0026, Estonia
Tel: (W) +372 6397041, (H) +372 672 6222
Mobile: + 372 501 1321
Fax: +372 639 7043
Email: perimex@online.ee
IFA Development Coach
Michele Marchesini
v.le Roma 17, 37018 Malcesine, Italy
Tel: +39 45 7400077, Fax: +39 45 7400042
Email: mmarchesini@infinito.it
Chairman of the Marketing Committee and
FINNFARE Editor
Robert Deaves
51 Heath Lane, Ipswich, IP4 5RS. England
Mob: +44 (0)7932 047046
Note: all previous numbers out of date
Email: robert@deaves.com
FINNFARE
Circulation
FINNFARE is a non-profit publication that is distributed
free of charge to all IFA members and to interested
parties connected to the International Finn Class around
the world. For extra copies, or if you have addresses of
people who you think should be receiving FINNFARE,
please contact the IFA Office.
Contributions
Articles, race results, photographs and reports from
countries are always welcome. Please include
FINNFARE in your National Association for mailing
newsletters, bulletins, press releases and race reports.
Advertisements
All advertisement enquiries should also be addressed
to the Editor. Technical details and rates are available
on request.
Electronic Mail
When sending editorial, photos and adverts to the editor
by email please do not attach more than one file to each
email. Please include all text items within the email and
not as an attachment. Ideally, please send images as
300 dpi JPEG.
LETTER FROM
JOHN BERTRAND
Congratulations to Ben Ainslie for equalling
Jorg Bruder’s Finn Gold Cup record of three
consecutive victories. He is in good
company. I had the great fortune of racing
against Jorg in both the 1970 (Toronto)
Gold Cup and 1971 (Anzio) Gold Cup.
Toronto was my first Gold Cup and I didn’t
see much of Jorg (I finished 9th), but at
Anzio we had a great battle, with Jorg
winning and myself runner-up.
I can still remember the final windward leg
of that last race where I was to leeward
perhaps 50 meters, and on each header I
would tack to try and cross the great man.
Each time Jorg let out a cry of frustration
as he willed his boat foreword. Each time
I did not quite make it and tacked back as
the short sharp shifts went back to favour
Jorg. This went back and forth until I ran
out of runway and Jorg crossed the line
first, me second and we finished the Gold
Cup in that order.
My memory of Jorg was how absolutely
competitive he was at all times. He never
gave up. And what a gentleman he was on
the land. A professor of mathematics in
Brazil plus master mast builder for the Finn.
It was a great loss to the international sailing
world when Jorg was lost in the airplane
disaster all those years ago. Those champion
Finn sailors are very special people.
IMAGES FROM RIO
IFA WEB SITE
http://www.finnclass.org
Cover photos: Action from Finn Gold Cup, Rio de
Janeiro. Photos: Marco Antonio Rezende/COB.
Background photo: John Doerr
FINNFARE APRIL 2004

International Finn Asociation
ISAF
Belgian Finn Association
British Finn Association
Canadian Finn Association
Danish Finn Association
Dutch Finn Association
French Finn Association
German Finn Association
Hungarian Finn Association
Italian Finn Association
New Zealand Finn Association
Swedish Finn Association
Swiss Finn Association
USA Finn Association
Useful web links
www.finnclass.org
www.sailing.org
www.geocities.com/finnbelgium/
www.finnuk.co.uk
www.finncanada.org
www.finnjolle.dk
www.finn-sailing.nl
www.finn-france.com
www.finnwelle.de
www.telnet.hu/finn
mysite.xtra.co.nz/~NZFinnAssoc
www.finnejolle.nu
www.finn.ch
www.usfinnclass.org
Devoti Sailing Ltd
www.devotisailing.com
Pata Willetts Marine
www.suntouched.co.uk
Lemieux Boats
webhome.idirect.com/~lemieux
North Sails UK www.northsails.co.uk/one-design/finn.htm
North Sails USA
www.northsailsod.com
North Sails NZ
www.nz.northsails.com
Sea-nergy Sails
www.sea-nergy.com
Victory Sails
www.victorysails.com, www.intervela.com
Marina Dellas
www.dellas.de
High Performance Wetsuits NZ www.hikingpantsnz.com
All major Finn gear suppliers will get a free listing. All advertisers will
get one year’s inclusion on this list.
Finn – Single-Handed Dinghy Men
Issue Date : 6 February 2004
Pos. Name Nation Prev Points
1 Ben AINSLIE GBR 1 5011
2 Mateusz KUSZNIEREWICZ POL 2 4978
3 Sebastien GODEFROID BEL 3 4878
4 Karlo KURET CRO 4 4584
5 Michael FELLMANN GER 5 4526
6 Rafael TRUJILLO VILLAR ESP 6 4515
7 Jonas HOEGH CHRISTENSEN DEN 7 4493
8 Andrew SIMPSON GBR 8 4465
9 Guillaume FLORENT FRA 9 4464
10 Emilios PAPATHANASIOU GRE 10 4356
11 Soren HOLM DEN 11 4268
12 Anthony NOSSITER AUS 12 4256
13 Michael MAIER CZE 13 4206
14 Charlie CUMBLEY GBR 14 4189
15 Jaap ZIELHUIS NED 15 4137
16 Waclaw SZUKIEL POL 16 4120
17 Nenad VIALI CRO 17 4104
18 Marin MISURA CRO 18 4096
19 Ali Enver ADAKAN TUR 19 4010
20 Joao SIGNORINI BRA 20 3910
FINNatics and FINNLOG: Please note that these are now only
available from the IFA through the IFA office, and no longer from
the editor. FINNatics are available at regattas and by post for
GBP 20 incl p&p. FINNLOGs are also available for GBP 5 plus
p&p. Few remaining stocks left, so if you still don’t have these
tomes of Finn sailing, buy one quick!
MASTERS 2004
Finn World Masters 2004 – Cannes 2004 – Update
The 2004 Finn Masters has been redesigned to be more dynamic.
We expect up to 200 registrations and these should have been sent
to Lilo et Rolf Lehnert by 30th of March 2004. See the German web
site finn-world-master.com. As already practised in Schwerin, the
entire field will be split up four groups. In each regatta two different
groups will sail against each other. Two departures per day – 4 regattas
all together.
www.classefinn.it
In case the winds are too strong (over 20 kn), the ‘old salt’ prize of
the day, will be held, outside the regular Master Regatta. Everybody
can participate, as long as the Regatta Committee allows it... On
Sunday the 30th of May 2004, immediately after the training regatta,
a Show-Regatta will be held in front of the famous Croisette in Cannes.
Everyone is invited to participate and have fun.
Please consult the French web site www.finn-france.com, for all
organisational queries or send your questions direct by e-mail to
masters2004@finn-France.com. Anette (who speaks Swedish, French,
German and English) will help you. Under the ‘MASTERS 2004’ button
on the website you will find information about weather, accommodation,
restoration, the itinerary map, the map of Cannes and contacts.
The person in charge for the regattas at the Yacht Club of Cannes,
Bruno Fauroux, has an agreement with the City of Cannes, to use
the beach close to the Yacht Club, as well as the parking place behind,
for the Sailors and their mobile homes. The trailers can be parked
close to the Yacht Club clubhouse. Thus, all boats will be close to the
yacht club and all meetings, parties etc will take place on the roof of
the yacht club (which has enough space for 400 persons) offering
a fantastic view of the entire Cannes Bay.
Everyone is doing their best to make this regatta a wonderful event,
with the appropriate media/PR support. Depending on the participating
sponsors a big tombola/prize is planned. The organisation team is
Anette Ylisuvanto, Jacques Lalanne, Yves Zoccol, Loick Zoccola,
Pierre le Chatelier and Michael Kurtz. Annette Ylisuvanto or Michael
Kurtz c/o Pantaenius – Monaco. Tel. : 00377 97984343. Port. :0033
678 634732. Fax : 00377 9798434.
Win a Finn
Entrants to this year’s World Masters in Cannes may like to take along
a double trailer or a set of roof bars, as a brand new Finn will be won
by one lucky sailor during the week. Performance on the water doesn’t
matter in this competition, as the winner will be drawn from one of a
series of daily raffles. The final raffle will be at the prizegiving. Therefore
whatever your scores it is worth completing the regatta as you can
only enter if you sail. This raffle has been made possible by the kind
and generous nature of the co-sponsors – Devoti Sailing, HIT masts,
Harken and North Sails.
4

FINN NEWS – FINN NEWS – FINN NEWS
IFA News
• A Finn Clinic will be organised before the European Champ. in La
Rochelle. Will be invited the sailors from countries who haven’t qualified
yet for the 2004 Olympic Games. Please contact the IFA office if you
are planning to take part. This clinic is free of charge.
• AGM: The 2004 AGM will take place on the 8th May in La Rochelle. Please
send your submissions before the 8th of April to the IFA office.
• A PRO will be appointed at all Finn Major Championship. Peter
Reggio who officiated as class PRO in Cadiz and PRO in Marblehead
for the 2001 FGC and the 1996 Olympic Games on the Finn course
will be the class rep. for the 2004 European Championship in La
Rochelle. Bill Bell will be the Class PRO in Moscow for the 2005 FGC.
2007 ISAF World Sailing Championships
Eight bids are being considered by ISAF to host the 2007 ISAF World
Sailing Championships which are: Canada - Nova Scotia; Germany
- Kiel; Germany - Rostock-Warnemünde; Greece - Athens; Korea -
Busan; Netherlands - Medemblik; Portugal - Cascais; Spain - Cadiz.
The final decision on the chosen venue will be taken at the ISAF Mid-
Year Meetings, 5-6 June 2004. Source ISAF
New arrival
Congratulations to Mr and Mrs P Rogge on the birth of a beautiful daughter
Alexndra, born on the 5th of December at 6h20, weighing in at 2.9 kg
and 48 cm. Both Mom and Dad are reported to be doing well.
Sailing’s World Series
ISAF, the Olympic Classes and the Organisers of the multi-Olympic
Class Grade 1 Olympic Class Events have discussed the introduction
of an Olympic Classes ‘World Series’ tour. As yet to have a final title,
the ‘World Series’ will be created to introduce a more consistent and
professional circuit for Olympic sailors, and provide the mechanism
to achieve greater exposure and visibility for sailing.
It was agreed that there should be a clear route of ‘World Series’ tour
events around the world. ISAF will further encourage the creation of
a Continental Series in the country/region of the ‘World Series’ events,
which in turn could be preceded by a National Series, thus creating
a clear path of participation, which would also support the development
of sailing in that region.
It is the intention to utilise the existing multi-Olympic Class Graded
events within the ‘World Series’, and to encourage new events
particularly in Asia, Australasia and the America’s to be part of the
‘World Series’ tour. In scheduling the series to synchronise with other
Give your campaign a little more support
FINNFARE APRIL 2004
Pro range hikers are available in
std/braces, 3/4 braces, full/length
braces, 3/4 johns and full/length
johns, sizes L to XXXL.
Standard features include 10 mm
pvc battens, 3 mm yamamoto
neoprene, kevlar neoprene crutch
and batten pads, glued and stitched
for strength and warmth, extra
features available include kevlar
neoprene bumpads and knee pads,
pee zips and leg zips.Kevlar
neoprene features now standard
with pro range series
www.hikingpantsnz.com
Email: hikingpants@xtra.co.nz
Phone: +64 9 410 5999
Cell: +64 25 287 5754 • Fax +64 9 4105999
Graded Olympic Class events, not only will a more cohesive event
calendar be created, but the costs to the sailors in travelling and
shipping equipment will be reduced. Moving forwards, it was agreed
that ISAF, the Olympic Classes and multi-Olympic Class Graded Event
The ‘World Series’ proposals would be put to Council at the ISAF Mid-
Year Meeting in June 2004, for final approval at the ISAF Annual
Conference in November 2004. Source ISAF
Olympic Update
• ISAF Launches Athens 2004 Microsite
The start of the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad in Athens, Greece
draws ever closer. ISAF has launched a microsite dedicated to
delivering the latest information and news. Visit this at
www.sailing.org/olympics2004. A specific news section, which links
from the front page of www.sailing.org, will bring users the latest
general Olympic news from the Greek Capital.
Once the Olympic Sailing Competition starts, ISAF will publish the
latest information direct from the Agios Kosmas Sailing Centre,
including mark by mark roundings, weather information, results and
photos.
Another useful link is the official Athens site: www.athens2004.com
• Qualification
The following nations have already qualified for a place on the starting
line in Athens
Host country: GRE
2002 Gold Cup: BEL, BRA, CRO, ESP, GBR, GER, IRL, POL
2003 Gold Cup: AUS, CAN, CZE, DEN, NED, NZL, SLO, SUI, SWE,
TUR, USA
A further 6 places are available at the Finn Europeans at La Rochelle
in May.
• Racing
The Finn class will race on Course Area D along with the Yngling and
the Star classes.
• Draft Schedule
Opening: 1 August
Measurement: 4-11 August
Practice race: 12 August
Racing: 14-16 August
Reserve day: 17 August
Racing: 18-19 August
Reserve day: 20 August
Racing: 21 August
Closing ceremony: 29 August
Finn Gold Cup 2005 – Moscow
The 2005 Finn Gold Cup will be held in Moscow in the middle of June,
between the SPA Regatta and Kiel Week. A charter flight will be
organised from Hamburg to minimise travelling costs for sailors.
Moscow Sailing School has ensured funding from the city of Moscow
and will provide a complete hull with mast and sail to the top 100
competitors.
The sailing will be organised on a lake near the Moscow Sailing School
and a floating ‘day Marina’ will be built on the lake. Transport from
the Yacht Club to the day Marina will be organised by motor boats.
Racing will be in groups with a racing format that will allow all sailors
to race against each other until the last day. Richard Hart and Bill Bell
from Australia are already working on this format and a proposition
will be made at the next AGM. [See proposal on page 14 in this
FINNFARE.]
Sailing with the same equipment hasn’t been experienced since the
1996 Olympics, but could be reintroduced in 2008 at the Beijing
Olympics. The 2005 Finn Gold Cup will be an excellent opportunity
to reintroduce this system and build up a good Finn fleet in Russia.
FINNFARE A

FINN GOLD CUP 2004 – RIO DE JANEIRO
Just five months after the close of the 2003 ISAF World Championship in Cadiz, Spain, Finn sailors from across the
world gathered once again to compete for the Finn Gold Cup. In the past, the Finn Gold Cup has been sailed in some
very attractive and exotic venues, but perhaps none quite matched up to the awe and splendour of Rio de Janeiro. It
was a long held dream of the Brazilian Finn Class to host the Gold Cup here, after the 1998 Gold Cup in Ilha Bela,
just north of Rio. 54 boats from 23 countries arrived in Rio for this carnival of Finn sailing, just a week before the real
Rio Carnival got under way. Report by Robert Deaves. Photos by Nuno Caminada and Marco Antonio Rezende/COB.
First race to Michael Maier
In a fitful and unpredictable breeze and under
the gaze of Christ the Redeemer high up on
Corcovado, the first race of the 2004 Finn
Gold Cup got underway in grey and damp
conditions. The windward-leeward course
was set and by the time of the first race at
13.00, the wind was down to 5-7 knots and
very patchy.
However the scene couldn’t have been more
spectacular. With the start line close under
Sugar Loaf Mountain and Corcovado over to
the left, the grandeur of Rio Harbour and the
majestic and formidable looking mountains
cutting the horizon made an awesome vista
from which to start a Finn race.
After two general recalls the black flag went
up and this time the fleet got away cleanly.
Most of the fleet headed to the left while a
few went up the middle and the right. First
round was Jaap Zielhuis closely followed by
Stefan de Vries. Behind them chaos ensued
as many sailors got caught out by the strong
tide around the windward mark and bunched
up in a big raft.
Zielhuis protected his lead through the
downwind gate, although Jonas Hoegh-
Christensen was very close behind. These
Ali Enver Adakan (TUR 6) and Ben Ainslie (GBR 3) battle it out
under the towering Corcovado
two began a tough battle heading to the
centre-left of the course after taking a short
hitch right. Behind them Michael Maier and
Mateusz Kusznierewicz headed left and kept
on going. Maier, who had rounded the gate
in 6th hit the left hand corner, tacked and laid
the windward mark in first place.
The clearing cloud brought more wind to the
left and turned the final downwind became a
battle of wills. However Maier kept his cool
to win the first race of the regatta. Hoegh-
Christensen finished in fourth, just ahead of
defending champion Ben Ainslie.
Sander Willems dominates day two
Speed was the crucial element on day two,
at least speed in the right direction. For many
it was just a drag race to the corner and those
who didn’t come in drag ended up looking
at far too many transoms. Two races were
sailed outside Rio Harbour with a magnificent
view (when the cloud cleared) from Sugar
Loaf Mountain down the coast along
Copacabana Beach and onto Ipanema, and
proved a testing time for all concerned with
light and variable winds and a strong current
across the course that caught many out. The
windward leeward loop course was used.
Race two started after a postponement in 3
to 5 knots. Most of the fleet favoured the left
on the first beat, although in general the leaders
emerged from the right. It was a long slow beat
against the tide. First round the weather mark
was Gasper Vincec followed by Richard Clarke,
Guillaume Florent and Karlo Kuret.
Sugar Loaf and the start of race 1
Above: Michael Maier CZE 1
Below: Sander Willems NED 80
6

Above: Start in Rio Harbour, right: Agustin Juarez
FINN GOLD CUP 2004 – FINAL RESULTS
1 GBR 3 Ben Ainslie 56.0 5 17 3 6 1 12 3 9 DNC
2 CAN 303 Richard Clarke 69.0 11 4 19 11 12 13 7 6 5
3 IRL 8 David Burrows 79.0 33 7 11 9 7 5 10 15 15
4 POL 17 Mateuzs Kuzsnierewicz 82.0 3 16 7 2 27 6 14 21 13
5 CRO 25 Marin Misura 82.0 37 6 2 20 13 19 4 11 7
6 GBR 6 Andrew Simpson 89.0 20 36 16 1* 14 4 20 4 9
7 CRO 11 Karlo Kuret 91.0 6 13 17 7 9 20 DNF 17 2
8 ESP 100 Rafael Trujillo Uillar 93.0 45 37 6 3 5 3 8 30 1
9 BRA 10 Joao Signorini 103.0 21 21 8 10 20 15 5 14 10
10 DEN 7 Soren Holm 104.0 15 9 25 14 19 23 9 3 12
11 DEN 200 Jonas Hogh-Christensen 116.0 4 10 9 BFD 22 10 31 10 20
12 NZL 14 Dean Barker 122.0 32 5 44 27 8 11 13 12 14
13 AUS 221 Anthony Nossiter 123.0 30 14 23 5 21 7 23 13 17
14 TUR 6 Ali Enver Adakan 128.0 18 34 22 16 2 9 38 16 11
15 NED 80 Sander E. Willems 131.0 17 2 1 25 3 42 42 8 33
16 CZE 1 Michael Maier 135.0 1 28 14 38 18 29 17 24 4
17 BEL 7 Sebastian Godefroid 146.0 24 3 20 BFD 4 14 36 27 18
18 GBR 15 Charlie Cumbley 148.0 8 11 12 34 24 24 18 23 28
19 FRA 73 Guillaume Florent 155.0 19 1 53 26 6 2 11 37 DNF
20 NED 6 Stefan de Vries 165.0 9 20 24 15 17 27 44 31 22
21 BRA 1 Bruno Prada 167.0 7 DSQ 15 8 15 33 1 33 BFD
22 NED 78 Jaap Zielhuis 168.0 2 8 29 19 23 40 46 26 21
23 POL 12 Waclaw Szukiel 174.0 27 23 4 17 29 32 24 18 BFD
24 FRA 972 Bruno Ismael 180.0 26 33 36 24 10 22 DNF 2 27
25 SLO 5 Gasper Vincec 180.0 44 12 18 13 11 17 27 38 BFD
26 HUN 1 Balazs Hajdu 183.0 23 38 38 18 25 8 19 22 30
27 GBR 550 Matt Howard 191.0 25 25 13 23 26 28 32 40 19
28 CAN 41 Christopher Cook 195.0 DNF 18 37 21 31 25 21 39 3
29 ARG 1 Alejandro Colla 197.0 41 40 10 4 32 21 26 42 23
30 CRO 14 Nenad Viali 210.0 49 32 41 29 41 16 6 19 26
31 SUI 7 Bruger Christoph 211.0 31 24 30 36 16 18 28 28 BFD
32 SWE 736 Johan Tillander 218.0 14 35 28 30 40 31 15 29 36
33 BRA 109 Jorge Zarif 221.0 10 46 48 42 37 35 2 1 BFD
34 SUI 1 Othmar M. V Blumencron 224.0 28 39 5 39 30 34 41 44 8
35 IRL 10 Aaron O’Grady 228.0 13 45 42 32 34 30 25 20 32
36 ESP 107 Agustin Juarez Narrero 232.0 29 29 32 33 39 37 22 25 25
37 GER 79 Michael Fellmann 240.0 22 43 39 28 OCS RAF 40 7 6
38 ITA 15 Michele Marchesine 240.0 12 42 33 31 28 26 34 34 BFD
39 CZE 22 Babicky Roman 260.0 38 19 26 43 43 46 30 45 16
40 FIN 216 Tapio Nirkko 263.0 51 22 21 35 38 36 DNF 5 BFD
41 IRL 5 Youen Jacob 269.0 46 15 45 12 35 44 35 46 37
42 CAN 4 Mike Milner 272.0 43 26 40 40 36 41 12 DNF 34
43 HUN 5 Tibor Pallay 276.0 34 30 31 44 44 43 33 32 29
44 BRA 3 Henry Raul Boening 293.0 40 41 46 37 33 38 45 35 24
45 BRA 100 Maurício Bueno 301.0 36 44 34 41 42 39 29 41 39
46 BRA 18 Marco Aurélio de S· Ribeiro 338.0 42 51 43 48 46 49 43 36 31
47 BRA 101 Jorge Rodrigues 362.0 35 49 47 BFD 49 DNF 49 43 35
48 USA 55 Philippe Kahn 366.0 50 50 49 47 48 45 37 48 42
49 GBR 1 Robert Deaves 371.0 48 52 51 46 50 50 39 49 38
50 ITA 1 Luca Devoti 376.0 39 27 35 DNC DNC DNC DNC DNC DNC
51 GER 266 Michael Eller 378.0 47 48 50 49 47 DNF 47 50 40
52 NED 8 Rodrick Casander 379.0 RAF 47 52 45 45 48 50 51 41
53 BRA 79 Gustavo Pereira Vaitsman 402.0 52 53 54 50 51 47 48 47 BFD
54 GRE 6 Emilios Papathanasiou 440.0 RAF RAF RAF RAF RAF RAF RAF RAF RAF
Historic third win for Ainslie
All week in Rio, people were
talking about Jorg Bruder and
Ben Ainslie. Finn sailing has a
special place in the hearts of the
Brazilians, as it was their very
own Jorg Bruder who was the
only Finn sailor ever to score
three successive wins at the Finn
Gold Cup. Between 1970 and
1972 Bruder won two Gold Cups
by the narrowest of margins and
one comfortably, after six times
previously finishing in the top five.
Fate decided he would remain
unbeaten as he was tragically killed
in an air crash on the way to France
to defend his title in 1973.
From the start of the week, Ainslie
had another target on his mind
than the world championship.
Winning the week here would
make it three in a row for the
2000 Olympic Laser Gold
Medalist, after wins in Athens and
Cádiz in 2002 and 2003.
After the final day, Ben said, “I
am really elated about this win.
It’s really special for me to win
the Gold Cup a third time and to
do it in Brazil as well is really
good. It was a very tough regatta
and I really am chuffed to bits to
come out on top. It’s always
special to win a big championship
like this but to win this for the
third time in Brazil and equal
Bruder’s record makes it very
nice for me. It makes all the time
and effort training worthwhile.”
FINNFARE APRIL 2004
FINNFARE A

Once a Finn sailor...
One rejuvenated Finn sailor sailing in Rio was Dean Barker,
helmsman for Team New Zealand, who last sailed a Finn in 1996
before moving into the America’s Cup boats. Commenting on his
performance, Barker said, “It’s certainly a challenge sailing the
Finn again and is a bit different from sailing the America’s Cup
boats! It can be very frustrating at times because you know you
you can do better. I started sailing the Finn again in November
last year and sailed a bit with Clifton (Webb) and Peter Fox in
New Zealand, but I’m still a bit fresh. But it’s great racing one on
one with the other guys here.”
Waclaw Szukiel started at the heavily biased pin end and headed left
inshore and rounded the first mark just behind Rafael Trujillo-Villar
who emerged from the mid left in the lead.
The fleet split on the first run with most favouring the inshore side of
the course to the right. By the downwind gate, Colla had moved into
the lead followed by Trujillo Villar and Szukiel. Szukiel lost heavily on
the second beat but the two front runners stayed the same. In the
increased breeze, now blowing 10-12 knots, Simpson moved up into
a close third around the windward mark followed by Bruno Prada and
Anthony Nossiter.
When asked about how things had changed over the past eight
years Barker said, “Of course the equipment has moved on a bit
since I last sailed them, the boats have become more standardised
so there is no longer so much of a speed differences any more,
and that makes for really good racing. However, downwind
technique has changed a lot since I last sailed. It is much more
refined now and has improved a lot.” On the future he said, “The
New Zealand Olympic selection trials are in Palma and at the
Europeans, so I am going home for a while before coming to
Europe to try and qualify for Athens this summer.
It was all change on the final run to the finish. Simpson found speed
and the right side to take the lead and win the race. He was later spot
checked by the Jury and found to be missing a required piece of
equipment. He was given one penalty point but the race stood. Behind
him Kusznierewicz put on a charge to move from 10th at the windward
mark to 2nd at the finish.
On the run the fleet went mainly left, with Florent leading round the
gate followed by Sander Willems. By now the wind was up to 8 to 10
knots and virtually everyone was following the right hand side of the
course and Florent maintained his lead to win the race on the following
run followed by Willems and Godefroid.
The tide was even stronger for race three but the breeze had gone
back to a fitful 4 to 6 knots, and in spite of an adverse tidal set on the
start line, there were still two general recalls before the race got
underway. Waclaw Szukiel made the best of the start to tack away
immediately to the right and to round the first mark just behind Willems,
Matt Howard and Othmar Mueller Van Blumencron. Waclaw took the
lead on the run to lead through the downwind gate.
On the final upwind leg, everyone headed inshore out of the tide, but an
increase in pressure and backing in direction left those inshore scuppered.
Willems regained the lead and led to the finish to score an impressive win.
The race was lengthened due to the wind gradually decreasing and the
strong tide and made for some very frustrating racing for some.
Proceedings were slightly livened up by a bulk carrier deciding to
cross the course area. The Chairman of the Jury Ralph Robert tried
showing it the yellow flag in an attempt to keep it off the course, but
after a 360 degree turn, the captain decided to come through anyway!
Winner of race two Guillaume Florent commented, “In the first race
there was a bit more breeze and I was sailing fast in the right direction.
I went right on the first beat and centre right on the second and it paid
both times. Then for some reason I tried something completely different
in the second race today, and it didn’t work at all.” Florent had a
shocker in race three, finishing 53rd.
Ben moves into the lead
Race five got underway in a warm north-east 8 to 10 knot breeze.
The windward leeward course was set and most sailors started down
near the pin end. The majority of the fleet headed towards the left of
the course. Sebastian Godefroid and Ainslie moved towards the right,
tacked back to the left and two rounded the top mark first and second
followed by Rafael Trujillo Villar and Ali Enver Adakan.
The leaders split gybes on the first downwind with Ainslie going to
the left and Godefroid heading right. The top sailors were in their
element now as the wind increased allowing them to show off their
great pumping and surfing skills – under the ever watchful eye of the
Jury of course. Godefroid rounded the gate in the lead but went wrong
up the second beat to let Ainslie through to the lead which he held to the
finish. Godefroid eventually finished fourth behind Adakan and Willems.
Race six started in 12-15 knots and for the first time in the regatta the
traditional Olympic course was used with an upwind finish. After one
general recall, the pin end marker was moved and many boats opted
to start at the committee boat, Ainslie among them. However shortly
after the start the wind shifted back and left those at the starboard
end with some catching up to do. The majority of the fleet headed left
again and at the top mark it was Florent leading Trujillo Villar. Ainslie
was somewhere in the 30s and had a lot of work to do.
Large waves and an increased wind facilitated two fantastic reaches,
but it was still Florent at the leeward mark ahead of Trujillo and
Papathanasiou. The fleet virtually all banged left again on the second
beat. Papathanasiou emerged round the top mark in the lead followed
Mateusz Takes The Lead
After an hour waiting in very sloppy waves and a fitful wind, race four
finally started in 7 to 8 knots of breeze from the north east. For the
third day in a row the windward leeward loop was sailed. However it
took three general recalls and a black flag to get the fleet away.
Second overnight Jonas Hoegh-Christensen fell foul of the black flag
along with Sebastien Godefroid and Jorge Rodriguez.
8

y Florent and Trujillo. Positions remained the same on the run and
the final beat, with Simpson moving up to fourth. Ainslie eventually
recovered to 12th place to take the overnight lead.
First and second for Brazil
The Finn fleet spent more time being towed around than actually
racing on day five. The fleet headed out to Guanabara Bay for the
scheduled 13.00 start. After a postponement and a wait, the fleet was
towed back into the harbour where a pleasant 7 to 8 knot breeze was
waiting. The press had also arrived with their cameras and helicopters,
so there was quite a commotion within the harbour.
At the start most of the favourites favoured the pin end, but Dean
Barker and Marin Misura led half of the fleet out of the committee
boat end towards the favoured right-hand side. Most of the favourites,
including the top three overnight, went to the left of the course before
digging back in; but it was too late by then as even the slowest of the
boats heading right crossed nearly all those who had gone left, leaving
several high ranking sailors with too much to do.
Soren Holm rounded the top mark in the lead followed by Nenad Viali
and Misura. Ainslie rounded about 14th and headed to the right on the
run, where there looked to be more pressure. It worked a treat as he
rounded the downwind gate in second place just behind Joao Signorini.
Ainslie rounded the top mark in second place just behind Prada and
just ahead of Holm and Misura. Prada maintained his lead on the final
downwind leg to the finish, with Zarif moving up to second to make
it a Brazilian 1, 2. Kusznierewicz finished 14th to give Ainslie an 18
point cushion. Just as the race committee tried to start a second race,
the wind died and it was postponed until the final day.
Ainslie commented on his plans for the final day, “it will just be a
matter of keeping an eye on Mateusz and David, and trying to stay
ahead of them.” Mateusz also reflected on the final day, “obviously I
will still try and win but it’s not going to be easy.”
and now couldn’t be touched for the title. However the race was still
very much on for the other medals with 5 to 6 sailors in with a chance.
When the fleet finally got away, the majority tacked and headed to
the right, although for a while both sides looked good. Then a shift
to the right brought those who had gone far right to the front and
Rafael Trujillo Villar led round the first mark followed by Gasper Vincec
and Karlo Kuret. With the wind picking up to around 12 knots, Rafa
held his lead throughout the race. Chris Cook pulled through on the
downwind leg and ended up third at the finish just behind Kuret.
Richard Clarke, 10 points adrift of a medal going into the day, scored
a 5th, which put together with his 6th in the morning catapulted him
into the silver medal position. Mateusz Kusznierewicz couldn’t quite
find the form he had in the early races and dropped to fourth overall.
Third overnight, David Burrows had a scrappy day but two 15th places
were just enough to keep him in the bronze medal position, which he
was pretty pleased about.
Final day – history made
Milestones in sailing don’t come along every day, but the final day of
the 2004 Finn Gold Cup in Rio de Janeiro, there was a very special
milestone. Winning the Finn Gold Cup for the third time in a row, Ben
Ainslie (GBR) equalled Jorg Bruder’s record set between 1970 and 72.
Ainslie takes up the story. While he admits to being very nervous
before the start – especially when waiting onshore earlier in the day
for the wind to pick up – as soon as the racing started he settled
down. He relates, “It was essential to be at the committee boat at the
start and head off right out of the tide. I got a good start and went
right right before coming back towards the middle. I was watching for
both Mateusz and David and they went too far in and lost the wind
a bit. When they came out they were behind me and it was looking
good. After that I just played the fleet up the middle, but it was pretty
nerve racking at times.”
Up at the front Jorge Zarif was battling with Tapio Nirkko, Michael
Fellmann and Soren Holm. A large hole in the wind to the right of the
course caused quite a few problems for some sailors, but Zarif –
Brazil’s 1984 Olympic representative – led the way round. Ainslie
rounded the top mark about 14th and managed to climb up to 9th at
the finish, but that didn’t matter. He had beaten both his nearest rivals
Below: Soren Holm leads race 8. Top: Joao Signorini
FINNFARE APRIL 2004
FINNFARE A

His bronze medal here this week is David’s first Finn World
Championship medal. He commented. “This is an amazing place. I’ve
never been anywhere quite like it. After the pre-regatta training several
of us went up to Buzios, north of Rio for a break. It was a stunning
place, 20 knots winds every day and some gorgeous scenery. I have
really enjoyed it here although the racing has been tough.”
Joao Signorini the leading sailor from Brazil concurred, “It has been
a really great event. There has been a very high level of racing with
the leaderboard changing many times during the week. Rio has showed
that it is a place which can be very tricky. You have to stay calm to race
well here and be consistent. Some guys have had results all over the
place, even on the same day. However it has been a hard event with some
great racing. I think the organisers have done a great job in bringing it all
together and I hope that all the sailors have enjoyed their time in Rio.”
Talking about the championship after the race, Ben Ainslie put his
success here down to consistency, and agreed the conditions have
been difficult. He commented, “This gives me a good confidence boost
for Athens, but it is still six months away and there is a lot that can
happen and a lot of hard work to do in that time.” Overcoming
challenging conditions and a very deep field of talent, Ainslie has now
won all five major championships since he entered the class in 2001.
With the Olympic Games in Athens just 6 months away, is there
anyone who can stop this man?
The Finn Festival in Rio was over and the Rio Carnival was just
starting. Rio de Janeiro certainly put on a show to be proud of over
the week. The Finn Gold Cup was just one of many preparatory events
for the 2007 Pan-American Games.
An enormous number of people contributed to the success of the
event including the ever present Nuno Caminada, Kadu (Richardo
Baggio) – Sailing Manager of the Iate Clube do Rio de Janeiro, Marco
Aurelio sa Ribeiro and the Brazilian Finn Association as well as the
hard working PRO, Pedro Paulo Petersen. Marco Aurelio (below)
commented, “I think it has been a very successful event. Although
the conditions were tricky, I think the sailors who did the right thing
on the water were the winners. It was a fair championship and we are
very pleased with the organisation.”
Junior Finn Gold Cup
The Finn Junior World Championship had a
reduced entry this year, perhaps due to the
costs of travel, but the IFA are delighted that
the Brazilian Olympic Committee has presented
the class with ‘The Jorg Bruder
Silver Cup’, a perpetual trophy
to be presented to the winner
of the junior event, as a
memorial to the late great
Finn sailor from Brazil.
The leading junior in Rio was
Tapio Nirkko, who finished in
40th place in this Gold Cup
just four places ahead of Brazil’s Henry Raul
Boening (below). Nirkko did himself a favour
on the last day race with a 5th in the morning,
as he was black-flagged in the second race as
a premature starter, but still maintained a big
enough points difference on the Brazilian to
take the title.
10

Name: Balazs Hajdu.
Age: My age is 28 years.
What is your home town?: My hometown is Budapest, Hungary.
When did you start sailing?: I started sailing at the age of five with
my mother sailing with me in an Optimist.
Summary of sailing career: 5 years Optimist, 4 years Laser, the
1998 Junior Europeans in Star, 10 year now in the Finn.
Why did you take up sailing?: My parents were both regatta sailors
back in the 60s and 70s with my father winning 3 national titles in
single-handed classes and my mother spending 15 years competing
in the Pirate class. So, there was a natural tendency in the family to
spend most of our time close to Lake Balaton, the main sailing venue
in the country.
What was your first boat?: It was a 60+ kilos heavy Optimist.
What was your favourite boat and why?: My first Finn which I
bought from Hans Spitzauer. We agreed on the deal sailing back
downwind to the club from one of the races in Anzio in 1995.
What class did you first race in?: My first race class was the Optimist
and my first regatta the Szobi Szorp Cup sponsored by a fruit juice
producing company. The regatta and the free drinks were so popular
that the average size of the fleet racing the regatta used to be 160+
boats each year.
How much time do you spend on the water each week?: After the
Sydney Olympics I graduated and started to work as a lawyer. As a
consequence of that my sailing efforts were restricted to maybe 4-5
local weekend regattas per year. I started my campaign for Athens
2004 early January this year with a 7 week training camp and racing
in Rio. I plan to sail at least 15 hours a week training up until the
Games.
Who are your sailing heroes and why?: I do not really have sailing
heroes. There are many people I have learnt a lot from, but I believe
that everybody has to find his/her own way to become as good a
sailor as possible.
Why did you take up the Finn?: As an 18 year old I got fed up with
the cold when sailing the Laser wearing swimming shorts (only) in
late October regattas. Apart from allowing for some more clothing to
put on, I very much liked the complexity of the Finn. Without the Finn
I could not have been racing in any Olympic dinghy class. As a
teenager I did not want to sail Stars against my father's generation.
How long have you sailed the Finn?: It has been 10 years now of
which 4 were quite intense.
What is your favourite venue?: My favourite venue is of course
Lake Balaton. The lake teaches you a lot about balancing conservative
tactics with extreme sailing to corners when needed.
What is your least favourite venue?: Anywhere where the air is
warmer than the water.
When was your first major win?: My first ‘major’ win was the youth
national championship title won as a 16 year old sailing against 19
year olds in the Laser in 1991.
What is your best ever result?: It is difficult to match results in
different regattas. It was maybe my 15th place in the Sydney Olympics
(scoring a 3rd an a 5th on the same day). The last time when a
Hungarian sailor finished better than 15th in the Olympics reaches
back to the 1980 Moscow Games.
What are your strengths in sailing?: The love for the sport.
What are your weaknesses in sailing?: There must be quite a few,
SAILOR PROFILE
RULE CHANGES
as I have never really managed to get into the top 20 in the world for
a long period of time. I’d really like to change this.
What result gave you the most satisfaction?: When I won a bronze
medal at one of the Optimist regattas I first attended.
What is the single most important piece of sailing advice you
could give to a young sailor?: Train with as much intensity and
determination as when racing and have fun during that.
What is the Finn classes greatest asset?: The sailors (young and
master) and the superb boat.
What are its disadvantages? Hard to learn and follow the technological
side without professional coach support.
Are there any changes you like see happen to the Olympic classes
sailing circuit?: To have less on-water judging.
What class would you like to move into after the Finn?: I would
move to the Star
Do you think the spread of Olympic classes should be changed
and how?: I think the current situation represents the world of sailing
quite well, except for the fact that there is no keelboat with spinnaker
in the Olympics while the vast majority of sailors sail in such classes.
What's the funniest thing you've ever witnessed at a regatta?:
At an around Lake Balaton single-handed yachting event I saw a boat
returning after a few hours sailing to the starting line with its helmsman
sleeping calmly at the rudder.
Other hobbies and interests?: Non-sailing travelling with Edina, my
girlfriend having a chance to see other things than marinas and water
only. I love spending my time with friends and reading.
What job would you be doing if you were not sailing?: After the
Sydney Games I graduated and work currently as a lawyer at
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer. (My colleagues start to hate me
coming back to work sunburnt a week or two subsequent to a few
weeks of sailing. The situation after Rio has even worsened.)
Where would you like to see the Gold Cup sailed in the future?:
I would love to race a Gold Cup at Lake Balaton or alternatively in
the Carribics (Mustique would be a fine place).
The following amendments to the Class Rules have been approved
to be effective 1st March 2004.
Delete Rule 5.7, sub-Rules and remarks
And Replace by
5.7 In alteration to RRS 42:
5.7.1 Flag [Q] displayed at the start or near a mark, indicates that:
FINNFARE APRIL 2004
“After starting or rounding the nearby mark, RRS 42 is varied in that
except on a beat to windward, pumping, rocking and ooching are
permitted".
5.7.2 Flag [R] displayed near a mark indicates that: “After rounding
the nearby mark, RRS 42 applies without variation.”
5.7.3 The Finn Class recommends that Race Officers apply Rule 5.7.1
in winds of 12 knots and above, measured at deck level.
FINNFARE A

WARM UP IN RIO
Many sailors arrived in Rio several
weeks before the Gold Cup for training
and relaxation. Two warm up regattas
were sailed. First was the Brazilian
National Championship and then the
South American Championship.
Brazilian Nationals 2004
The Brazilian Championship, sailed from 28-
31 January, was the first chance many of the
sailors had to test the waters off Rio. France's
Guillaume Florent beat the one of the local
favourites Joao Signorini as well as current
world champion Ben Ainslie.
The races were sailed in 8 to 12 knot southerly
winds on Guanabara Bay. It had been a very
mild summer in Brazil and the weather for
this event was no different, with comfortable
temperatures and a very weak sun hidden
behind a slight layer of clouds. Many sailors got
to grips with the tide and local geography with
four different winners over the seven races.
BRAZILIAN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 2004
1 FRA 73 Guillaume Florent 2 1 4 6 4 7 2 19
2 BRA 10 João Signorini 1 2 8 7 3 10 1 22
3 GBR 3 Ben Ainslie 3 6 14 2 6 2 4 23
4 NED 80 Sander E. Willems 6 4 12 4 16 3 5 34
5 IRL 8 David Burrows 11 10 6 1 1 13 12 41
6 BRA 1 Bruno Prada 7 3 7 10 9 8 7 41
7 BEL 7 Sebastian Godefroid DNC DNC 3 3 5 6 8 45
8 NED 78 Jaap Zielhuis DNS 5 13 14 8 5 3 48
9 GBR 6 Andrew Simpson DNC DNC 1 DNF 2 1 6 50
10 NZL 14 Dean Barker 4 7 11 8 10 11 10 50
11 HUN 1 Balazs Hajdu 9 8 9 5 12 9 DSQ 52
12 FRA 972 Bruno Ismael 5 DNF 10 9 7 12 14 57
13 NED 6 Stefan de Vries DNC DNC 2 12 13 4 9 60
14 BRA 3 Henry Boening 10 12 5 11 15 14 11 63
15 BRA 100 Maurício Bueno 12 11 15 13 11 15 13 75
16 BRA 180 Gustavo Pereira Vaitsman 13 14 18 15 17 16 16 91
17 ITA 1 Luca Devoti 8 9 DNC DNC 14 DNF DNC 91
18 BRA 111 Marco Aurélio de Sá Ribeiro 15 15 16 16 18 17 15 94
19 BRA 9 Jorge Rodrigues 14 13 17 DNF DNS DNS DNS104
For the final race, the wind shifted on the
committee boat and the time limit drew near.
Florent, leading the championship, pressed
for an early ending. The committee boat tried
to reposition for a last race, but it was not to
be. The buoys were 30 seconds too late in
position and the final race was cancelled.
Florent, married to a Brazilian himself, was
the new Finn Class Brazilian Champion.
South American Championship 2004
Straight after this regatta, the South American
Championship was also sailed out of Rio from
February 8-11 with 47 sailors. Croatian sailor
Marin Misura sailed an excellent regatta to win
two races and beat Ainslie on count back after
the two tied on points. Rafael Trujillo, who was
second in last year's Gold Cup, finished third.
For the South Americans and the Gold Cup
a ball system was instituted, where at 11:00
the race officers raised one ball on the club
mast if the race course was to set inside the
bay, or two balls if the race was outside.
After two rainy days, the weather in Rio
cleared and a great sunny Sunday greeted
the Finn fleet for the first day of the South
Americans with 47 boats entered. Most
courses were set inside Rio Harbour in light
winds from the south. This gave some of the
newcomers less of a disadvantage in missing
the Brazilian Nationals.
12

SOUTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIP 2004
1 CRO 25 Marin Misura 15 1 1 6 5 13
2 GBR 3 Ben Ainslie 5 3 5 4 1 13
3 ESP 100 Rafael Trujillo Villar 3 2 11 14 3 19
4 IRL 8 David Burrows 24 5 3 13 4 25
5 GBR 6 Andrew Simpson 23 4 4 2 16 26
6 NZL 14 Dean Barker 2 10 7 23 8 27
7 FRA 73 Guillaume Florent 4 32 8 10 10 32
8 BRA 1 Bruno Prada 16 11 17 3 12 42
9 DEN 7 Soren Holm 1 23 20 17 14 52
10 BEL 7 Sebastian Godefroid 13 18 28 16 6 53
11 BRA 10 João Signorini 20 35 16 9 11 56
12 POL 17 Mateusz Kuzsnierewicz 32 6 6 12 DNF 56
13 GBR 15 Charlie Cumbley 7 8 DNF 27 15 57
14 CAN 303 Richard Clarke 25 9 9 21 20 59
15 POL 12 Waclaw Szukiel 14 7 19 22 22 62
16 SUI 7 Burger Christoph 6 13 24 24 26 67
17 FIN 216 Tapio Nirkko 19 29 13 7 DNF 68
18 FRA 972 Bruno Ismael 22 19 14 30 13 68
19 SLO 5 Gasper Vincec 36 17 DNF 8 9 70
20 IRL 10 Aaron O’Grady 9 21 10 32 DNF 72
21 CRO 14 Nenad Viali OCS 12 DNF 11 2 73
22 ESP 107 Agustin Juarez Narrero 10 25 22 25 21 78
23 CRO 11 Karlo Kuret 17 36 DNF 20 7 80
24 GBR 550 Matt Howard 18 14 21 28 DNF 81
25 ARG 1 Alejandro Colla 31 RAF 18 15 17 81
26 AUS 221 Anthony Nossiter DNF 24 12 29 18 83
27 BRA 109 Jorge Zarif 21 31 29 5 30 85
28 SUI 1 Othmar M V Blumencron DNF 28 15 19 25 87
29 HUN 1 Balazs Hajdu 11 33 27 37 19 90
30 SWE 736 Johan Tillander 12 26 30 36 23 91
31 BRA 100 Maurício Bueno 33 27 26 18 31 102
32 HUN 5 Tibor Pallay DNF 15 32 33 27 107
33 BRA 11 Fabio Bodra 27 30 25 34 28 110
34 BRA 3 Henry Raul Boening 30 37 23 38 29 119
35 NED 78 Jaap Zielhuis 8 38 DNF 35 DNF129
36 NED 6 Stefan de Vries 29 22 DNF 31 DNF130
37 USA 55 Philippe Kahn 35 34 31 39 33 133
38 BRA 10 Jorge Rodrigues 28 40 34 41 34 136
39 NED 8 Rodrick Casander 26 41 35 42 35 137
40 USA 975 August Miller 34 39 36 40 32 141
41 NED 80 Sander E. Willems DNF DNC DNC 1 DNF145
42 ITA 15 Michele Marchesine DNF DNC DNC 26 24 146
43 ITA 1 Luca Devoti OCS DNC 2 DNC DNC146
44 DEN 200 Jonas Hoegh-Christensen DNF 16 DNF DNC DNC160
45 IRL 5 Youen Jacob DNF 20 DNF DNC DNC164
46 BRA 180 Gustavo Pereira Vaitsman DNF 42 33 DNC DNC171
47 GRE 6 Emilios Papathanasiou DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF192
Far left: Start in Rio Harbour. Lower Left: Luca leads!
Top left: Top four at the Brazilian Nationals – cheer up guys!
Below: Dean Barker rounding a mark
2006 GOLD CUP BIDS
At this year’s IFA AGM, there will be three bids to host the 2006
Finn Gold Cup. Each country has sent brief details to FINNFARE.
1. Croatia
Luksa Cicarelli, Croatian Finn Class Secretary writes, “We would
like to compete for the organisation of Gold Cup in 2006 for seniors
and juniors in Split, at our club LABUD, under the patronage of
Croatian Sailing Association and the town of Split. Split is more
than 1,700 years old and is located on the Adriatic coast with all the
advantages and maritime conditions essential for competitions like this.
We organised the Finn European Championship in 1997, hosting
75 competitors and the World Finn Masters in 2002 for 130
competitors. We also hosted the Mediterranean Games in 1979.
Split and the sailing club LABUD are well known in Finn competition
for good winds during the chosen dates (end of May and throughout
June), when south wind usually blows 10-25 Knots.
Regatta areas in diameter of 10 nm are surrounded by beautiful
islands. Spectators can watch the regatta from the hill overlooking
the sailing area. This is why we have been awarded the match
race for the last 10 years. We stand very good chances of getting
the organisation of World Masters in the same year, which would
be a real sailing Festival for the Finn Class of more than 200 boats.
We hope you will consider our nomination for GOLD CUP in 2006.
As an active sailer, I remember unforgettable and fantastic moments
during joint competition of juniors and veterans on World Cup and
World Masters in La Rochelle and Weymouth.”
2. Denmark
Lars Vesterholm-Lavesen, National Secretary, Danish Finn
Associationwrites, “The Danish Finn Association would like to
make an application to host the Finn Gold Cup in 2006. One of
the reasons for this application is the possibility to join up with the
Europe Class World Championship. This event will be hosted in
Skovshoved Sailing Club in early July 2006.
Now why would we want to do our Gold Cup with the Europeclass?
- to me there are a number of good reasons. As an example
one very good reason could be the possibility to promote our class
to the ‘youngster’ currently sailing in the Europe, but also the easy
access to Copenhagen/the marina could be mentioned as good
reasons for Denmark in 2006...
If you should vote for Denmark/Copenhagen we can also supply:
• A marina with excellent facilities and experience to support the event
• Some of the finest sailing waters in Denmark. The sailing conditions
in July are normally sea breezes - in the range of 8-10 m/s.
• A wide range of possible accommodation (camp sites, hostels,
hotels etc.) right next to the marina.
• The centre of Copenhagen is just some 10 km south of the marina
• And a lot more :-)
Anyway now you're warned that we will show up at AGM with a
more formal and colourful application. We hope for Your support!”
3. Palma
The Club Nautico el Arenal held the Finn Gold Cup in 1986, and
it is interested to organise it again in 2006. Most of the Finn sailors
know the yacht club for a long time because the club has organised
several events:
Annual Princess Sophia Trophy • 1989 IYRU Championship • 1989
Junior European Finn Championship • 1996 Europa World
Championship • 1997 European Finn Championship • 1998 470
World Championship • 2002 Spring European Star Championship
• 2004 Tornado World Championship
The dates for the 2006 Finn Gold Cup could be September 3rd to
10th.
FINNFARE APRIL 2004
FINNFARE APRIL 2004

REGATTA FORMAT AND SCORING SYSTEM FOR FGC 2005
In 2005, it is planned to hold the Finn Gold Cup on inland water near Moscow. Our VP Sailing, Ali Enver Adakan, visited the
chosen venue to check it out. There could be difficulties for racing perhaps 100 Finns as a single fleet, so during discussions
at the ISAF November Meeting 2003, Corinne McKenzie asked Richard Hart and Bill Bell (Finn Sailor and IJ) to look at
possibilities for racing in groups. There is sufficient space for two races to be run simultaneously on different courses.
In the past, national representatives have rejected the suggestion
that the Finn Gold Cup be divided into Gold and Silver Fleets half
way through the week, so we have avoided that solution. A short
selection regatta followed by a short final regatta don’t add up to a
Gold Cup Regatta, in our view!
At the Masters’ in Schwerin 2003, on a piece of water rather similar
to that near Moscow, 160 Finns were raced successfully. The boats
were divided into four groups, chosen at random. These raced in pairs
(heats or ‘flights’) simultaneously, each group racing every other group
twice (AB, AC, AD twice). The finish order was taken from the six
pairs of race results, with one discard.
The system seemed highly successful. I heard nobody complaining
about the system, nor did I hear any suggestion that the results were
influenced by the group that a sailor happened to be in. Although, in
the event, the planned six pairs of races were held, I believe that if
weather conditions had resulted in only five pairs of races instead of
six, or eight pairs instead of nine, the results would still have been
accepted as fair.
For the Finn Gold Cup, there is the disadvantage that two clear leaders
might be in separate starts for the final day. It seems sensible to
provide for a head-to-head Final by splitting to Gold and Silver Fleets
for the last day only. The last day does not carry a weighting in the
points (except that the Gold Winner gets 0.5 points, and a heat winner
gets 1.0 point). The last race can be your discard.
Recommendations
That for the 2005 FGC, racing should be scheduled for six (or nine)
pairs of ‘heat’ races, with four groups of boats scheduled to meet by
rotation (AB, AC, AD repeated). A final pair of races should be
scheduled, with the boats grouped into Gold (30%) and Silver Fleets.
Before racing commences, the first 4 sailors in the most recent ISAF
Olympic Rankings should be seeded into separate groups. The
remaining sailors should be allocated randomly to the four groups.
That the Low Point System be used, with finishing places in the Final
Races scoring half the number of points allocated to places in the
Group Heats (the Silver Fleet scores would be consecutive to the last
possible Gold Fleet score).
Example programmes
Flight 1 Flight 2
Race 1 AB CD
Race 2 AC BD
Race 3 AD BC
Race 4 CD AB
Race 5 BD AC
Race 6 BC AD
Final
Gold Fleet (First 30%) Silver Fleet
How the point system would work (example, 103 boats).
The principle is that the winners of a heat should both get points
similar to the first and second in the Gold Final, second in a heat
should both get similar points to third and fourth in the final, etc.
103 boats are divided into groups of 26, 25, 26 and 26. A winner gets
1.0 point, place 52 gets 52.0 points. DNS, DSF and DSQ boats get
53 points.
After six pairs of races, and after allowing a discard, the highest 31
boats are allocated to the Gold Fleet, plus two others that have the
same score as boat 31: total 33.
The winner of the Gold Fleet gets 0.5 point, the second boat gets 1.0
point, etc. The last Gold Fleet boat to finish has place 29 and gets
14.5 points. DNS etc. get 53 points.
The winner of the Silver Fleet gets (33÷2) + 0.5 = 17.0 points, the
second gets 17.5 points etc. DNS etc get 53 points.
Final scores are calculated, with the possibility that the discard may
now be from the Gold or Silver result. Ties are broken as per book
(currently RRS Section I Appendix A).
14

SUBMISSION FROM IFA FOR THE 2008 OLYMPIC REGATTA
Selection of the Finn as equipment for the 2008 Olympic Sailing
regatta – Men’s Single-Handed dinghy
The International Finn Association would like to propose the
Finn as equipment for the 2008 Olympic Sailing Regatta, in the
Men’s single-handed dinghy event.
CRITERIA
Universally available Equipment.
Active Finn builders: Devoti (Poland), Lemieux (Canada), Pata
(Hungary), Wilke (Switzerland), Mader (Germany), Sipos (Hungary),
Marten (New-Zealand), Vanguard (USA), and very soon in Argentina.
At recent World championships, at least 30 % of the competing boats
were charter boats.
Sailed Worldwide
The Finn has been an International class since the 1950s and is sailed
worldwide. There are around 35 to 40 countries that have an active
National Finn class; however the Finn is sailed in about 50 countries
and on 5 continents. About 6000 boats have been built, of which about
2000 are actively raced by Class Association members.
Suitable for Average Physique
How is Average Physique to be defined? If we consider the average
weight for the male population aged from 19 to 35 years old, the
average physique would be from 85 to 90 kgs depending on the
countries.
The Finn ideally suits people from 90 kg upwards, which nowadays
has become a reasonably average weight for full grown adult males.
Furthermore, the width of the optimum weight range of the Finn of
about 20 Kilos allows a big percentage of the population to sail, as
in no other single-handed. At the last Olympic Games and in most
recent major Championship, 1st and second places went to sailors
with 20 kgs difference.
We believe that it is essential that Olympic sailing provides for sailors
from the widest possible range of weights and sizes. The Finn Class
is the only dinghy class suitable for average and also larger men.
The Finn also allows sailors from different age groups to sail
competitively. At the 2000 Olympics, the youngest sailor was 22 years
old, the oldest 39 with the average at 25 years old.
Economical
As per a survey of the RYA, the Finn due to its long lasting hull and
mast is one of the cheapest sailing dinghies to campaign. (in fact the
running costs of a Finn campaign are comparable to those of a Laser
campaign)
Athletic
The Finn is the only truly athletic single-handed for sailors from 90
to 115 kgs.
The hiking and sailing techniques require a high level of fitness for
Olympic competition, and the extreme maneuverability of the boat
demands agility as well as strength.
Technically simple / Out of the Box
The quality of Finns produced, along with the technical information
supplied by the major builders, sail and mast makers (curves, bends...)
now enables sailors worldwide to charter boats and win medals at
World Championships, and the very best from other classes to quickly
become competitive in the Finn. What differentiate a successful from
a less successful Finn sailor are talent and the amount of training.
The great particularity of the Finn is its adjustability. With the same
boat, sailors from various physiques can adjust very simply the
centerboard position or mast rake to adapt the boat to their weight
and height to sail competitively. At the 2003 Finn Gold Cup Ben Ainslie
won the regatta at a weight of 90kgs while with an identical boat,
Rafael Trujillo from Spain finished second with a weight of 110 kgs.
At the 2004 Finn Gold Cup, Dean Barker finished 12th after 8 years
away from the Finn. He declared that “Finns are now so even in
construction that it does minimize the difference between sailors and
allows me to obtain a good result without having had to spend months
selecting my equipment.”
Due to the constant upgrade and refinements of class rules, the Finn
is technically innovative with its simple but high-tech rig. The class
rules have successfully produced a large number of boats which are
widely acknowledged as having very uniform speed potential, yet
have allowed the class to lead the sport in the development and use
of new materials and construction techniques.
We believe that using purely ‘out of the Box’ equipment can be
dangerous as it can prevent any development of the class and the
sport. It can lead to a monopoly.
Other criteria
• The Finn is the class that provides most of the AC skippers, Volvo
Round the World sailors, with the likes of Dean Barker coming back
to it to prove themselves. Many of the ISAF World Sailor of the Year
recipients are or have been Finn sailors (Mateusz Kusznierewicz,
Ben Ainslie, Russell Coutts, Jochen Schumann...). The interest of the
media for a sailing event comes primarily from the ‘stars’ participating
in the event.
• With an average skipper age of 25 years at the 2000 Sydney Olympic
Games, the Finn has one of the youngest average ages in Olympic
classes.
• The Finn is the fastest single-handed hiking dinghy. It is also the
most reliable displacement boat. The Olympic equipment needs to
include this type of boat as it is fuelling the professional circuit
(America’s Cup...).
\
• The Finn as Olympic equipment ensures the continuity from Olympic
sailing to Professional sailing. Within the Olympic equipment it is also
important to ensure continuity from Laser to Finn to Star.
• Thanks to the careful work of the IFA Technical Committee, the Finn
is at the forefront of Technology and keeps on updating. Due to a
controlled rate of change, the Finn class has been contributing largely
to the development of the sport of sailing. For example, the Lamboley
pendulum test as developed within the Class, shows how scantlings
and construction can be effectively controlled without constraint to
licensing or manufacturers’ classes.
In any case, we believe the Finn perfectly fits the criteria listed in ISAF
Regulation 16.1.4 (a):
“(i) Must allow athletes around the world, male, female and of different
FINNFARE APRIL 2004
size and weight, to participate
(ii) Must give the best sailors in each country the opportunity to
participate in readily accessible equipment
(iv) Must combine both traditional and modern events and classes,
to reflect, display and promote competitive sailing”
FINNFARE APRIL 2004

COUNTRIES REPORTS
DENMARK
Lars Vesterholm writes: “Once again
a Danish greeting to our friends in the
Finn-class. In this first Finnfare of the
year we salute you with a nice picture
taken at last years Master. The picture
illustrates what I guess we are all
longing for - "bare bellied"-sailors,
beers at the dinghy-park after some
good sailing and a little sun and
warmth in general.
In Denmark this winter has allowed
for sailing in most of our marinas. In
December our annual Christmasregatta
was held in Hellerup.
This event that host many classes
sailing together was for the first time
in years dominated by the Finn-class
with 9 entries. Overall winner was
Thomas Laursen and second overall
was Lars Hendriksen (at the event
some of our top-sailers bailed out -
Soren and Jonas seemed occupied
elsewhere... :-).
From a distance we saw that the Gold
Cup in Rio was conducted in very
difficult conditions. Our Danish
representatives finished in 9th and
10th place - probably to their own
dislike - but it promises for a hard trial
for the Olympics. Congratulations from
the rest of us - and good wind and
speed to the both of you!
Finally I will draw the attention to our
effort to host the Gold Cup in 2006
(with the Europe Class). I hope You
will all support this event at the AGM
in La Rochelle.”
Do Like Nelson, fight on the Sound
2004, will give International Finn Sailors a chance to
sail two great regattas on the same waters where
Nelson and Parker fought the common fleet of
Denmark and Norway, which at that time was the
second strongest navy in the world.
The waters between Copenhagen and Malmø, can be
quite difficult to navigate for larger ships, due to
numerous shallow spots, and quite a lot of mostly
northerly current. You will all get a chance of a lifetime,
to fight with the mainly Swedish and Danish Finn
fleet at the Eurolymp regatta in Rungsted from the
3rd to the 6th of June, and at the Swedish
Championship in Malmø over the 10-14 of June
The distance between the two places are less than
an hour by car, and about three hours, if you choose
to sail, across the Battleground outside Copenhagen.
Those of you who are coming will also experience
the very long days we have in June, were the sun
barely disappears for a few hours between 2300 and
0230, so better bring your sunglasses.
For more info, check out the Danish Finn Home Page:
www.finnjolle.dk. Looking forward to see a lot of you
guys, and we can promise you that the beer is good,
and the girls are good looking.
Richard Berg-Larsen
Finn sailor since 1974
FRANCE
Armistice 2003 – ‘A pure moment of rock’n’roll’
Hourtin 31st October - 2nd November
Jean-Marc Albert writes, “The 2003 Armistice
Race at Hourtin saw 53 Finnsters racing in wind
conditions between medium and fresh breeze (f
3-6). Some of them used to race the international
circuit. There were 1 Italian, 1 Australian (who
lives in France) and 6 from the Netherlands. The
French sailing team were stopped on the road to
Hourtin by a car breakdown. Even my old Clipper
Finn was back, finishing 51st.
After a year of boring and random light airs,
it was a real pleasure to hike and plane and
finish more physically than nervously tired. I
thought to myself, when I passed the first
windward mark in 5th position in race 4 , ‘It’s
a pure moment of rock’n’roll.’
16
Mario Salani won the race overall with four
first places and three seconds, followed by
Jean-Paul Gaston and Pierre Le Chatelier. It
was really a nice race. I finished 14th, a good
place for me.”
Results:
1 ITA 1 Salani Mario 8
2 FRA 8 Gaston Jean Paul 19
3 FRA 7 le Chatelier Pierre 34
4 NED 1 Vanderhorst Jan 38
5 NED Altena John 51
6 AUS 222 McKenzie Paul 61
7 FRA 826 Malservet Gilles 63
8 FRA 77 Duru Jean 66
9 FRA 848 Roumaillac Jean Claude 75
10 FRA 791 Granchamp Jean Jacques 80
11 FRA 804 Seguin Gael 96
12 FRA 822 Lesage Vincent 101
13 FRA 73 Lemaitre Simon 104
14 FRA 19 Abert Jean Marc 109
15 FRA 534 Luce Pierre 111
16 FRA 797 Deseilligny Christophe 112
17 NED Lamme Jan Jaap 121
18 FRA Tanguy Sylvain 124
19 NED Heusden Olaf 129
20 FRA 76 Hautecoeur Jean Pierre 132
21 FRA 800 Zoccola Yves 138
Left: France’s Bruno Ismael at
the Gold Cup in Rio
22 FRA 817 Vallier Philippe 139
23 NED Baerends Ruurd 143
24 NED Top Ronald 144
25 FRA Keraudy Alain 151
26 FRA 807 Siot Rene 152
27 FRA 794 Rochet Joseph 153
28 FRA 846 Henaff Gilles 153
29 FRA 6 Limare Francois 162
30 FRA 786 Lamballe Philippe 163
31 FRA 847 Chomet Patrick 165
32 FRA 1 Poissant Didier 189
33 FRA 806 Zagazuc Patrick 190
34 FRA Gaucher Xavier 195
35 FRA Michaud Alain 198
36 FRA 3 Mondeteguy Pierre 209
37 FRA 837 Guillou alain-Pierre 231
38 FRA Ribet Marc 235
39 FRA Roux Philippe 237
40 FRA 67 Limare Pierre 240
41 FRA 24 Limouse Marc 243
42 FRA 785 Liguet Jean Joseph 258
43 FRA 792 Chagnaud Francis 258
44 FRA 762 Dubois Brigitte 263
45 FRA 850 Tetard Pascal 282
46 FRA 718 Huynh Patrick 284
47 FRA Joliff Gildas 286
48 FRA 839 Brunet Claude 291
49 FRA 818 Carsoule Michel 297
50 FRA 750 Beaulande Yves 306
51 FRA 769 Panico Yannick 309
52 FRA 88 Nowicki Jan 315

GERMANY
German Int. Championship 2003
Flensburg (73 entries)
1 Matthias Miller GER
2 Eberhard Bieberitz GER
3 Roam Babicky CZE
4 Wolfgang Tamm GER
5 Karl-Heinz Erich GER
6 André Budzien GER
7 Jürgen Eiermann GER
8 Paul Kessler GER
9 Hans-Günter Ehlers GER
10 Peter Manns GER
11 Michael Fellmann GER
12 Friedrich Müller GER
13 Gunter Arndt DEN
14 Benedikt Gäch GER
15 Harmut Duisberg GER
16 Klaus-Dieter Götz GER
17 Herbert Sondermann GER
18 Kai Falkenthal GER
Ranking list 2003
(139 entres)
1 Michael Fellmann
2 Eberhard Bieberitz
3 Mathias Miller
4 André Budzien
5 Karl-Heinz Erich
6 Jürgen Eiermann
7 Wolfgang Tamm
8 Friedrich Müller
9 Hans-Günter Ehlers
10 Walter Mai
NEW ZEALAND
NZ Finn Veterans Championships 2004
Waiuku Yacht Club’s Veteran Finn regatta
ran over the weekend of 6-7 March with some
of the closest racing seen in recent times. By
the end of the fourth race the race honours
were shared by David Hoogenboom, John
Duff, Alan Dawson and Justin Hurst. Two
short races completed the series following a
one hour delay while the race officers waited
for a new north-west breeze to settle.
Racing was incredibly close over the short
races, with only 100 metres or less covering
the fleet of 14 Finns at the finish, and plenty
of action at the marks. Hoogenboom, fresh
from a 2nd place in the Finn Nationals, slipped
past Gerrit Bearda at the finish of race five
to bring him into a three-way tie for 1st with
THE NETHERLANDS
Oldtimer-race Harderwijk
The Dutch Finn Association has decided to
start up a competition for older boats only.
The intention is to give this group an
opportunity to race against each other and
to promote Finn sailing for starting sailors .
The entry is only allowed for boats other than
Devoti, Lemieux, Pata and Wilke
You are allowed to sail any kind of normal
allowed gear and the restrictions are only on
the hull.Finn Club Holland hopes this initiative
will help to promote Finn sailing and give
more fun to those who own the old-timers.
Normally they can only sail in the back of the
fleet but now theyhave equal opponents.
First test will be in Harderwijk on 28-29 of
August . This weekend is also the place for
the Randmeerrace which is a normal Finn
regatta so the oldies can meet the youngsters
on the lake but will have their own start and
competition. Finn Club Holland invites
everybody to join this weekend and enjoy
regatta sailing again!
Ewout Meijer is new chairman
Han Beverwijk, chairman of Finn Club
Holland, has resigned at the General Annual
Meeting on January 11th 2004. He could no
longer combine his responsibilities as a union
coach with an active role as a chairman. Han
Duff and Dawson. He then took out the series
with another clean but close win in the last
race, with Duff 2nd and Dawson 3rd on
countback. Christine Headey from Thames
won the title for the first aluminium mast,
while Rex Erikson was winner of the superveteran
division (over 60 yrs).
Results
1 David Hoogenboom 9
2 John Duff 12
3 Alan Dawson 12
4 Justin Hurst 25
5 Gerrit Bearda 26
6 Rex Erikson 29
7 Christine Headey 29
8 Geoff Letcher 36
9 Kevin Stone 36
10 Peter Brooks 40
11 Ian Wiseman 49
will be involved
with FCH as a
class coach.
Ewout Meijer
(pictured) has
been elected
unanimously by
the members for
the position of
chairman of Finn
Club Holland.
Ewout Meijer has been known for several
years as a very active Finn-sailer. After his
election he received the annual award for the
Gaastra Pro Ranking in 2003. FCH welcomes
Ewout as the new chairman.
We expect that his involvement with the Finn
Class and active participation in a large
number of national and international sailing
events will be stimulating for the further
development of the Dutch Finn class
organisation. We wish Ewout all the success
in his new role.
Justin Hurst and Christine Headey
rounding leeward mark
12 Bruce Watson 56
13 Jim Goodare 56
14 Paul Cane 68
FINNFARE APRIL 2004
Last race, fleet running down to the finish
with David Hoogenboom leading in
NZL234.
FINNFARE APRIL 2004

Three races were sailed each day and apart
from the overall winner being Alan Dawson,
the next 3-4 places were hotly contested and
only decided on the final race. The
Commodore’s wife Toni, excelled herself with
a good turnout of food to the delight of our
well-oiled visitors from the Waiuku Yacht Club.
We will be seeing them again next year when
Thames SC will once again host the NI
Champs and possibly be included in a small
Christine Headey chasing Peter Brookes
around the leeward mark.
NZ North Island Finn Championships 2003
The North Island Finn Championships were
held over the weekend of 29-30 of November
where 9 competitors took part at the very well
organised event at Thames SC. A variety of
wind conditions were experienced ranging from
light to medium on Saturday to strong winds
on Sunday producing excellent surf conditions
for those white-knuckle rides downwind.
SWITZERLAND
The early winter classic attracted 31 boats
this time including all top Finn sailors from
Switzerland. After an extended honeymoon
Peter Theurer also made his Finn comeback!
Good weather conditions allowed five races
to be sailed in light to medium winds.
Christoph Christen once again was the man
to beat and he made everything look easy
with a fine performance winning three out of
five races. Despite a black flag Christoph
Burger ended up in second place followed
by a very happy national secretary in third
place. The distribution of the gingerbread
prizes once again marked the end of a great
Swiss Finn season! For results see:
http://www.swisssailing.ch/rco/aktuell/Lebk
uchen1_Nov2003_Finn.htm
The Swiss Finn team at Cannes regatta
2004 (February 18-21) Top: Thomas Brack,
Dominique Wüchli, Hans Fatzer. Bottom:
Peter Kurz, Franz Bürgi
Ranking list (1.1.2004) – 48 listed
1 SUI 5 Christoph Christen 404
2 SUI 12 Franz Bürgi 385
3 SUI 4 Daniel Brun 364
4 SUI 50 Wolfgang Rickert 362
5 SUI 8 Nick Benz 328
6 SUI 11 Hans Fatzer 310
7 SUI 6 Dominique Wölchli 307
8 SUI 14 Andreas Meyer 300
9 SUI 99 Thomas Brack 290
18
10 SUI 96 Hans Lehmann 280
11 SUI 17 Frederick Huck 277
12 SUI 65 Mark Kruisheer 274
13 SUI 60 Peter Kurz 264
14 SUI 13 Peter Kilchenmann 265
15 SUI 100 David Veit 261
16 SUI 62 Silvan Zuppiger 257
17 SUI 48 Andreas Fürer 245
18 SUI 531 Roland Schneider 229
19 SUI 64 Hansruedi Osterwalder227
20 SUI 67 Peter Theurer 222
USA
Rolex Miami OCR
26 - 30 Jan 2004
Biscayne Bay, Miami, Florida
1 Mateusz KUSZNIEREWICZ POL
2 Jonas HOEGH CHRISTENSEN DEN
3 Geoff EWENSON USA
4 Kevin HALL USA
5 Mo HART USA
6 Chris COOK CAN
7 Mike MILNER CAN
8 Eric OETGEN USA
9 A VOLBLUMENCRON USA
10 Aaron O`GRADY IRL
11 John PORTER USA
12 Darrell PECK USA
13 Bryan BOYD USA
14 Andrew KERN USA
15 Henry SPRAGUE USA
16 Kurt TAULBEE USA
17 A PAPE USA
18 Waclaw SZUKIEL POL
19 Brian HUNTSMAN USA
20 Louie NADY USA
21 Petter FJELD NOR
22 A NIEUWSTAD USA
23 Phil TATE USA
24 Bill UPTHEGROVE USA
25 August MILLER USA
NI Finn Champs: (left to right) Brent
Hamilton, Geoff Letcher, John Duff, Alan
Dawson, Ian Wiseman, Christine Headey,
John Farquhar, Peter Brookes
Finn regional circuit covering Auckland and
neighbouring districts.
Results
1 Alan Dawson Waiuku YC
2 Christine Headey Thames SC
3 Brent Hamilton Waiuku YC
Right: Thomas Brack SUI 99 at Cannes
Left: ‘Jacket Flying’ – what Swiss Finnsters
do when there is too much wind to sail
US Nationals 2003
Lauderdale YC, Nov 14.16
1 Andrew Simpson GBR 6 10
2 Jonas Hogh-Christensen DEN 200 12
3 Kevin Hall USA 12 224
4 Mo Hart USA 16 25
5 Othmar Mv Blumencron SUI 1 29
6 Eric Oetgen USA 1160 40
7 Aaron O’Grdy IRL 10 41
8 Darrell Peck USA 1181 46
9 Geoff Ewensen USA 11 46
10 Andrew Kern USA 78 48
11 John Porter USA 14 64
12 Skip Dieball USA 10 66
13 Louie Nady USA 150 70
14 Kristian Aderman SWE 7 71
15 Bryan Boyd USA 1140 76
16 Brett Webb USA 1197 95
17 Pau; Phelan CAN 220 102
18 Henry Sprague USA 74 104
19 Jemermy Pape USA 6 108
20 Gus Miller USA 975 109
21 Bill Upthegrove USA 7 137
22 Charles Heimler USA 1132140
23 Andras Nady USA 970 141
24 Tim Slater USA 17 141
25 David Branch USA3 142
26 Robert Plant GBR 3 147
27 Patrick Weaver USA 151 162
28 Robert Carlen USA 1109162
29 Lyndon Lee USA 1176171

INTERNATIONAL RACING CALENDAR 2004
APRIL
April 2-9 XXXV Princess Sofia Trophy Palma de Mallo Spain
April 7-11 Izola Spring Cup Izola Slovenia
April 17-18 Southern Championships (tbc) Warsash UK phil.laycock@lineone.net
April 23-30 Semaine Olympique Francaise Hyeres France
MAY
May 7-9 Nesselblatt Steinhude Germany www.wvstm.de
May 7-15 EUROPEANS La Rochelle France
May 8-9 Lilac Festival OCR Ontario Canada
May 14 - 16 Balaton Championship Balatonfured, ... Hungary
May 22-23 Canadian OCR Toronto Canada
May 26 - 30 Regatta Port Bourgas 2004 Bourgas BUL
May 26-30 SPA Regatta Medemblik Netherlands www.sparegatta.org
May 28 June 4 FINN WOLRD MASTERS Cannes France
JUNE
June 2 - 6 Scandinavian Race Week Rungsted Denmark
June 10-13 Austrian Championship Attersee Austria
June 11-13 British Nationals Torbay UK phil.laycock@lineone.net
June 11-13 Open Swedish Championship Malmo Sweden
June 15 - 20 International Youth Regatta Moscow, CSK VMF Russia
June 18-20 Niendorfer Einhandjolle Niendorf Germany fax +49 4503 8478
June 23-27 Kiel Week Kiel Germany fax +49 431 83939
June 30- 4 July Austrian Lakes Week Eurolymp Neusiedlersee Austria
JULY
July 3-10 International Baltic Regatta St Petersburg Russia
July 3-11 Warnemunder Woche Warnemunde Germany
July 8-11 Intervela Riva Del Garda Italy
July 9 - 14 HYA 75 Yrs Jubileum Regatta Balatonfured Hungary
July 14-17 French Nationals Loctudny France www.finn-france.com
July 23-1 August Travemunder Woche Travemunder Germany
July 25- 31 Istanbul Sailing Week Istanbul Turkey
July 31-August 1 French Open Socoa France www.finn-france.com
AUGUST
August 3-7 Idea Gdynia Sailing Days Gdynia Poland
August 14-29 2004 Olympic Regatta Athens Greece
August 21-29 CORK Kingston Canada
August 23-1 Travemunder Woche Travemunder Germany
SEPTEMBER
September 2-5 Lipno Regatta Cerna v Posuma Czech Republic
September 6-10 German Championship Seebruck Germany www.seebrucker-regatta-verein.de
September 7-11 International German Championship Flensburg Germany
September 10-14 International Swiss Championship Reichenau Switzerland franz.buergi@freesurf.ch
OCTOBER
October 1-3 Malcesine Finn Cup Malcesine Italy
October 24-28 Tzeni Grammalidou Cup Thessaloniki Gulf Greece
NOVEMBER
November 6-7 International Gingerbread Regatta Thun Switzerland franz.buergi@freesurf.ch
November 26 - 28 International Opatija Cup Opatija Croatia
DECEMBER
December 2-5 St Nicholas Race Pula Coratia
December 26-30 Chrismas Race Palamos Spain
2005
February 4 - 7 Sail Auckland Regatta Auckland New Zealand
March 11 - 15 XI Barcelona Olympic Sailing Week Barcelona Spain
April 22 - 29 Semaine Olympique Francaise Hyeres FINNFARE FranceAPRIL 2004
For further information on any
event, to check the latest
information on dates and
venues or to add events and
contact numbers to this list
contact the IFA Office or see
the IFA or ISAF website. Please
check all details with organisers
before travelling.