Image by JRenedo - www.sailingstock.com. 

MODUS VIVENDI-3ALFA AND CARPANTXO IN THE LIMELIGHT
 
Modus Vivendi-3Alfa from Greece still leading, also on the podium Carpantxo and La Revoltosa
The day opens with the disqualifying of Bribón-Movistar after the Jury decision following a protest with the Swiss team Aranis
 
Alicante, July 22nd 2010 - the third day of the Platu 25 2010 Worlds tha is taking place in the waters of Alicante organized by the local Club de Regatas was exciting, especially because it opened with the resolutions from the Jury of some of the pending protests. The disqualification of Bribòn Movistar affected the most the top part of the scoreboard, the Spanish falling from seventh to eighth overall.

As for the racing the day had three main actors on the scene: on one side the boats Modus Vivendi-3Alfa and Carpantxo and on the other one the wind conditions that caused a postponement of nearly two hours on the scheduled starting time. For the same reason the Committee, in the third race, after a general recall was forced to abandon racing because of the light and shifty breeze.

Undoubtedly Kostas Karageorgiou's Modus Vivendi-3Alfa, world champion in 2008 and silver in 2009, is doing everything in its power to get the title back. In the first day's race, that started after 2 p.m. with a seven knots wind form 100°, proved to be in top form, suffice to say that on the downwind mark they had a lead of more than a minute on Iberdrola skippered by Manu Weiller.  Behind the sailor from Mallorca it was Servimil to steal the second place right on the finishing line since Iberdrola was penalized by the umpires and lost five places. On their unluckiest day at these World champs, the Spanish had also a collision with Fermax, that lost some positions too. In this difficult situation HST was fast enough to cross in third, followed by the Swiss on Superbusi and Mejillón de Galicia-Movistar.
 
Despite the atmosphere being very stressful and the sailors extremely nervous, the second start was  pretty smooth with most of the fleet opting for the pin end of the line.  Mejillon de Galicia-Movistar and Iberdrola were over the line while the Spanish and Italian boats took the lead with the Galician crew on Carpantxo looking tactically very strong and a bit faster than its direct rivals.  Unfortunately for them the sailors on Mejillon and Iberdrola did not realized they had been penalized and went on racing till the end.
 
No worries for Carpantxo on the other hand. They went on leading the pack and got the win followed  by Iberdrola, the Italians on Brera Hotels, PIX1-Anna Mora and Fermax. Modus Vivendi-3Alfa could not do better than an eighth place, while Iberdrola and Mexillón de Galicia-Movistar were given an OCS (67 points) for being over the line. Bribón-Movistar skippered by Marc de Antonio who was hoping to improve his overall results only finished in tenth.

For the other favourites to the final victory not the best of days for Revoltosa with a 17th and a 9th and The Collection Coppel Dental that also did not show its best with a 21st and a 12th. Fermax only got a valid result (OCS in the first race) while the Germans on Flexi showed very good speed especially in the second race, when they battled with Carpantxo and other Spanish teams and finished an honorable sixth.
 
With the day's points Modus Vivendi 3Alfa is still on top of the overall standings with 21 points, Carpantxo goes up to second with 28 and the third position is still occupied by La Revoltosa, now at 38. Mexillón de Galicia-Movistar falls back in eight with 50 points while The Collection Coppel Dental and Fermax get the fourth and fifth place respectively. German flagged Flexi are sixth, Iberdrola seventh and Bribón-Movistar is last on the ‘top ten’.
 
QUOTES
 
Marina Kasatova | helm Navis (Russia)
“We bought our Platú 25 six years ago and it was the only one sailing in our area, in Moscow. We started by competing with other classes and since two years we've started practicing to participate to international events, the first being the Worlds in Greece in 2008. Since then I believe we made huge improvements, allowing us to buy a new boat with which we are sailing here in Alicante and that we use for all the Mediterranean events. Yet, we still have a lot to learn. We have fun and improve at the same time. The international class President Edoardo Barni is always ready to help us out and our strength is our small group because we have been sailing together for several years, and our sponsor Navis too.”
 
 
Erich Buholzer | helm Superbusi (Switzerland)
“Today we got a fourth in the first race and we're satisfied because we have solved the issues that up to now stopped us to reach our full potential. We set the boat differently, bt we are not saying what we did, it's our secret and tomorrow I guess we will tune her the same way. Our team is made of five people, we have been sailing together for three years, since we entered the Platu 25 class.
We usually sail on the Lake of Luzern, which is a bit more complicated than on the sea but we still work to improve because our objective is the 2011 Worlds that will be on a lake and than we will probably have our say!"
 
Jean Böttcher | Trimmer Spi Flexi (Germany)
“With today's eighth and sixth place we got to the sixth place overall, no doubt a good result for us. I believe our strength lies in the good co-ordination of our crew, we are always fully focussed. Experience showed us that there is nothing to gain from being stressed and that the best results come when the crew is quiet and relaxed. I hope that there will be a bit more wind in the hours to come, as the forecast say not only because we like a stronger breeze but because it's more fun for everyone."

 
 
GENERAL  RESULTS (66 ENTRIES)

1 – Modus Vivendi (Greece) : 1+3+67(DNF)+2+6+1 = 21 points
2 – Carpantxo (Spain) : 2+4+10+3+10+9+1 = 28 points
3 – La Revoltosa (Spain) 4+13+8+1+4+17+9 = 38 points
4 – The Collection /Coppel Dental (Spain) : 11+1+6+5+8+21+12 = 43 points
5 – Fermax (Spain)  10+17+3+9+1+BFD (67)+4 = 44 points
6.-  Flexi (Germany) 3+10+28+16+5+8+6= 48 points
7.-  Iberdrola (Spain) 15+10+1+7+12+6+OCS(67) = 50 points
8.- Mexillón de Galicia-Movistar (Spain) 6+31+2+4+2+5+OCS(67) = 50 points
9.- Xacobeo 2010 Galicia (Spain) 8+24+4+13+7+13+7= 52 points
10.- Bribón-Movistar (Spain) 16+7+9+DSQ (67)+3+24+10 = 65 points