SPORTY DAY IN ANNAPOLIS
Annapolis, USA (3 May 2023) – Brisk conditions greeted competitors on Day 3 of the Santa Maria Cup in Annapolis as teams fought for a final-four place in the semi-finals. In a repeat of last week’s opening stage of the Women’s World Match Racing Tour in San Francisco, the same top four skippers will meet again for the Santa Maria Cup semi-finals: Anna Östling (SWE), Megan Thomson (NZL), Celia Willison (NZL) and Nicole Breault (USA).
Coming into the day, nearly all the teams had a mathematical shot at moving into the knockout series. But the cards fell into place by the end of the double round robin with the final four skippers advancing to the start of the first-to-three-points semis.
As winner of the round robin qualifying stage, Anna Östling had the option to choose her semi-final opponent and selected to face New Zealand’s Megan Thomson, with USA’s Nicole Breault up against Celia Willison (NZL) in the other pairing.
Östling’s decision may have bitten her team however as Thomson led the first two races to a 2-0 score with the Swedish team now needing to win three straight races to secure their spot in their finals.
In the second pairing, Nicole Breault/Vela Racing and Celia Willison/ Edge Women’s Match finished the day squared at 1-1 with both teams challenged by the shifty gusts on the course.
“Today was super shifty on the course with the breeze from almost zero to 20 knots” commented Celia Willison; “we had a crucial last few races to get into the semis, the course was then moved up in front of the Eastport Yacht Club and it was difficult to see any of the shifts which made for a lot of lead changes.”
“Today was more consistent with the shifts but still very challenging for us” added Vela Racing’s Dana Riley, “but we sailed well and came out ok to go 1-1 in the semis and we are looking forward to more racing tomorrow.”
Closing out the day was the playoffs for 5-8th position in a first-to-two points series.
Racing concludes tomorrow starting from 0900 Eastern Daylight Time with the remainder of the semi-final matches and the top two teams advancing to the final.
Day Three Highlight Video
Results at the end of the double round robin:
1. SWE Anna Östling 16–2 89%
2. USA Nicole Breault 15–3 83%
3. NZL Celia Willison 11–7 61%
4. NZL Megan Thomson 10–8 56%
5. USA Bridget Groble 9–9 50%
6. AUS Brooke Wilson 8–10 44%
6. USA Allie Blecher 8–10 44%
8. USA Janel Zarkowsky 7–11 39%
9. GBR Sophie Otter 5–13 28%
10. DEN Kristine Mauritzen 1–17 6%
Follow live results at www.santamariacup.org/results
For information on the Santa Maria Cup https://www.santamariacup.org
For information on WWMRT, visit womenswmrt.com
See the WWMRT website for more information and photos:
https://womenswmrt.com/events/santa-maria-cup/
Teams Competing:
Anna Östling, Anna Holmdahl White, Linnea Wennergren, Annika Carlunger - SWE
Nicole Breault, Molly O’Bryan Vandemoer, Dana Riley Hayes, Maggie Bacon - USA
Celia Willison, Alison Kent, Charlotte Porter, Serena Woodall - NZL
Sophie Otter, Hebe Hemming, Amy Sparks, Hatty Ward - GBR
Megan Thomson, Anna Merchant, Lisa Dartnall, Maeve White - NZL
Janel Zarkowsky, Rose Edwards, Meaghan MacRae, Abigail Preston - USA
Kristine Mauritzen, Emilie Lauritzen, Christina Albers Andersen, Katrine Ejlev - DEN
Allie Blecher, Alicia Blumenthal, Beka Schiff, Katja Sertl - USA
Bridget Groble, Morgan Collins, Katherine Klempen, Samantha Foulston - USA
Brooke Wilson, Gemma Burns, Tiana Wittey, Emily Keg - AUS
About Santa Maria Cup
Santa Maria Cup is the second stop on the 2023 Women’s World Match Racing Tour. Returning after a 10-year break, the 2023 regatta will be the 22nd running of this event. Past competitors in this series include Olympic sailors, Rolex Yachtswomen of the Year, and other international stars of women’s sailing. Some of the American past winners are JJ Isler, Dawn Riley, Liz Baylis, Jody Swanson, Betsy Alison, Cory Sertl, Sally Barkow, and Anna Tunnicliffe. Originally a minor offshoot to the Columbus Cup professional match racing regatta series in Baltimore, Santa Maria Cup relocated to Annapolis in 1993 when Eastport Yacht Club (EYC) became the organizing authority.
About Visit Annapolis & Anne Arundel County
Visit Annapolis and Anne Arundel County (VAAAC) is a nonprofit, membership-based Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) that generates revenues for the local economy by promoting Annapolis and Anne Arundel County to business and leisure travelers across the country and around the world. Anne Arundel County’s official DMO executes strategic marketing, sales, and media campaigns that position the destination’s portfolio of brands in key markets to bolster the economy and enhance employment opportunities. www.visitannapolis.org
About Maryland Sports Commission
The Maryland Sports Commission is the go-to resource for the sports events and sports tourism industry in Maryland. Our mission is to enhance Maryland’s economy, image and quality of life through the attraction, promotion, retention and development of regional, national and international sporting events.
About Women’s World Match Racing Tour
The Women’s World Match Racing Tour was launched in 2022 to continue the hugely successful legacy of the WIM Series (Women’s International Match Racing Series) providing a global match racing series for female sailors. The name of the WIM Series has been changed and re-launched as the Women’s World Match Racing Tour with it’s continued mission to expand and strengthen global match racing and promote opportunities for competitive women’s sailing at every level. The Women’s World Match Racing Tour is the world’s first and only professional sailing series for women providing a valuable pathway for aspiring female world champions in the sport of sailing. womenswmrt.com
