Hi all from BlackMatch,

Despite a slight hiccup in our 2009 campaign last week in Sweden, the latest ISAF rankings have seen BlackMatch Skipper Adam Minoprio reach a career best number 3 in the world. The latest World Ranking is great news for BlackMatch Racing, as it is not only our goal to win the World Match Racing Tour, but also to be the World Number 1 ISAF ranked team, by the end of 2009.

Although we have surrended our top position on the World Match Racing Tour to the world number 1 Mathieu Richard, we are still well in contention lying in 2nd place and will be looking to regain the top spot at the St Moritz event in 6 weeks time.

This is the debut for Adam Minoprio in the RC44 class. Malcesine, 8 July 2009. Photo copyright Nico Martinez

Our next regatta is in 3 weeks and is the grade 1 International De France, held in Brittany. We finished 5th here last year and are definitely vying for a top placing here this year in the J-80 boats.

Match racing – Open – Wednesday 8 July 2009

1 RICHARD Mathieu (FRA)
2 WILLIAMS Ian (GBR)
3 MINOPRIO Adam (NZL)
4 MIRSKY Torvar (AUS)
5 COL Sébastien (FRA)
6 IEHL Damien (FRA)
7 GILMOUR Peter (AUS)
8 PRESTI Philippe (FRA)
9 CIAN Paolo (ITA)
10 BERNTSSON Johnie (SWE)

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Hello again from BlackMatch,

Day three and the repechage stage of Match Cup Sweden saw mixed form today from BlackMatch. Wins over Ian Williams and local hope Bjorn Hansen may not be enough to keep us in the running, as losses to Mattias Rahm and Sebastian Col have all but sealed our destiny, however there is a slim chance we could still qualify.

After completing four races in the 7 race repecharge series, we now relying on results to go our way if we are to progress through to the quarterfinals. Tomorrow we will take on a winless Francesco Bruni, Dane Peter Wibroe and local Johnnie Berntsson who are both on 3 wins.

Although we only have an outside chance we are still confident and will be giving it our best effort tomorrow to finish on a high note.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Hello again from BlackMatch,

Day two of Match Cup Sweden was one to forget for BlackMatch, it has been a long while since we went a day without out a win but today was a disaster and we had 4 straight defeats to finish last in our group. All is not lost however as we still have the chance to win our way through in a repecharge series which will start tomorrow for the bottom 8 teams.

With only a single win from our 6 matches, we have failed to put things together so far in this event and it would appear we are struggling, but the truth is that we are very much in the game and will come out fighting tomorrow for the two remaining quarterfinal berths. All of our matches today were very close and there are just key moments we can pinpoint that contributed to all of our losses, it is these mistakes that we need to eliminate if we are progress further in this event.

Perhaps a good example of this was in our match up against 6 times Match Cup Sweden Champion Peter Gilmour. We absolutely nailed the veteran in the pre-start, managing to lock him out above the committee boat end of the start-line, however the crafty Australian forced his way in between us and the boat end and although he was given a red flag penalty to be taken immediately, he still was only half a boat length behind after undertaking it. ‘Gilly’ then showed his class to stay in touch up the first beat and was hot on our heals going into the first downwind. He did a great job of initiating the gybe to the bottom mark whereas we held for too long and the following luffing situation saw them roll over the top of us to gain the lead, from here he defended well and took the victory.

We are in very good company in the bottom 8 repecharge series which includes the two previous Match Cup Sweden Champions Mattias Rahm and Bjorn Hansen, World number 1 Sebastian Col and current World Champion Ian Williams. Although we have an uphill battle from here, we are looking forward to the challenge ahead.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Hello from BlackMatch in Sweden,

Match Cup Sweden is the 5th leg of the 2009 World Match Racing Tour and is held on the beautiful island of Marstrand, an hour North-west of Gothenburg. It has been busy times here in Marstrand, playing host to a Volvo Ocean Race stopover a fortnight ago, while this week over 140,000 people are expected to stop by and check out the action on the water.

It is our debut here at one of the most renowned events on the World Tour and it is not hard to see why it has such a good reputation. The volunteer support is unbelievable, combined with the amazing scenery and massive spectator turnout this event is one to be rivaled with.

We were only involved in two matches today managing a win over the World number 1 Sebastian Col, but lost to last year’s runner up Torvar Mirsky. Torvar has a lot of confidence coming into this regatta following his victory last week in Portugal and sailed extremely well today to yet again get the edge over us, this is something we are not planning on making a habit and will be looking to step up our game tomorrow.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Hello from BlackMatch in Portugal,

Having lost to Gilmour twice previously in the quarterfinal of the 2007 Monsoon Cup and the Final last year, it was a case of 3rd time lucky as we secured our first win against the three time World Match Racing Champion, in a knockout stage of an event. Our quarter final match up with Gilmour was an extremely close affair and went right down to the wire. We took the first match with a text book start and sailed cleanly to victory while the next race saw Gilmour do a similar thing to us, however the third race was an absolute nail biter and saw plenty of action.

Great performance by BlackMatch Racing that gets a berth in the semifinals. Troia, 20 June 2009. Photo copyright Wander Roberto

After trailing off the start line we fought back to stay in touch up the first beat and after an excellent spinnaker hoist we started to roll over the Australian skipper and his Yanmar Sailing Team. We then thought we could complete a gybe so in an attacking move we gybed at him on starboard, but a cool Gilmour held his nerve and his course, which resulted in a collision and a penalty to us. They then gybed off and we followed going straight into an aggressive luff, while they failed to keep clear and they themselves were then handed a penalty. There was a lot of yelling in a heated situation which saw our boat become entangled with Gilmours spinnaker sheet around our bow as his spinnaker ‘flogged’. The gybe back toward the bottom mark was interesting as our boats were locked together with their sheet and by the time they cleared it they had not given us enough room at the bottom mark and were given a red flag penalty to be taken immediately. All of this action made for some adrenalin pumping sailing but by the time Gilmour had completed his penalty we knew defensive sailing would seal a win for us.

The fourth match was an absolute shocker for us as we received a penalty in the pre-start for gybing too close to them and then received a second penalty in a port/starboard incident near the top mark which was the nail in the coffin to set up a fifth decisive match. We got a great start in the final match and sailed well tactically around the course to seal our semi final berth against the current world champion Ian Williams.

It is fantastic to have qualified for the semi finals here in Portugal, especially after the disappointment of Korea a fortnight ago and to do it against such a great competitor was even more satisfying. We are looking forward to the challenge of racing Ian Williams tomorrow in the semi finals while fellow Line 7 sponsored Torvar Mirsky will take on Mathieu Richard in the other semi final.

BlackMatch would like to again thank their sponsors FedEx Express and Line 7 New Zealand. We would also like to thank our yacht club the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron and Emirates Team New Zealand.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Hello from BlackMatch in Portugal,

Today we went unbeaten winning all 3 of our races and qualified for the quarterfinals in 5th position, not a bad birthday present for the BlackMatch skipper Adam Minoprio, who turned 24 today.

We had some very close racing today, including exciting wins against fellow Kiwi Phil Robertson and eventual round robin winner Philippe Presti.

Our race against Philippe saw the birthday boy nail the start, we gained a two boat length lead and were heading to the favoured right hand side of the course as the wind gusted up to 25 knots. The Frenchman did a great job of staying close to us in the blustery conditions, managing to make significant gains down the first run as we both surfed downwind. Nearing the bottom of the run they gained an inside overlap and sailed us past the bottom mark however following the gybe back to the mark and the spinnaker drop we still had the lead and inside rights. The world number 6 then failed to give us room at the bottom mark and was handed a penalty by the umpires while we had a great rounding and sailed defensively for the remainder of the race to seal the win.

The end of the round robin saw an in form Presti finish on top, with fellow Frenchman Mathieu Richard in second and veteran match racer Peter Gilmour in 3rd. Presti had the first choice of who to race in his quarter final match and chose Torvar Mirsky, while Richard chose bottom qualifier Bjorn Hansen. Gilmour was next to choose and in a repeat of Monsoon Cup 2007, he chose us.

The other quarter finals are now underway and will continue until the sun goes down while the sea breeze is pumping, however our match up with Gilmour will not happen until tomorrow due to there only being 6 boats and we are hoping the breeze will kick in again tomorrow.

BlackMatch would like to again thank their sponsors FedEx Express and Line 7 New Zealand. We would also like to thank our yacht club the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron and Emirates Team New Zealand.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Greetings from BlackMatch in Portugal,

Today was the opening day of the Portugal Match Cup which is the fourth event on the World Match Racing Tour. Despite a few hiccups today, we finished with 3 wins and 2 losses including a nail biting win against the world number one, Sebastian Col.

With very convincing wins against Andrew Arbuzov and Ian Ainslie we were unlucky to lose against Australian Torvar Mirsky. We had an excellent start against Mirsky and gained a massive advantage after a great start, however the wind was unbelievably shifty today and we were caught on the wrong side of a huge wind shift that handed them the victory.

David Swete on the bow for ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing at Troia Portugal Match Cup 2009. Troia, 17 June 2009. Photo copyright Wander Roberto

Following a narrow loss to an unbeaten Peter Gilmour we came out firing against the defending Portugal Match Champion Sebastian Col. Managing to force a penalty on him in the pre-start and gain an even start, the Frenchman sailed a great first beat and held a narrow lead into the first downwind. We had to fight to stay in touch as they gradually ground out enough of a lead to undertake their penalty turn which they did nearing the top mark. We lee bow tacked close to the French team and went to luff them in a defensive move, they failed to keep clear and were handed another penalty but still held the inside advantage at the top mark. They held their nerve and engineered their boat into a position to take yet another penalty turn and still hold a narrow lead as we gybed to the finish line. We however now had the inside advantage and luffed hard again to force them above the pin end of the finish line, it wasn’t until a final ‘nerve racking’ gybe back to the finish that we were able to roll them and take a very narrow victory.

Round robin action will continue tomorrow and we are looking forward to notching up a few more wins in the hope of making the final 8. It is great to be joined at this regatta by fellow Kiwi Phil Robertson and his Waka Racing Team, we would like to wish them the best in their first world tour event.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

It was a first today for both of the young up-and-coming sailors. Torvar Mirsky and Adam Minoprio, currently holding the 4th and 5th place in the ISAF Match Racing rankings, took the helm of an America’s Cup yacht for the first time ever this afternoon in Valencia.

Torvar Mirsky (helm) and Kinley Fowler (trim) were on SWE-63 while Adam Minoprio (helm) and Tom Powrie (trim) sailed on Victory Challenge’s newer boat, SWE-73. Even if it was part of a corporate hospitality program and with the majority of the crew consisting of guests of the Volkswagen group, the two young sailors didn’t take things lightly. It is obvious that when your grinders are car dealers or car component executives you can’t be too demanding but their aggressive style could be felt in the prestarts. Still, this kind of marketing is a unique opportunity for the sport of sailing, especially under the current tough financial situation. In what other sport can you rub shoulders with the world’s 4th and 5th sportsmen?

The two teams will spend Sunday training in Valencia in full earnest on two SM40’s and will then head to Portugal for the Portugal Match Cup, the 4th event of this year’s World Match Racing Tour.

Torvar Mirsky helming SWE-63. Valencia, 13 June 2009. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Tom Powrie and Adam Minoprio during the prestart. Valencia, 13 June 2009. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Kinley Fowler from Mirsky Racing Team during the prestart. Valencia, 13 June 2009. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Adam Minoprio helming SWE-73 during the prestart. Valencia, 13 June 2009. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Hello from BlackMatch,

After bowing out of the quarterfinals we still had a fight on our hands to secure 5th place on the final day. We chose to race Torvar Mirsky in our first match which left Peter Gilmour to take on Mathieu Richard. There was a different vibe on the boat and we totally dominated the young Australian, forcing a penalty on him in the pre-start then sailing away for a comfortable victory. It was a similar story against Peter Gilmour, we gained the favoured right hand side of the course and had better speed off the start line which gave us the initial advantage, we were able to capitalise on this to secure 5th place at the 2009 Korea Match Cup.

After the disappointment of the previous day it was great to get some form back and beat the two Australian teams. Reward for our 5th placing is the fact that we have regained the World Match Racing Tour lead, with a 1 point advantage over Ben Ainslie and we are definitely happy about this.

This week we are off to Valencia to train in the Swedish Match 40 boats ahead of our upcoming regatta in Portugal, where we are looking forward to another good week of sailing.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Hello from BlackMatch Racing,

The recent release of the ISAF World Match Racing rankings has seen Adam Minoprio and the BlackMatch crew elevated into a career high 5th place World Ranking, one place behind Austrailian and fellow Line 7 sponsored Torvar Mirsky. The ISAF World Rankings count results over the past 2 years and as last year was our first year on the tour this is an extraordinary effort, well beyond what we anticipated. Our recent climb through the rankings was not only due to our victory in Marseille, but also helped by the fact that we have made the the last 3 World Tour finals in a row, it’s this kind of form that we are hoping to carry into our upcoming events. Next week we are back competing, travelling to Germany for the second event on the World Tour, this is immediately followed by the Korea Match Cup Tour event, where we finished third last year.

Adam Minoprio and Damien Iehl in the Open de España. Calpe, 22 April 2009. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back