Anna Kjellberg had the chance to win Match Cup Sweden 2009 in the third final flight; all she needed was one more win against Australian Katie Spithill. Kjellberg who had won the first two matches looked confident and Spithill really needed to pull something special out of her sleeve to win.
The pre start was tough and both sailors where fighting to gain the best position. Kjellberg wasn’t aggressive enough and Spithill used that to get the best start. She then found a good path leaving Kjellberg way behind. In the first leg Spithill had a bad spinnaker setting which Kjellberg used to gain on her opponent. But that wasn’t enough; Spithill controlled the action and won with four boat lengths.
I love Marstrand, shouted Anna Kjellberg from her race boat after getting one step closer to the trophy.
Linda Rahm wins third place in the competition after another win against Lucy Macgregor. The Swedish skipper got a huge lead from the start as Macgregor was given two penalties before the start. Rahm had a lot of speed as she passed the line while Macgregor chose to perform her first penalty-spin right away. Rahm was in control during the rest of the race and Macgregor could never really challenge her. The crowds gave her a standing ovation when she reached finishing line as third place winner in Match Cup Sweden 2009.
The first final (best out of five flights) was exciting. It was a hard fight in the pre start where Katie Spithill forced Anna Kjellberg to a false start and everybody thought that the race was over. But Kjellberg showed a great fighting spirit and sailed passed Spithill on the first leg. Spithill would have none of that and also tried to pass. But in the end there was nothing that could stop Kjellberg who won and now leads the final, one against zero.
In the match for third price Lucy Macgregor faced Linda Rahm. Rahm, who sailed good in the semi finals, was eager to prove how good she really is. They had an even start where Rahm forced Macgregor to the side, taking the lead. Macgregor struggled and was close but Rahm was too strong in that battle and won. Rahm is only one win away from the bronze.
Tiotusentals människor kommer under de närmaste två dagarna att följa Match Cup Sweden’s finalseglingar i Women’s och Open class från Marstrands klippor. Matchcupsweden.com gick en sväng längs strandpromenaden och frågade några av dem vad ve tycker om evenemanget hittills.
Rahm had the chance to even the score in her semi-final against Anna Kjellberg. They both tried different tactics to gain advantage in the start and Kjellberg was the most successful of them and got the lead closely followed by Rahm. They both raced to the first buoy and both made excellent spinnaker settings. They both fought hard and Rahm got by but then Rahm had some trouble with her sail and Kjellberg took over again. Both sailors started to make mistakes and Kjellberg did almost lose her lead but got it together and won. Kjellberg is thereby through to the finals.
Lucy Macgregor is still in the race after winning the third race of the semifinals. Now, the score is 2-1 to her opponent, Katie Spithill. Spithill was over the line at the start and was forced to fall back in order to pass the line again. Nevertheless, she sailed well after that and although Macgregor kept the lead for the rest of the race, she won with a very small margin. Spithill attacked her repeatedly during the last leg and tried to steal her wind.
In the
second match in the women’s semis they decided to make the course longer and
the wind started to blow a little bit more. As always after the first match, the
teams changed boats.
In the
match between Linda Rahm and Anna Kjellberg the later had to minimize her
mistakes in order to tighten up the score. The match kicked off and Rahm got a
good start, making Kjellberg lying still at the starting line. They then made a
split start and Rahm chose the windiest way and got the lead. Kjellberg
struggled and tried to find more wind to gain on Rahm but without success. Rahm
won and its 1-1.
Light winds this morning caused one hour's delay to the women’s semifinals. And on a short track like this one, there is no room for mistakes.
Linda Rahm suffered from this when she on the first down wind was passed by Anna Kjellberg who skilfully took the wind out of her opponent’s spinnaker. Kjellberg then kept the lead and took a small hold of this best out of five races.
The first final (best out of five flights) was exciting. It was a hard fight in the pre start where Katie Spithill forced Anna Kjellberg to a false start and everybody thought that the race was over. But Kjellberg showed a great fighting spirit and sailed passed Spithill on the first leg. Spithill would have none of that and also tried to pass. But in the end there was nothing that could stop Kjellberg who won and now leads the final, one against zero.