MUSCAT: Oman Air scored a convincing win at the GC32 Championship, held out of Al Mouj on the outskirts of Muscat today. The Omani team led the GC32 Championship from the outset on Tuesday, but it was only today that they managed to shake off those chasing them.
The Omani team began the final day of this inaugural GC32 Championship, being run by the GC32 International Class Association in association with OC Sport, with a seven point advantage over second placed SAP Extreme Sailing Team, skippered by Jes Gram-Hansen and Rasmus Køstner. Oman Air banged in a 2-1 in today’s two races before the wind disappeared. Meanwhile Alinghi also managed a 1-2 causing them to push SAP Extreme Sailing Team down to third.
Oman Air has one of the most experienced multihull crews, including old hands from the Extreme Sailing Series such as Peter Greenhalgh and Oman’s Nasser Al Mashari. In foiling GC32s, they won the GC32 Racing Tour with Sultanate of Oman in 2015 and finished close second to winner Alinghi on the 2016 Extreme Sailing Series.
But the GC32 Championship was their first regatta with reigning Match Racing World Champion, Kiwi Phil Robertson helming.
Robertson was delighted by their performance.
“We’ve punched way harder than all of our expectations. It’s gone really well.”
SAP Extreme Sailing Team helmsman Adam Minoprio won the first ever GC32 event back in 2014 and has had a near perfect track in class events he’s helmed ever since then. “He gave us a good battle for sure, but we had the upper hand,” observed Robertson. “They made quite a few big mistakes and as soon as they made one, we backed it off and knew we had a bit of a buffer. Adam and I know each other extremely well and we’re really good friends, so there were definitely some head games going on, both teams having their little digs…!”
At no time was this more apparent than when in today’s first race Oman Air flew across the finish pipping SAP Extreme Sailing Team to the post. “It put the nail in the coffin,” recounted Robertson with a grin. “That was huge - especially after trailing them the whole race. Then we did the same to Alinghi in the second race.”
In addition to his crew of Greenhalgh, Al Mashari, plus antipodeans Ed Smyth and James Wierzbowski, Robertson gave credit to team owners, Oman Sail. “The support we get from them is huge and goes way beyond just the sailors: Our shore crew did an amazing job.’’
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