On the eve of the final day the Monaco Optimist Team Race is living up to expectations. This evening the Danes maintain their lead in the provisional rankings but the competition is dangerously close. On the Monegasque race area, Day 3 of the Round Robin phase has seen gaps narrowing and suspense ratcheting up. With seven match races held on Saturday in conditions that remained challenging, the contest looks more open than ever.
Solid from the start, the Danes from Danish Dynamite are in command at the end of this third day. Their consistency and impressive mastery of the format continues to make the difference, but the gap has narrowed. Behind them the Italians from Yacht Club Italiano have picked up their pace and pulled off a string of solid performances to keep contact thanks to perfectly executed races. Meanwhile, the Scandinavians have kept cool heads and are holding firm, acutely aware that each match race could cause an upset.
Behind the duo at the top, the battle is on to secure a place on the podium, with the Swiss from the Gstaad Yacht Club confirming their consistency, while several teams, like the Slovenians from JK Pirat Portoroz, alternate moments of brilliance with more challenging runs in a relentless series of confrontations. The Yacht Club de Monaco sailors continue to gain experience in a highly competitive field, while other teams like the Carolina Yacht Club remain in contention.
At the end of the third day, the Danes maintain their lead at the top of the provisional ranking, closely followed by the Italians who have found their rhythm and are doing well. Behind them, the battle for third remains wide open.
Tomorrow Sunday, the confrontations look set to be as close and unpredictable. Rendezvous at 10.00am on the race area for a last day that looks set to be even more exciting.
