Previous America's Cup Articles Reports from our own Robo.
FREMANTLE SAILING CLUB - Match racing.
Fremantle, Western Australia.
17 December 2000
Press release.
PRADA'S BRADY DEFEATS SWITZERLAND'S JONES.
In a superb display of sailing New Zealander Gavin Brady, who is sailing
for the Prada America's Cup Challenge, defeated Murray Jones 2 - 0 in the
final of the Fremantle International Regatta.
Brady and his crew were masterful on the starting line, in the 20 knot
winds, and rarely threatened thereafter, in sharp contrast to their form
early in the regatta.
Though the Prada team got the better of the start in the first race of the
final, and led at the first mark, Jones came back at them down wind, but a
sharp luff by Brady was enough to retain control, before going on to take
the gun.
The second race was all over on the starting line, with the Italian team
forcing the Swiss to jump the gun, and getting them penalized in one move,
after that the margin was never less than 50 seconds.
Brady and Jones both progressed to the final with 2 - 0 victories over
Australians Sebastrien Destremau and Simon Sutherland respectively in the
semi-finals.
Jones, who is with the Swiss America's Cup Challenge, admitted later, "I
wasn't starting well today," but said the event had been invaluable
practice.
Brady had scraped into the semi-finals on a count back with another ex-pat
Kiwi, Chris Dickson, after only winning three races on the first day, then
losing half a point for causing damage to another boat.
This was his first match racing event since March, having been
concentrating on an Olympic campaign in the Start class, "I'm a bit rusty,"
he commented at the beginning of the regatta.
The battle for third place went all the way to the wire, with local
skippers Sebastien Destremau and Simon Sutherland slugging it out through
three races, before Destremau got the upper hand.
RESULTS:
1. Gavin Brady, Italy, Prada Challenge
2. Murray Jones, Switzerland, Swiss Challenge
3. Sebastien Destremau, Australia
4. Simon Sutheland, Australia
5. Chris Dickson, U.S.A., Oracle Racing
6. Xavier Destremau, Denmark
7. Ben Dunstan, Australia
8. Luca Antonini, Italy
16 December 2000
SWITZERLAND, ITALY AND AUSTRALIA IN THE SEMI-FINALS.
Murray Jones of the Swiss America's Cup challenge will face Australian
Simon Sutherland, in one semi-final of the Fremantle International Match
Racing Regatta on Sunday morning.
The other will be contested between Sebastien Destremau of Australia, and
Gavin Brady from Italy's Prada America's Cup challenge.
Jones won the right to select his opponent after finishing at the top of
the scoreboard at the end of the elimination rounds, and decided Sutherland
was the best bet.
Racing off Fremantle's famous and historic South Beach was curtailed today
when the sea breeze augmented an already gutsey southerly, producing 35 to
40 knots of wind, and short steep seas in the shallow water close to shore.
The Swiss skipper had little trouble in despatching Italy's Luca Antonini
to the "also rans" league in two straight races, the young Italian is
sailing his first senior level international event.
The battle of the day was between Gavin Brady and Chris Dickson, the
veteran Dickson taking the first encounter, when Brady accumulated three
penalties, which carries the mandatory black flag disqualification.
Brady hit back, sailing two masterful races in near survival conditions, to
first level the score, and then take the match.
With the wind rising, the decision was taken to reduce the other matches to
one race, sudden death, contests, in which Sebastien Destremau and Simon
Sutherland beat Ben Dunstan and Xavier Destremau respectively.
RESULTS:
Murray Jones - Switzerland bt Luca Antonini - Italy: 2 - 0
Gavin Brady - Italy bt Chris Dickson - U.S.A: 2 - 1
Sebastien Destremau - Australia bt Ben Dunstan - Australia: 1 - 0
Simon Sutherland - Australia bt Xavier Destremau - Denmark:1 - 0
15 December 2000
MURRAY JONES AND HIS SWISS TEAM LEAD AFTER DAY 1.
Murray Jones of the Swiss America's Cup challenge claims the top rung of
the ladder at the end of the first day of the Fremantle International Match
Racing Regatta.
Jones ended the day with six wins from seven races in the round robin, his
only defeat coming at the hands of fellow expatriot Kiwi Chris Dickson.
He claimed first place after a tie-break with Frenchman resident in Perth,
Sebastien Destremau, who also only lost one race, that being to Murray Jones.
Local skipper Simon Sutherland had a good day, with five wins on the scoreboard,
and claiming third place, ahead of international "rock stars" Chris Dickson
and Gavin Brady.
The day started with a fickle easterly breeze, that even the best found hard
to read at times, with Murray Jones describing it as "scary", particularly
in the transition to the seabreeze.
The famous "Fremantle Doctor" seabreeze did establish itself late in the
morning, and by mid afternoon was in the 12 to 15 knot range, which in the
shallow water off South Beach, produced some steep waves.
For Gavin Brady, who is now on the Prada America's Cup team, this was a return
to match racing after a break since the end of the last America's Cup in February.
As always, he was tactically aggressive, and possibly because he is a little
rusty, he received the largest number of penalties for the day, including
a half point deduction for causing damage to another boat.
The event progresses to a seeded round on Saturday, with Jones due to face
Italy's eighth placed Luca Antonini, in a best of three series, while Sebastien
Destremau meets local lad Ben Dunstan.
Third placed Simon Sutherland sails against Xavier Destremau, with the match
of the day certainly fourth and fifth placed Chris Dickson against Gavin Brady.
RESULTS:
1. Murray Jones Switzerland
2. Sebastien Destremau Australia
3. Simon Sutherland Australia
4. Chris Dickson U.S.A. 5. Gavin Brady Italy
6. Xavier Destremau Denmark
7. Ben Dunstan Australia
8. Luca Antonini Italy
14 December 2000
AMERICA'S CUP TEAMS OFF FREMANTLE AGAIN.
Three of the hottest challenges for the 2003 America's Cup, in Auckland,
will be represented on the waters of the Indian Ocean off Fremantle over
the next three days.
Chris Dickson from the Oracle Team, Gavin Brady of the Prada Challenge, and
Murray Jones representing the Swiss Challenge are in a line up of eight
skipper in the inaugural Fremantle Sailing Club International Match Racing
Regatta.
Other overseas contestants are Italy's Luca Antonini, Xavier Destremau, a
Frenchman resident in Denmark, and his brother Sebastien Destremau, who
lives in Australia.
Two Australians are in the line up, local skippers Simon Sutherland, and
Ben Dunstan.
Although only a grade 2 regatta, the impressive line up is an indication of
the scramble by America's Cup teams to climb the ranking ladder before next
year, and so gain invitations to the major events like the Swedish Match
Grand Prix Sailing Tour.
The three day event will be sailed in J 24's, off Fremantle's South Beach,
which should provide boisterous conditions, in the legendary Fremantle
Doctor.
Both Chris Dickson and Murray Jones sailed the last event of the 2000
Swedish Match Grand Prix Sailing Tour, the Colorcraft Gold Cup in Bermuda,
while Gavin Brady has been off the circuit for a while.
This will be Brady's first event representing Italy's Prada Challenge, who
were the challengers at the last America's Cup, in Auckland, earlier this
year.
The format of the regatta comprises an opening round robin, followed by a
second round robin in which the skippers are seeded, before semi-finals and
finals.
For further information contact:-
John Roberson
Phone: +61 407 476 462
e-mail: robo_bandana@compuserve.com
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