Mathieu Richard Wins the 'King of the Mountain' Title in Spectacular Style

[Source: World Match Racing Tour] Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team won the 'King of the Mountain' title today in spectacular style, taking a huge stride towards his quest to become the 2010 ISAF Match Racing World Champion.

Having toyed with the teams all week at the St. Moritz Match Race, it was on the final day that the Maloja wind truly kicked in, bringing with it a supreme display of match racing for which the ISAF World Match Racing Tour is renowned. Richard, despite not always being on top of his game throughout the week, knuckled down when it mattered most, grinding out a series of hard-fought victories against his nearest rivals today.

When the two British skippers, triple Olympic gold medalist Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN and double ISAF Match Racing World Champion Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar won their first semi-final matches, the prospects looked good for an all-British final. However, Richard had no intention of playing second fiddle and led Ainslie all the way round the course in their next race to level the score.

Highlights from the closing day of the St. Moritz Match Race. St. Moritz, 5 September 2010. Video copyright WMRT

It was standing room only in the packed grandstands and with everything hanging on the final race of both semi-final matches, the crowds of spectators were in for a treat. A dogfight before each of the starts characterized the races. With a penalty to his name in his deciding semi-final battle against Ainslie, it appeared Richard's only option as they approached the final mark was a brutal one - to pin a penalty on Ainslie. Fortunately for Richard, his Blu26 found a gust, giving him enough time to complete his penalty turn and dispense with the Brit.

Meanwhile, in the Williams vs Minoprio bout Williams took the first match, but Minoprio responded in the second with a move at the windward mark, where Williams collected two penalties in rapid succession, allowing Minoprio to take a decisive victory. Williams though regained his composure for the final race of his dual with the New Zealander, with just enough control over Minoprio to maintain a slim lead to the finish and a place in the final.

The scene was set for a fitting British-French finale, with the title going to the first team to win two races. This was sailing's version of 'Le Crunch'. At times, both played underdog, exchanging glances and penalties. It was one all after two races and in the deciding race, it seemed only right that the wind, so unpredictable and challenging all week, should have the final say. Richard, playing a string of gusts and shifts to perfection, pulling five lengths clear, a lead he maintained to take the 'King of the Mountain' crown and CHF36,000 in prize money.

Mathieu Ricahrd is the brand new "King of the Mountain". St. Moritz, 5 September 2010. Photo copyright Ian Roman / WMRT

Richard, reflected: "I wasn't happy after losing the first race against Ian in the finals. I was too excited, made mistakes and didn't have a positive feeling. So, we picked ourselves up, changed our mood and took the match to them. We go to Denmark with a healthy lead however we know there is still all to play for. For now though, we're overjoyed."

As the Tour heads to the island of Bornholm, Denmark, next week, it is possible that the next few weeks will determine not just the outcome of this year's World Match Racing Tour but also shape the future of match racing with the America's Cup announcements that have been a hot topic all week in St. Moritz. Whatever the outcome, Richard and his rivals will remain focused on their endeavours to take the World Match Racing Tour title.

Overall Standings the 2010 St. Moritz Match Race:
Skipper/Teams Points
1 Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team 25
2 Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar 20
3 Adam Minoprio (NZL) BlackMatch Racing 15
4 Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN 12
5 Bertrand Pace (FRA) Aleph Sailing Team 10
6 Björn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global Team 8
7 Damien Iehl (FRA) French Match Racing Team 6
8 Francesco Bruni (ITA) Azzurra 4
9 Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team
10 Eric Monnin (SUI) Swiss Match Race Team
11 Johnie Berntsson (SWE) Berntsson Sailing Team
12 Jerome Clerc (SUI) Team CER Geneve

Video: Highlights from Day 3 of the St. Moritz Match Race

Highlights from Day 2 of the St. Moritz Match Race. St. Moritz, 3 September 2010. Video copyright World Match Racing Tour

Video: Highlights from Day 1 of the St. Moritz Match Race 2010

Highlights from Day 1 of the St. Moritz Match Race. St. Moritz, 1 September 2010. Video copyright World Match Racing Tour

All To Play For At The St. Moritz Match Race

[Source: World MAtch Racing Tour] The opening day of racing at the St. Moritz Match Race dawned bright but cold, with the surface of the lake covered in a thin layer of picturesque mist. However, the tranquil setting belied the intensity of racing that was to come most notably between the British and French teams.

The first start saw double ISAF Match Racing World Champion Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar pitched against local sailor Jérôme Clerc (SUI) Team CER Genève, who gained a wildcard invitation to the event. The young Swiss sailor proved from the outset that he has the talent to mix with sailing's biggest stars, taking the lead just after the start and holding it until tantalisingly close to the finish.

Clerc was next up against Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN. Approaching the first windward mark, Clerc held a small advantage slightly to windward of the British boat, but Ainslie pulled just far enough forward to slip above the Swiss skipper in a deft manoeuvre that cleared his way to round the mark first.
Clerc commented: "It was a lot of fun today - we're not really favourites, but we are really happy to be in contact with them and playing with them."

Adam Minoprio leads St Moritz Match Race 2010 after day one. St Moritz, 1 September 2010. Photo copyright Ian Roman / WMRT

Ainslie's fight with Damien Iehl (FRA) French Match Racing Team saw the event's first piece of red-hot anger, including a collision, much shouting between the two teams, and a rapid succession of penalties even before the start gun was fired. With a red flag penalty - to be taken immediately - Iehl's race was effectively over at the start.

The Brits went on to dominate the first part of the day's racing, with both teams winning all their races, including Ainslie's match against current World Match Racing Tour leader Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team. "It's the start we wanted, even though we're a bit rusty having missed the last two events. The conditions were very tricky with 20-25 and even 30, degree windshifts and it was important to connect the gusts, especially downwind."

So what would happen when Ainslie and Williams went head-to-head? After close sparring in the pre-start, Williams held Ainslie out to the wrong side of the committee boat, winning the start by a length and a half. At the windward mark Williams misjudged his tack and collided with Ainslie, but maintained a tenuous lead. At the beginning of the final leg he had extended this to three-lengths, but still had a penalty turn to take before finishing - it was impossible to predict the result, until a gust allowed Williams to extend his lead 150m from the finish line.

Ian Williams,Team GAC Pindar, beats Ben Ainslie, TEAMORIGIN in the round robin of the St Moritz Match Race 2010. St Moritz, 1 September 2010. Photo copyright Ian Roman / WMRT

The French teams came to the fore in the final races of the day. Ainslie and Bertrand Pacé (FRA) Aleph Sailing Team were evenly positioned at the start, with Pacé at the left-hand end of the line. With the stronger gusts on the left-hand side of the course he quickly pulled out a small lead. Pacé, reflected: "Then we just tried to sail with the best wind, choosing the right side of the course and staying in phase with the wind shifts - it's easy to stay ahead of the other guy if you do that in these conditions."

The last race, between Mathieu Richard and Ian Williams, was also the closest. With 15 seconds to go the French skipper looked much too early, yet he found enough wriggle room to make a perfect start, much to the surprise of the spectator crowds. He led throughout the race by the tightest of margins - at the finish just one metre separated the two boats.

Richard, said: "The match with Williams was the most challenging for us today - it was so close all the way. We're very pleased with our results and the way we sailed, although we know we can still make small improvements."

It was also a good day for defending champion St. Moritz Match Race Champion, Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing, Björn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global Team, who top the rankings along with Williams at the end of day one, each of these skippers having won four races and lost one.

Results after Day 1 of the St. Moritz Match Race:
Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing:4-1
Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar: 4-1
Björn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global Team: 4-1
Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN: 3-2
Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team: 3-2
Bertrand Pace (FRA) Aleph Sailing Team: 3-2
Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team: 2-3
Damien Iehl (FRA) French Match Racing Team: 2-3
Francesco Bruni (ITA) Azzurra: 2-3
Eric Monnin (SUI) Swiss Match Racing Team: 2-3
Johnie Berntsson (SWE) Berntsson Sailing Team: 1-4
Jérôme Clerc (SUI) CER: 0-5

Testing Conditions At St. Moritz Match Race Set To Challenge Tour Leaders And Wildcard Qualifiers

[Source: World Match Racing Tour] The race village at the Segel-Club St. Moritz was buzzing today, with 12 world-class sailing teams making their final preparations for a week of fierce head-to-head competition in the St. Moritz Match Race, the sixth stage of the ISAF World Match Racing Tour Championship.

After a light dusting of snow on the hills above the lake overnight, St. Moritz sparkled in the morning sun. However, the unseasonably cold weather meant the trademark Maloja wind was absent today, leaving sailors to contend with an erratic and chilling northerly breeze. This was light and fitful at the start of the competitors’ registration and weigh-in session, but built to a useful 10-15 knots for the first practice session.

With the Maloja not expected to be fully active for a few days, the challenge of making the most of the shifty winds is uppermost in the minds of many skippers.

Mathieu Richard, current WMRT leader, trains under cold and tricky conditions for the St Moritz Match Race 2010. St Moritz, 31 August 2010. Photo copyright Ian Roman/Subzero Images

Johnie Berntsson (SWE), Berntsson Sailing Team, commented: “This is the second time for us here – it’s a stunning venue and we’re looking forward to it. The shifty winds make it a very challenging place for us, but we are used to that from our home waters near Gothenburg.”

One skipper who is not so worried about the tricky conditions, however, is Eric Monnin (SUI) Swiss Match Racing Team. Switzerland’s best match race helmsman, Monnin is currently ranked 26th in the world and has competed at every St. Moritz Match Race. He stepped ashore after today’s practice session relaxed and smiling, saying:

“We like sailing at our home event. We know the boats and we know we can do well in the shifty conditions – it’s what we’re used to. We do as many of the WMRT events as we can – it’s always great to sail against these people.

“The standard of racing is increasing over time, with dedicated teams having a chance of winning against the America’s Cup sailors. There were coaches on many of the boats today – you didn’t see that here five years ago.”

Ben Ainslie trains under cold and tricky conditions for the St Moritz Match Race 2010. St Moritz, 31 August 2010. Photo copyright Ian Roman/Subzero Images

The WMRT is well established as a pathway to stardom for sailors. Jérôme Clerc (SUI) Team CER Genève is an up and coming Swiss sailor, with the distinction of being the second amateur team in this year’s Tour de France a la Voile. The St Moritz Match Race will be Clerc’s first ISAF Grade WC event, having been awarded a wildcard entry after finishing second in the Qualifier Event 2010 Volvo Match Race, Zug.

Clerc added: “This is a very big challenge for us – we’ve been match racing during the winter for training, but this is our first time with the Tour. It’s a great pleasure to be able to race against the big sailing stars we’ve seen on TV. Match racing is perfect for improving our manoeuvres and crew communication – the courses are very short, so you must be very precise.”

Tomorrow morning will see Clerc pitched straight into one-on-one battles with three of the biggest names in the sailing world, starting with double ISAF World Match Racing Champion Ian Williams (GBR), Team GAC Pindar. In his next race the young Swiss sailor will face Mathieu Richard (FRA), French Match Racing Team, who’s currently at the top of the Tour rankings. Clerc will then go head-to-head against triple Olympic gold medallist and America’s Cup skipper Ben Ainslie (GBR), TEAMORIGIN.

Valencia Sailing talks to Christian Scherrer, organizer of the St. Moritz Match Cup

Christian Scherrer
© Juerg Kaufmann

While waiting for the breeze to pick up and the weather to cool down in Cartagena, Valencia Sailing caught up with Christian Scherrer. Not only is the Swiss sailor an accomplished trimmer with all America's Cup editions since 1994 under his belt, he's also the president of the organizing committee of the St. Moritz Match Race, the sixth stage of the World Match Racing Tour and a major sailing event in Switzerland.

Valencia Sailing: St. Moritz Match Race is Switzerland's premiere match racing event. Can you walk us through the history of the event?
Christian Scherrer: Initially, we brought match racing to St. Moritz together with Alinghi back in 2001, during my campaign with them for the 2003 America's Cup in Auckland. In addition to my job as sailor in Alinghi I was in charge of the UBS Alinghi Swiss Tour, which was, as its name implies, a match racing tour in Switzerland whose aim was to promote match racing and, of course, Alinghi. In 2001 and 2002 we held one event in St. Moritz and it turned out to be hugely popular.

I was familiar with the St. Moritz Sailing Club from my childhood days when I was sailing in the mountain lakes during the summer camps. I had fond memories from those years and since I knew the people well, after we won the 2003 America's Cup and brought it to Switzerland, I was approached by Roni Pieper, one of the club's members, in order to help them organize a match racing event, independent from Alinghi. As a result, we worked together and in the summer of 2003 we created the St. Moritz Match Race, initially a grade 3 event. From that starting point, the event grew each year and steadily built up, becoming a grade 1 event in 2005 and then in 2006 joining the then Swedish Match Tour.

Racing takes place right in front of the grandstands. Photo copyright Loris von Siebenthal

Valencia Sailing: What made you and the St. Moritz Sailing Club decide to join the Swedish Match Tour?
Christian Scherrer: At that time I was sailing a lot in the Tour and after going to various events and seeing how they worked, I was approached by James Pleasance, who was then working for the Tour. He suggested it would be very interesting for them if we could become part the Tour, so in 2005 he came to visit us and was really excited with the quality of our event. Since 2006 we are a permanent event of the Swedish Match Tour and then the World Match Racing Tour.

Valencia Sailing: How does St. Moritz Match Race compare to the other major Swiss sailing event, the Bol d'Or in Geneva? Which one is bigger?
Christian Scherrer: It's really difficult to compare the two events, it obviously depends on how you measure it, what criteria you use. For example, in terms of the number of top internationals sailors, prize money and media and TV coverage, we are probably more important than the Bol d'Or. During the events there is always a crew from the Swiss national TV and the coverage they provide on a national level is very extensive. On the other hand, they have more participating sailors and boats since we only have 12 teams.

In 2009 we attracted approximately 5,000 spectators, with the biggest group being Swiss but we also have a number of sailing fans that come from Italy, Germany and Austria, in that order. This is a big success if you take into consideration the geographical situation of St. Moritz. It is a small city up on the Alps, far away from the major Swiss cities, so you don't have the casual stroller that happens to be passing by and stops to have a look. When people come to the St. Moritz Match Race, they come for the races. We might have some tourists that come by but the vast majority take the decision to spend a few days in St. Moritz, watch the races and combine them with some other activities, like hiking, climbing or sailing on the lake. If you measure in terms of quality but not sheer quantity, these are very good numbers. Our spectators are really interested in the sport of sailing.

Racing takes place right in front of the grandstands. The iconic Badrutt's Palace Hotel at the background is one of the two main event sponsors. Photo copyright Loris von Siebenthal

Valencia Sailing: In a recent interview in Valencia Sailing, Andrew Pindar stated he took the decision to sponsor Ian Williams after going to the St. Moritz Match Race.
Christian Scherrer: Yes, Andrew has come several times to our event and really enjoys it. In my opinion it's a spectacular event for several reasons. We are at an altitude of 1,800 meters in a beautiful setting, right in the middle of the Swiss apls. It's not the only event of the World Match Racing Tour that takes place on a lake but it surely is the only one on a mountain. We also have grandstands for the spectators that are partially on the water, so the action takes place right in front of them. We try to put the race committee as close as possible, not more than 3-4 boatlengths from the edge of the stands. Initially, sailors weren't very comfortable with sailing so close to the shore but as the number of the events held very close to the shore has increased they now don't seem to mind. The boats we use are the Blu26, crewed by four sailors, that are fun to sail, competitive and especially designed for the Swiss lakes.

Valencia Sailing: If now talk about the financial aspect of the event, is it sponsor-funded?
Christian Scherrer: Yes, absolutely. We are 100% funded by our sponsors and we have two main ones. The first one is the Swiss group AFG (Arbonia-Forster-Holding) while the second one is the Badrutt's Palace Hotel. It is one of Europe's most famous and prestigious hotels and you could say it's the icon of St. Moritz. Actually, there's a long history that links the Badrutt family and the St. Moritz Sailing Club because it was founded by Hans Badrutt together with the father of Roni Pieper in 1941. These two sponsors provide the biggest part of our budget.

Since last May we also have signed Volvo Cars Switzerland as a co-sponsor. The car manufacturer supports St. Moritz Match Race but also the Volvo Match Race Zug. The Zug Yacht Club has been organizing match racing events during the last 4 years but their aspirations were to upgrade their events to a higher level. As a result, together with Volvo, we organized the first Volvo Match Race Zug last May. It has now become our second qualifier event, together with Open de España in Calpe, and its winner, Eric Monnin, secured a berth at St. Moritz Match Race.

Racing takes place right in front of the grandstands. Photo copyright Loris von Siebenthal