SHQ

2009 PWA Ulsan World Cup

Antoine Albeau F192 and Micah Buzianis finish first and second and Antoine takes the clear lead in the Slalom ranking.

What a comeback for both JP riders.

Micah had hurt his foot seriously at Hookipa during the NeilPryde photo shoot. His foot was in a cast for several weeks and he missed the first event of the year in Austria as it was simply to early and he was still in his rehab program. Now he comes back and finishes second in his first event!

This is what Micah had to say:
“I am very excited about this result! After I had broken my foot wave sailing during the Neil Pryde shoot I was doing everything I could to make it back for Austria but it just was not an option. So, I pushed my program back to Korea and it was even looking unlikely that I would be able to make it to Korea with only three days left to go. I decided that I had to go to Korea though and see what I could do. So, to be able to finish second I couldn’t be happier. I was also extremely satisfied with my new JP and Neil Pryde gear, with my injury I didn’t get a lot of time to tune up my equipment especially my big stuff. But straight away I felt that my new 82 board had very good speed down the first leg and was a perfect board around the course in light and gusty winds. All five rounds were done on this board with my 9.5 and 8.6 RSR EvoII, I felt really good in all the conditions that we had so I am very confident for the next race in Costa Brava!”

Antoine also had a rather serious problem after cutting his hand and catching a really bad infection which forced him to have surgery on his hand at the end of the event in Austria. At first it was not even clear if he would be able to compete in Korea when he left France – still with an open and rather deep wound in his left hand still taking heavy antibiotics. And than he dominates the event by achieving 3 first and 2 fourth places which puts him far ahead of all other competitors.

This is Antoine’s first victory in Korea ever. Korea is known for it’s a rather light and gusty winds. Until now those conditions were not exactly Antoine’s favorite ones but with his new JP boards this seems to be different now.

This is what Antoine had to say:
“Austria was a really tough event for me as I wasn’t feeling 100%. My hand injury was quite painful and I had trouble holding onto the boom especially in the gybes! But I was determind that the first event of the season was going to be good and nothing was going to stop me! Thankfully I managed to hold on and get 2nd. By the time I arrived in Korea I had had surgery on my hand and the wound was slowly healing. Not the best conditions to go in the water and start sailing! But I wasn’t going to be happy with anything but 1st place this time round – Ross wasn’t going to take it from me again! Most of the time I was using my 9.5 RSR and my Slalom 82 – except for one slalom when I used an 8.6 and 68 board. I was really feeling fast and confident in the light winds and the boards were feeling really good in the gusty wind.

Micah did really well considering all that had happened in the weeks before. He is a very strong contender for the title and it is going to be a good battle this year. We were both happy to be next to each other on the podium and I hope it will stay this way all season. We certainly can’t ask for better equipment and I know we are both capable of winning – so, watch out: the boys are back!”

Both guys are now getting ready for Costa Brava, Spain which is the next stop in the 2009 PWA Slalom tour.

Let’s see if the domination of JP, Antione and Micah continues.
 

Event Summary:

The first men’s race was won by Bjorn Dunkerbeck (Starboard / Severne), who took charge of the final, holding off Jimmy Diaz (Starboard / North Sails) in second and flying Dutchman Ben Van Der Steen (Exocet / Simmer) in third. Surprisingly, previous event winner, Ross Williams (Gaastra / Tabou), was absent from the race final after false starting in his semi final.

The remain two races were business as usual for Albeau(JP / Neil Pryde). Dialled into the conditions and looking rock solid at the front of the pack, he showed true class to sail to victory in both showdowns. More impressively, the Frenchman completed this feat without the use of one of his index finger, after a deep cut on the palm of his hand had got infected and required surgery.

Antoine Albeau: “It’s quite hard sailing here, as we’re in the bay, and the wind is coming off the hills, so it’s really, really gusty. It was blowing about 7-22 knots, it’s really up and down. It makes the starts hard as well. Sometimes there are a lot of gusts, and others it’s super light. You really have to concentrate to get a good start.”

Day three had also seen inroads made into the fourth men’s elimination, which witnessed the controversial exit of Bjorn Dunkerbeck after Finian Maynard (RRD / NeilPryde) collided with him at the gybe mark, removing him from the elimination. The crash also meant that Maynard departed the heat.

Maynard: “Bjorn was 30m ahead of me going into the mark, then I don’t know what happened to him, a lot of people have said he stopped. I never saw him. So I went in to do my gybe and got a big gust from behind. The next thing I know I’m just barrelling into him. I’m really sorry for Bjorn, it was definitely my fault, but it came as a total surprise for me. It’s just an unfortunate racing incident.”

Race four was eventually stopped short at the second semi final after the wind backed off too much to continue.

Day four in Korea saw conditions switch back on to resume racing. The subsequent three women’s races saw utter domination from Valerie Ghibaudo, as she executed back to back wins to firmly cement her name at the top of the women’s rankings.

Chasing, Karin Jaggi and Alice Arutkin did their best to pressure Ghibaudo, but had to settle for the remaining podium positions as toppling the on-form French sailor proved to be impossible.

The men’s racing kicked off by finishing up the remaining three heats of race four.
With the departure of Dunkerbeck and Maynard, Albeau was free to add another victory to his stash. In second, Josh Angulo (Dakine / Angulo / MauiSails) bagged his best slalom result of the season so far, and Gonzalo Costa Hoevel (Exocet / MauiSails) showed a glimpse of the form he enjoyed in Austria to take third.

The final men’s elimination of the event saw a total reshuffle on the finish line. Kevin Pritchard (Starboard / Gaastra) finally got to grips with conditions to secure third place, his best result of the event. Micah Buzianis (JP / NeilPryde) continued to show outstanding consistency in second, but topping the elimination was Maynard, who had been hinting as his ability to win races, but thus far had never delivered.

Maynard: “I started the race in the middle to upper part of the line, and just tried to hold my speed down the first reach. Micah had a better start than me but we both met mid way down the run. I decided to back off him at the gybe and try and take him on the second reach. Again, we got to the gybe together. I did a wide, high-speed gybe which really paid off and allowed me to overtake. From there I managed to control the race and was able to finish ok. It was a good run.”

The remaining three days of competition were spent waiting on standby until time on the clock finally ran out. In women’s racing, Ghibaudo and Jaggi have started what looks to be another amazing season of rivalry, while young gun Arutkin has shown she’s got what it takes to deliver race winning performances.

In men’s racing, Albeau’s (JP / NeilPryde) return to event winning form was no surprise, however his quest for a fourth world title will push him and his rivals to the limit as the level of sailing has gone through the roof.

Buzianis (JP / NeilPryde) delivered one on the stand out men’s performances, after returning from injury to secure second position in the event, a commendable result, and one of huge significance to the season that lies ahead.

The PWA would like to express enormous thanks to the Ulsan Broadcasting Corporation and all the sponsors of this event, and we look forward to returning in 2010 for the fourth PWA Ulsan World Cup.

The 2009 PWA Ulsan World Cup results:

Slalom Men

1 Antoine Albeau (NeilPryde / JP)
2 Micah Buzianis (NeilPryde / JP)
3 Björn Dunkerbeck (Starboard / Severne Sails)
4 Finian Maynard (RRD / NeilPryde)
5 Cyril Moussilmani (Starboard / North Sails)
6 Kevin Pritchard (Starboard / Gaastra / Dakine)
7 Gonzalo Costa Hoevel (Exocet / MauiSails)
8 Josh Angulo (Dakine / Angulo / MauiSails)
9 Ben Van Der Steen (Simmer Style / Exocet)
10 Patrick Diethelm (North Sails / F2)