Laurent Hay Secures First Place on Day 2 of Finn World Masters
World No. 1 sailor, Laurent Hay, has taken the lead at the 2024 Finn World Masters held at PuntAla Camp & Resort in Italy. The competition reached its halfway point after two more races on Day 2, with Hay tied on points with Martijn van Muyden, while Nanno Schuttrups slipped down to third place.
Despite a brief delay to wait for the wind, the fleet set sail in ideal conditions with a strong breeze and sunny weather. The Red and Green groups on the South course had the best sailing conditions of the day, with defending Masters Champion Filipe Silva leading his group to victory in one race and securing a third-place finish in another. Hay also claimed a race win, keeping the competition tight at the top.
Over on the North course area, the Yellow and Blue groups faced a challenging and lengthy day on the water, with multiple delays and recalls. Roberto Benamati dominated the Blue group, while the Yellow group saw wins for Thierry van Vierssen and Bas de Waal.
Silva expressed his satisfaction with the day’s performance, stating, “Conditions were great, we had 12 knots and two races, everything went well. This is my first time in Puntala, the place is beautiful and obviously the company, with the other Finn sailors, is great.”
Finland’s Ville Valtonen, currently in 49th place, reflected on the competitive nature of the fleet, noting the increasing level of skill among sailors. “I think I had two top ten results so I am happy with that. The fleet is very competitive, I’ve been around for over ten years and it’s getting more and more competitive, people are getting better.”
With just one race scheduled for Wednesday, the competition is set to heat up after the Annual Masters Meeting and the Masters dinner. Four more races remain in the championship, which will conclude on Friday.
As the competition unfolds, Laurent Hay continues to showcase his sailing prowess, aiming to maintain his lead and secure victory at the prestigious Finn World Masters event.