Race Committe controversy at 470 Worlds

rock steady

New Member
This is harsh.


[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]When you win the battle but lose the title!! [/FONT]
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[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]7:33 AM Thu 14 Sep 2006
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Yesterday afternoon in the Medal Australian’s Nathan Wilmot and Malcolm Page were leading their British rivals by 100 metres, down the last run, on track for their third 470 World Championship in a row. They were yellow flagged for pumping and lost the World title as a result, in controversial circumstances, as the race started with an unlimited flag and race officals only used a whistle, not a horn to notify competitors of the change.

A very upset Malcolm Page commented overnight

‘We have just got second at the 2006 470 World Championships.

'We were a point ahead going into the medal race. We started the race, with an unlimited pumping flag up. We worked hard, very hard! We managed to get to the last top mark in second position, 100 metres in front of our only opposition the GBR team.

'We were guaranteed of a third 470 World Championship in a row, with no capsizes. Half way down the last run, we got penalised from the jury for pumping. We were pumping and we were shocked. We completed our 720 degree turn, but that left us in 8th position, behind the GBR team..... So we lost the 2006 World Championship.

'The race committee apparently had dropped the pumping flag at the 1st bottom mark. But with about 50 motor boats (average of 4 people per boat) and yelling amongst all the sailors and boats we did not hear the sound signal (whistle).

'We put a protest in at the finish (on water jury). They heard this, but said it was bad luck. Everyone in the boat park says we are the World Champs again, but it does not seem to help!

'Winning this title would have been three in a row. I think its some 23 years since this has been done. We feel really ripped off. We wish were beaten by the Brit’s not by the rules.

‘So many questions, why drop a pumping flag in a 30 minute race?

'How do they make it easy to for sailors to hear?

'The jury admitted on shore that they ask the race committee to get a horn for this, but they said they could not find any in China!!’
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by Sail-World
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