Sailing World Cup Hyères: US Sailing Team Wins Two Medal Races

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Pictured: Stu McNay (Providence, R.I.) and Dave Hughes (Miami, Fla.), Men’s 470, US Sailing Team Sperry. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 1, 2016

Hyères, France – US Sailing Team Sperry athletes competed in front of a global digital  audience on the final day of Sailing World Cup Hyères (April 27 – May 1), and won two medal races against the world’s best. American sailing fans were able to watch live online at WatchESPN (ESPN3), and can also access full replays of the racing, which was broadcast during North America’s early morning hours. Medal races are reserved for the top ten competitors in each fleet, and count for double points.

REPLAY: Sailing World Cup Medal Races LIVE online at WatchESPN (ESPN3), featuring commentary by Briana Provancha (USA).

Stu McNay (Providence, R.I.) and Dave Hughes (Miami, Fla.) have shown a talent for performing under pressure, and have now won both Men’s 470 Sailing World Cup medal races held so far this year. Gold medalists and medal race winners at the 2016 Sailing World Cup Miami, Presented by Sunbrella, McNay and Hughes finished 5th overall in Hyères. They also won both the medal race and silver medals at the Trofeo Princesa Sofia in Palma, and bronze at the 2016 470 Europeans, demonstrating a clear proficiency at controlling small but elite fleets.

“Our goal was to employ the best strategy among the ten-boat fleet,” said McNay, who will become a three-time Olympian this August. He also noted that winning medal races required careful preparation, and correct anticipation of what your competitors will do. “It’s important to know in advance how you’ll respond to a given situation,” said McNay. “You want to anticipate the motivations and behavior of other boats, and use that knowledge to gauge your best response. Anything you can think about prior to the race will give you the upper hand.”

Paine rose as high as second overall in the Finn fleet during the course of the regatta, but some deeper finishes during a light-air stretch of the event dropped the San Diego native down in the standings. Nevertheless, Paine battled within the top-ten throughout the event, and noted that the light and shifty medal race conditions were similar to what might be present during Rio 2016.

“It’s good to stay adaptive and be ready for anything out there on the racecourse,” said Paine. “It’s definitely challenging racing, and [with medal races[ being so short, you have to keep your eyes open for every opportunity.”

Paine said that lessons learned this week will help in his preparation for the Olympics in August. “There are definitely some areas I’d like to improve,” said Paine. “All in all, on a couple days [my strategy] was totally together, and my results showed that.”

Despite winning the double-points medal race, Paine moved up only one place in the standings, to 8th overall. The 2012 Sailing World Cup Series Champion finished just four points away from the podium on the tightly condensed leaderboard.

US Sailing Team Sperry || Sailing World Cup Hyeres, France 2016

Pictured: Caleb Paine (San Diego, Calif.) with Senior Olympic Coach Luther Carpenter after winning Sunday’s rainy medal race in France.

US Results, Day 4: 2016 Sailing World Cup Hyères

Sonar (Paralympic Three-Person Keelboat): Final

Men’s 470 (Men’s Two-Person Dinghy): 

2.4mR (Paralympic One-Person Keelboat): Final

  • 6th overall, Dee Smith (Annapolis, Md.), U.S. Paralympic Team & US Sailing Team Sperry (national team)
  • 13th overall, Daniel Evans (Miami, Fla.), US Sailing Team Sperry (national team)
  • 15th overall, Charlie Rosenfield (Woodstock, Conn.), US Sailing Team Sperry (national team)
  • 19th overall, Kevin Holmberg (Tampa, Fla.)

Finn (Men’s One-Person Heavyweight Dinghy):

Women’s 470 (Women’s Two-Person Dinghy): Final

Nacra 17 (Mixed Two-Person Multihull): Final

Women’s RS:X (Women’s Board): Final

49er (Men’s Two-Person High Performance Skiff): Final

Laser (Men’s One-Person Dinghy): Final

  • 36th overall, Chris Barnard (Newport Beach, Calif.), US Sailing Team Sperry (national team)

Men’s RS:X (Men’s Board): Final

SWC Hyères: Full Results

Note: U.S. Olympic Team members Paige Railey (Laser Radial), Charlie Buckingham (Laser) Paris Henken (49erFX) and Helena Scutt (49erFX) are not competing at the 2016 Sailing World Cup Hyères.

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About the US Sailing Team Sperry

The US Sailing Team Sperry is managed by the United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for the sport of sailing and sailboat racing. The top boats in each Olympic and Paralympic class are selected annually to be members of the US Sailing Team Sperry. US Sailing helps these elite athletes with financial, logistical, coaching, technical, fitness, marketing and communications support. The title sponsor of the team is Sperry; other sponsors include Gold-Level partner Sunbrella and Silver-Level partners Harken, Team McLube and Groupe Beneteau. Yale Cordage is a team supplier. The US Sailing Center Miami is an Olympic training site. Oakcliff Sailing and Clearwater Community Sailing Center are US Sailing Team Sperry Training Centers. Chubb Personal Insurance and the Gowrie Group sponsors US Sailing’s National Team Tour, a nationwide presentation program for US Sailing Team Sperry athletes. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org/olympics

The United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for sailing, provides leadership, integrity, and growth for the sport in the United States. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, US Sailing is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. US Sailing offers training and education programs for instructors and race officials, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, issues offshore rating certificates, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including National Championships and the US Sailing Team Sperry. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org

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Press Contact: Will Ricketson, Olympic Communications Manager, US Sailing. willricketson@ussailing.org, +1 (978) 697-2384.

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