To Win A Line 7 Squadron Jacket
Current Event
2 - 7 September
St Moritz, Switzerland
2008 World Championship Standings
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| AINSLIE TOPS LEADERBOARD AFTER THREE STAGES |
Ben Ainslie wonders what he has to do to catch a tie break on the Swedish Match Tour. (©Swedish Match Tour/Guido Cantini)
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Matt Mitchell (forward) and Claudio Celon max out on the wire for helmsman Peter Holmberg. (©Swedish Match Tour/Guido Cantini)
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Staffan Lindberg (right) concentrates downwind during the Petit Final of St. Moritz Match Race. (©Swedish Match Tour/Guido Cantini)
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ROWAYTON, Conn. (Aug. 30, 2005) — After the first three stages of the 2005-’06 Swedish Match Tour Ben Ainslie leads the standings with the high score of 30 points.
Ainslie, England’s double Olympic gold medalist and a member of the Emirates Team New Zealand syndicate for the America’s Cup, finished second at the season-opening PT Portugal Match Cup in July. He followed it up with a fifth at Stage 3, the St. Moritz Match Race, last week.
Ainslie, who won gold medals at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, holds a slim 1-point lead over past Tour champion Peter Holmberg of the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Holmberg, a helmsman for America’s Cup defender Alinghi, won the PT Portugal Match Cup and placed 8th in St. Moritz. He won the 2001-’02 Tour championship.
“There are still six events to go, and I don’t know how many more I’ll do,” Ainslie said after St. Moritz. “It’s a good showing for Team New Zealand. A 2-5 is a great result and I’m proud of it.”
The Tour champion will win a BMW X3 3.0i from Tour partner BMW. The vehicle is valued at 45,000 euros (approximately $54,000).
The leaderboard is as tight as it’s ever been after three events. Ten points separate the top eight with six stages to race, and there are two sets of ties.
A three-way tie for third place exists between Ed Baird (USA), Jesper Bank (DEN) and Staffan LIndberg (FIN). All three have 25 points. Baird and Bank each have one win, Baird in St. Moritz and Bank in Denmark, and Lindberg’s Alandia Sailing Team has a third (St. Moritz) and fifth (Portugal).
Baird, also a helmsman for Alinghi, finished runner-up in last year’s championship.
The Tour’s reigning two-time champion Peter Gilmour (AUS) is placed sixth with 23 points after a third (Portugal) and sixth (St. Moritz).
Gavin Brady (NZL) and Mark Mendelblatt (USA) are tied for seventh with 20 points. Each has one second place finish, Brady in Denmark and Mendelblatt in St. Moritz.
The Swedish Match Tour is in the midst of its seventh season. The Monsoon Cup in Kuala Terrengganu, Malaysia, is the next scheduled event, Nov. 29-Dec. 4, 2005. It will be the 50th event of the Swedish Match Tour.
Events next year are scheduled for Brazil, Croatia, Germany, Italy and Marstrand, Sweden.
Swedish Match Tour partners include Swedish Match, BMW and the Match Race Association. Swedish Match Tour Official Sponsors include Musto, Sebago and Travel Places.
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RELATED CONTENT
Swedish Match Tour 2005-’06 Standings
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Swedish Match Tour Honor Roll
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FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THE SWEDISH MATCH TOUR
Sean McNeill
Director of Public Relations
Mobile: +1 401 662 1501
E-mail: smcneill@f10marketing.com
SWEDISH MATCH TOUR STANDINGS
(After 3 of 9 stages)
1. Ben Ainslie (GBR) Emirates Team New Zealand, 30 points
2. Peter Holmberg (ISV) Alinghi, 29 points
3. Ed Baird (USA) Alinghi, 25 points
T. Staffan Lindberg (FIN), 25 points
T. Jesper Bank (DEN) United Internet Team Germany, 25 points
6. Peter Gilmour (AUS) PST, 23 points
7. Gavin Brady (NZL) BMW Oracle Racing, 20 points
T. Mark Mendelblatt (USA), 20 points
ABOUT THE SWEDISH MATCH TOUR
• The Swedish Match Tour is the leading professional sailing series in the world.
• The Tour champion wins a BMW X3 3.0i from Tour partner BMW.
• Swedish Match Tour events take place in venues with virtual on-the-water stadiums, which allow general public spectators to follow the races shoreside.
• Swedish Match Tour television programs and highlights reach nearly 500 million households in 190 countries around the world.
• Swedish Match Tour partners include Swedish Match and BMW. Swedish Match Tour Official Sponsors include Musto, Sebago and Travel Places.
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