With his 5-0, record Horton sits atop Group 1, two wins ahead of the four skippers tied for second place.  Today, Horton dispatched of American Bill Buckles, local skipper Peter Bromby of “Team Bacardi” and Sweden’s Marten Hedlund of “Team Victory Lane.”

“We had two really tough races today and were the benefit of some penalties by our opponents which allowed us to escape with wins,” admitted Horton.  “We sailed pretty solidly all day, the crew did a great job.”

Also going 3-0, today and putting himself in the thick of the four-way tie was another local skipper Adam Barboza, helming a second “Team Bacardi” entry.  Barboza bounced back today following a disappointing 0-2, opening performance to regatta.

In the afternoon’s press conference Barboza admitted to drawing motivation from the large contingent of spectators gathered on the RBYC pier.

“It’s awesome to race in front of the crowds on the pier,” said Barboza.  “It sounds like an NFL stadium when you cross the finish line in front of the pier,” said Barboza.  “Placing the start/finish line just off the pier creates an awesome experience for both the crews and the spectators.”

In Group 2 action, Chris Law and “The Outlaws” rebounded from a disappointing first day to post two wins and move .5 points off the pace. 

“Yesterday, we were a bit tired and sailing together as a team for the first time, but today we came out and sailed clean,” said Law.  “I’m quite happy with how we’re doing and our fate is in our hands tomorrow.”

American skipper Tucker Thompson, who has competed as part of Law’s crew on previous Swedish Match Tour events, also posted two wins to move into a first place tie with local skipper Glenn Astwood.  Astwood followed up his perfect opening day by splitting his matches today, losing to Law and defeating Anthony Kotoun of the US Virgin Islands.

On Day 2 of the Bermuda International Women’s Match Racing Championship, three skippers went 2-0.  However, not included in this list was the world’s top-ranked match racer, Marie Bjorling, who dropped her two matches to level her record at 2-2. 

“I’m used to sailing faster boats, with shorter sterns,” said Bjorling.  “I learned a lot today which I will take forward with me tomorrow.”

Local Bermuda skipper Paula Lewin increased her win total to four with a 2-0 day, defeating Bjorling and American Liz Baylis. 

“We were excited to wake up and see the fresh breeze this morning because we feel very comfortable in these boats in these conditions,” said Lewin.  “We controlled both starts and were able to hold onto our leads.  I’m happy with the position we’re in right now.”

Also going 2-0, and tied with Lewin for the lead in round robin racing, is Denmark’s Lotte Pedersen. 

Klaartje Zuiderbaan scored two wins today, including a victory over Bjorling, to even her record at 2-2.

`It was very good out on the water today, perfect conditions,` said Zuiderbaan.  `We are very happy to have learned from our mistakes yesterday and have positive results for our work.  We have not quite mastered the boats, but we are getting more comfortable.`

The Bermuda Women's Match Racing Championship, like the Bermuda Gold Cup, is raced in 33-foot International One Designs (IODs). The IOD is a classic racing sloop synonymous with Bermuda and is the first class to achieve `International Classic Yacht` status with the International Sailing Federation (ISAF).

The regatta continues tomorrow with the completion of round robin racing for the unseeded skippers in the morning, to be followed by the final three flights of the round robin portion of the Bermuda International Women’s Match Racing Championship, scheduled to begin at 1pm local time.

For complete results and the latest news log on to www.swedishmatchtour.com.

BERMUDA GOLD CUP ROUND ROBIN STANDINGS
Group 1

Skipper                                                                       Wins               Losses

1. Andy Horton (USA)                                      5                      0

2. Adam Barboza (BER/Team Bacardi)                       3                      2

3. Mason Woodworth (United Kingdom)                    3                      2

4. Peter Bromby (BER/Team Ace Group)                 3                      2

5. Marten Hedlund (SWE/Team Victory Lane)            3                      2

6. Michael Green (St. Lucia)                                      2                      3

7. Sally Barkow (USA/Team Seven-Barkow Racing)            1                      4

8. Bill Buckles (USA)                                                  0                      5

Group 2

Skipper                                                                       Wins               Losses

1. Glenn Astwood (BER/Team Bacardi)                       4                      1

2. Tucker Thompson (USA/Team T2 Productions)            4                      1

3. Chris Law (Great Britain/”The Outlaws”)                   3.5                   1

4. Karl Ziegler (USA)                                                  3                      2

5. Scott Dickson (USA/Dickson Racing Team)            3                      2

6. Andy Lovell (USA)                                                  2                      3

7. Tino Ellegast (Germany)                                           0                      5

8. Anthony Kotoun (U.S. Virgin Islands)             0                      5

RESULTS

Group 1

Flight 3

Green def. Barkow

Bromby def. Woodworth

Barboza def. Hedlund

Horton def. Buckles

Flight 4
Barboza def. Green

Horton def. Bromby

Woodworth def. Buckles

Hedlund def. Barkwo

Flight 5
Barboza def. Buckles

Horton def. Hedlund

Woodworth def. Green

Bromby def. Barkow

Group 2

Flight 4

Law def. Astwood

Thompson def. Ellegast

Ziegler def. Kotoun

Dickson def. Lovell

Flight 5
Astwood def. Kotoun

Thompson def. Lovell

Law def. Ziegler

Dickson def. Ellegast

BERMUDA INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S MATCH RACING CHAMPIONSHIP

Round Robin Standings

Skipper                                                                       Wins               Losses

1. Lotte Pedersen (Denmark)                                           4                      0

2. Paul Lewin (BER/Team Ace Group)                 4                      0

3. Elizabeth Baylis (USA)                                        3                      1

4. Marie Bjorling, (SWE/Team Goteborg Energi) 2                      2

5. Deborah Willits (USA)                                       2                      2

6. Klaartje Zuiderbaan (Netherlands)                          2                      2

7. Elizabeth Kratzig (USA/Team Kaenon)                       1                      3

8. Sandy Hayes (USA)                                                   0                      4

Flight 3

Lewin def. Bjorling

Zuiderbaan def. Hayes

Pedersen def. Baylis

Kratzig def. Willits

Flight 4
Lewin def. Baylis

Willits def. Hayes

Zuiderbaan def. Kratzig

Pedersen def. Bjorling

About the Swedish Match Tour

·        The Swedish Match Tour is comprised of nine of the world's leading professional sailing events and is proving to be the ultimate battleground of sailing.

·        In addition to more than US$400,000 in individual event prize money, the Swedish Match Tour awards US$200,000 to the top eight sailors on the Swedish Match Tour, with the first-place skipper netting US$60,000.

·        In addition to a US$60,000 first prize, the winner of the Swedish Match Tour receives the official Swedish Match Tour Championship Trophy, 15`` (30 cm) high with 22 carat gold gilding, produced by Swedish Match Tour sponsor Wedgwood. Additionally, Wedgwood supplies runner-up prizes for second and third places as well as commemorative plaques to each event organizer.

·        The Swedish Match Tour produces 155 hours of television coverage reaching more than 427 million households worldwide.

·        Swedish Match Tour partners include Swedish Match, Octagon and the Match Race Association.

·        Swedish Match Tour sponsors include Colorcraft, Champagne Mumm, Musto and Wedgwood

Source: Shawn McBride - Octagon