GROLSCH INTERNATIONAL 505 WORLD SAILING CHAMPIONSHIPS 2002 PREVIEW It's all happening at Fremantle Australia
Celebrity sailors expected to be among the first at the top mark at the Grolsch International 505 World Championships in Fremantle Australia will be, from Sweden, five time world champion Krister Bergstrom and also fresh from "Orm", Sweden's bid for the America's Cup, champion crew Johan Barne, with skipper Tom Swift heading here from Antigua, from a stint on a Swan 56. From the USA, Howie Hamlin, current 18ft skiff world champ and former world 505 champ. From the UK, Ian Pinnell, world champ in Fireball, Enterprise and several times UK 505 champ and Ian Barker, former 505 world champ and Olympic Silver Medallist, 49er. The Australian contingent includes dual world 505 champion, 18ft skiff world champion, 49er Olympic rep and world champion Chris Nicholson from Lake Macquarie NSW, defending Australian champion Sandy Higgins from South Australia and West Australian giant killer Peter Chappell, who will be racing in one of the newly manufactured high tech pre-preg carbon honeycomb "Fremantle 505's", fully re-engineered and built in Perth in the last year. Pip Pearson who crewed for the legendary Paul Elvstrom at the worlds in 1966 will also be putting his tatics to the test.
The Fremantle Doctor blows hard in December and this will be the first 505 world championship with the boats carrying the new larger kites and there should be action aplenty. For more information: go to the 505 website: https://au.int505.org/ |
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This is just a
small selection from the hundred plus 505's from Australia, New Zealand ,
USA, Canada, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Zimbabwe, expected to be
on the the start line, here in Fremantle, 3rd to 14th December 2002. The
Australia National championships will be held as the pre-Worlds warm up
event from 3rd to 6th December 2002. The competition will undoubtedly be
hot. 505 sailors are
not slow to react when faced with challenges of a different kind. Eight of
the boys from USA clocked up 2000 miles on a return trip when they towed
their boats to Vancouver to ship them from there to avoid a dock workers
strike on the West Coast.