Canada Wins Three Medals, Including Gold, at US Open
Feb 16, 2022
Tom Ramshaw and Fillah Karim respectively win gold and silver in ILCA 7; Coralie Vittecoq earns bronze in ILCA 6
Two-time Olympian in sailing Tom Ramshaw and his Canadian teammate Fillah Karim respectively won the gold and silver medals in the ILCA 7 (Laser) class at the US Open Sailing Series which ended Sunday in Clearwater, Florida, while Coralie Vittecoq won the bronze medal in the ILCA 6 event.
Throughout the competition, Ramshaw and Karim took turns finishing first and second over the eight races that were held, as Ramshaw won three races and took the second spot three times, while Karim finished first in two races and second in three others.
Three weeks ago at the Fort Lauderdale stage of the US Open Sailing Series, Ramshaw came in second overall in his first competition in the ILCA 7 (Laser) class in seven years. The athlete from Toronto competed in the 2020 and 2016 Olympic Games in the Finn class and finished 10th in Tokyo, when this class was part of the Olympic program for the last time.
“It was another fun regatta,” said Ramshaw. “We had some great conditions; it was tricky but we had a good breeze and good waves. I found some great speed upwind and at times downwind as well, so that allowed me to just keep the racing simple. It was a really nice battle with Fillah, who sailed a really strong series.”
“The race organizers did a great job to get a solid eight races off over the course of the three-day regatta”, said Fillah Karim from Vancouver, B.C.. “Tom showed great form after having just transitioned back from the Finn. Congratulations to him for ultimately taking the win! There have been some very exciting positive changes going on with the Canadian Laser program recently, and I think we’re all excited to see what we can accomplish as we move forward working together and pushing each other as a team.”
Coralie Vittecoq earns bronze
In the ILCA 6 class, Coralie Vittecoq from Montreal, QC, won the bronze medal and was the top finisher among the nine Canadians who competed in this event which showcased a total of 80 athletes.
Over the eight-race competition, Vittecoq took second place four times.
“We had all kinds of conditions,” said Vittecoq. “So I’m happy that I was able to be competitive against a big fleet and to navigate my regatta in a consistent way. It’s a good ending to the two months I spent in the U.S.A. I can’t wait to continue to work on my weaknesses at our next training camp in Mexico before joining the international competition in Palma.”
Clara Gravely from Toronto, ON, was 6th in the ILCA 6 class. Mac Morrin from Kingston, ON, finished 9th overall in Formula Kite, an event which will be held for the first time at the 2024 Olympic Games.
CANADIAN RESULTS
2022 US Open Sailing Series – Clearwater
Clearwater, U.S.A/États-Unis
FINAL
ILCA 7 (/27)
1. Tom Ramshaw (R1: 6 / R2: 2 / R3: 1 / R4: 2 / R5: 1 / R6: 2 / R7: 3 / R8: 1)
2. Fillah Karim (R1: 2 / R2: 1 / R3: 2 / R4: 1 / R5: 2 / R6: 3 / R7: 4 / R8: 5)
7. Forrest Wachholz (R1: 5 / R2: 5 / R3: 8 / R4: 10 / R5: 7 / R6: 8 / R7: 13 / R8: 13)
10. Ryan Anderson (R1: 4 / R2: UFD / R3: UFD / R4: 4 / R5: 6 / R6: 7 / R7: 14 / R8: 3)
ILCA 6 (/80)
3. Coralie Vittecoq (R1: 2 / R2: 5 / R3: 4 / R4: 2 / R5: 2 / R6: 2 / R7: 7 / R8: 15)
6. Clara Gravely (R1: 6 / R2: 1 / R3: 2 / R4: 5 / R5: 15 / R6: 3 / R7: 8 / R8: 25)
12. Nathan Latka (R1: 8 / R2: 12 / R3: 7 / R4: 12 / R5: 3 / R6: 7 / R7: 30 / R8: 21)
19. Chris Mouland (R1: 14 / R2: 8 / R3: 10 / R4: 16 / R5: 13 / R6: 12 / R7: 12 / R8: 23)
27. Annalise Balasubramanian (R1: 15 / R2: 15 / R3: 15 / R4: 11 / R5: 9 / R6: 20 / R7: 27 / R8: 11)
36. Mats Braaten (R1: 23 / R2: 4 / R3: 9 / R4: 23 / R5: 19 / R6: 27 / R7: 37 / R8: 36)
39. Matthew Burbidge (R1: 13 / R2: 18 / R3: 16 / R4: 21 / R5: 23 / R6: 30 / R7: 29 / R8: 37)
64. Zoe Folsetter (R1: 33 / R2: 39 / R3: 31 / R4: 36 / R5: 25 / R6: 38 / R7: 2)
78. Robert Koci (R1: 27 / R2: 20 / R3: DNC / R4: DNS / R5: DNS / R6: DNS / R7: DNC)
Formula Kite (/15)
9. Mac Morrin (R1: 9 / R2: 8 / R3: 8 / R4: 10 / R5: 8 / R6: 12 / R7: 7 / R8: 7 / R9: 9 / R10: 8 / R11: 8 / R12: 9)
