Young Azzurra finishes second in qualifiers of Youth Foiling Gold Cup

Cagliari, 25 October 2021. The qualifying phase of the final leg of the Youth Foiling Gold Cup concluded today, with Young Azzurra ranked second behind the Dutch Sail team and ahead of Team France. The YCCS team will now proceed directly to the last round of the knockout series to compete for a place in the final.

Over the course of five intense days of racing on the waters off Poetto Beach in Cagliari, each of the 9 participating teams completed 16 races in light and shifty wind conditions. Young Azzurra notched up consistent performances, finishing at the top end of the fleet in almost all of their races, confirming that the new crew configuration on board is working well. Six wins and six second-place finishes combined with two thirds, a fourth and a fifth, left Young Azzurra in second position in the classification, enabling the team to skip the first two rounds of the knockout series.

 
Tomorrow, 26 October, the first of the three knockout rounds scheduled to run through 28 October will begin. The teams that make it through this second phase will earn a place in the final of the Youth Foiling Gold Cup Act 3, taking place from 29 to 31 October.

Ettore Botticini, skipper of Young Azzurra: "We're racing with really shifty breezes, the races are never predictable and anyone can win. Our objective is still the final which will be held from 1 to 3 November, but we'd like to have a day without any imperfections before we get to the final, we need to start well and race with the wind shifts."

Francesca Bergamo, flight controller on Young Azzurra: "We're starting to find a good balance in the new roles on board, in light wind conditions I find the configuration where I'm on board together with Erica very effective, we always start flying before the others. We are ready for the final stages of the knockouts!"