Slingsby holds 14 point lead over Olympic Champion

Tom Slingsby continued his strong run on day four of the 2010 Laser World Championship with his consistency on the waters off Hayling Island in Great Britain opening up a 14 point lead over local rival Paul Goodison.

Slingsby began his day with a solid fifth position before winning race two, his fourth victory of the regatta, to head into the finals series just ahead of Goodison, the reigning Olympic champion.

“The first race was really tricky,” said Slingsby. “We were first off and we might have had the patchiest breeze. I was always there and lost one boat on the last run, so to get through with a fifth was pretty good. Nick Thompson and I were doing OK in the middle and then a big group came in from the right and we went round in tenth or so and it was very tricky once you’re there. The top three were just gone, you’re never going to catch them.”

“The second race was a bit more steady, more of boatspeed race. I got round third, second at the bottom and then first at the top. The Kiwis were in first and fourth and I just gained and gained, I had a tiny edge in boat speed and so he did not want to stay with me”

"But basically it all changes now into the Finals. It all starts again but if you make one mistake rather than losing five boats you lose 20. The only thing I take forward is knowing that I am sailing quick and that if I sail well I can win the Worlds.”

Though not everything went the way of the Australian Sailing Team’s two-time Laser World Champion with Slingsby discovering a crack in the top of his supplied daggerboard just before heading out for the day. After a quick swap the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games representative was on the water and ready for racing.

Slingsby won back-to-back World Championships in 2007 and 2008 and is keen for a strong finish at thie year’s event after a tough World Championship in Canada in 2009.

“Doing poorly at last year’s Worlds and finishing 17th, was a feeling I really did not like,” said Slingsby.

Brunning has sailed consistently well all week and he’s been rewarded with his first race win of the week and now finds himself just 14 points off the podium.

Ryan Palk ended the day in 74^th, ahead of James Burman in 79^th while Tom Burton finished the qualifying series in 87^th.

Klade Hauschildt is currently in 127^th, with Sean Bly 141^st and Ki-raphael Sulkowski one place further back in 142^nd.

Jared West is in 145^th, ahead of Ryan Stoddart in 151^st and Ashley Lloyd in 154^th.