Perry, Tunnicliffe Win 2008 Nations Cup Regional Final, Qualify for Grand Final in Porto Alegre, Brazil

Sunday, November 09, 2008, Charleston, SC – The final day of the 2008 Nations Cup Regional Final sponsored by Team One Newport was held in ideal match racing conditions, with clear skies, temperatures in the high-60’s, and 10-15 knots of breeze all day. At the end of 57 matches over the three day event, Dave Perry of the USA and Anna Tunnicliffe of the USA came out on top of the Open and Women's divisions, respectively.

The Champions (l to r): Open Division - Ned Jones, Chris Museler, Dave Perry; Women's Division - Liz Bower, Anna Tunnicliffe, Molly Vandemoer, Ali Church

The first match of the day was the final match of the Women’s semi-final round, featuring Bermuda’s Paula Lewin against Canada’s Lisa Ross. Each skipper had earned one point in the round, with the first skipper to earn two points moving on to the finals. Lewin held Ross to the starboard side of the line in the pre-start and was able to lead off the line at the gun. Ross never managed to pass, and Lewin moved on to the finals to face Anna Tunnicliffe of the USA.

In the Women’s finals, Tunnicliffe and Lewin battled fiercely in the pre-starts. But Tunnicliffe managed to control Lewin off the line and held the lead each race to win the finals 3-0. Commenting on the results, Tunnicliffe said “Paula pushed us constantly, we could never give her an inch or we knew she’d be right back in the match.”

In the Open final, match-racing veteran Dave Perry of the USA faced newcomer Taylor Canfield from the USVI. What Canfield lacked in match-racing experience, he made up for with talent and determination. The first start was a draw, with Perry at the pin and Canfield at the boat. After splitting tacks, Canfield came out ahead and held the lead around the course to go up 1-0. Perry won the start of the second match and led around the course to tie it up. Match three provided the most excitement of the day. Canfield led most of the way around the course, with Perry trailing close behind. Down the final run, Perry managed to close the distance and draw a red-flag penalty on Canfield, which put Perry ahead 2-1. With the championship on the line, Canfield came out aggressively in the pre-start of the fourth match, but it wasn’t enough to hold off the veteran. Canfield was penalized just before the gun and Perry went on to win the series 3-1.

Congratulations to Anna Tunnicliffe, Molly Vandemoer, Ali Church and Liz Bower of the USA on their win in the Women’s division and Dave Perry, Chris Museler, and Ned Jones of the USA on their win in the Open division. Both teams have qualified to represent the North America/Caribbean region at the ISAF Nations Cup Grand Final in Porto Alegre, Brazil from 23-28 March 2009.

Taylor Canfield of the US Virgin Islands sails upwind while the Spirit of South Carolina spectates near the Battery. Photo by Priscilla Parker

Perry and Canfield Reach Open Finals, Women's Title Still Up For Grabs at 2008 ISAF Nations Cup Regional Final

Saturday, November 08, 2008 – Racing conditions couldn’t have been much better for day two of the 2008 ISAF Nations Cup Regional Final sponsored by Team One Newport, with air temperatures in the high 60’s, clear skies and 8-12 knots of breeze from the west. Going into the day, Dave Perry of the USA led the combined round robin with 8 points, trailed by Paula Lewin of Bermuda and Anna Tunnicliffe of the USA, both with 6 points.

But yesterday’s tight races turned into today’s upsets, with both Lewin and Tunnicliffe defeating Perry in the second round-robin. The top three boats entered the third round-robin tied with 8 points each. Tunnicliffe was able to take another win off of Perry, but Lewin defeated Tunnicliffe, and Taylor Canfield of the USVI won a close match against Lewin. That brought the scores to 12 points for Tunnicliffe and Perry, with Tunnicliffe winning the tie-breaker, and 11 points for Lewin.

The semi-finals featured Lewin and Canada’s Lisa Ross on the Women’s side and Canfield and Jeremy Lucas of Canada in the Open division. Canfield defeated Lucas in 2 straight matches to move on to the finals against Perry. Lewin and Ross split matches and will race again tomorrow to determine who moves on to race Tunnicliffe in the finals.

Dave Perry of the USA leads Paula Lewin of Bermuda into the windward mark with Fort Sumter in the background. Photo by Priscilla Parker

Perry Leads After Day 1 at 2008 Nations Cup Regional Final Sponsored by Team One Newport

Friday, November 07, 2008 - Clear skies and a light westerly breeze greeted the competitors this morning as racing kicked off for the 2008 ISAF Nations Cup North American / Caribbean Regional Final. Early races were sailed in light and shifty conditions, but the wind filled and stabilized as the day progressed. The Women’s and Open divisions are racing against each other in the early rounds, providing a unique opportunity for the competitors and spectators. Commenting on the format, umpire Glenn Oliver said “we typically don’t have the men racing against the women, so it’s very interesting to see the differences in their approach and technique”.

After eight flights, Dave Perry of the USA has taken a commanding lead over the competition with 8 points. Tied with 6 points are Paula Lewin of Bermuda and Anna Tunnicliffe of the USA. “It’s great to mix the fleets and I think match racing should be mixed – it was a lot of fun. The conditions were excellent, as was the race committee work and we had a lot of close races,” said Perry. The schedule calls for a triple round-robin, followed by semi-final and final knockout rounds within each of the divisions. The winner in each division will qualify for the ISAF Nations Cup Grand Final in Porto Alegre, Brazil from 23-28 March 2009.

Competitors Announced for 2008 Nations Cup Regional Final Sponsored by Team One Newport

The competition will be tight at this year's ISAF Nations Cup Regional Final for the North American / Caribbean region. The Women's Division features some of the top female sailors in the world. Representing the US will be Anna Tunnicliffe, the 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist in the Laser Radial class. A relative newcomer to match racing, Anna proved her match racing skills by winning the US Women's Match Racing Championship in Rochester, NY in September. Challenging Anna will be match racing veteran Paula Lewin from Bermuda and Lisa Ross, who represented Canada in the 2008 Olympics in the Laser Radial.

In the Open Division, the US will be represented by three-time US Match Racing Champion and Olympic Team rules advisor Dave Perry. Perry will face tough competition from top collegiate sailor Taylor Canfield, representing the US Virgin Islands, and Jeremy Lucas from Canada.

While each division will have its own finals and semi-finals, early rounds will feature round robins including both the Open and Women's Divisions. This unique format will make the event exciting for both spectators and the competitors. The winner in each division will qualify for the ISAF Nations Cup Grand Final in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

About the ISAF Nations Cup

The ISAF Nations Cup is a global competition to find the world's top match racing nations in both open and women's events and to develop match racing infrastructure around the world. The Nations Cup encompasses a series of eight Regional Finals from September-December 2008, from which the top team will qualify for the ISAF Nations Cup Grand Final, which will take place in Porto Alegre, Brazil from 23-28 March 2009.

The 2008 North American/Caribbean Regional Final will be hosted by the Carolina Yacht Club and the College of Charleston on November 6-9, 2008. Racing will be held in the College of Charleston’s fleet of J-22s and sailed out of the Carolina Yacht Club located at 50 East Bay Street in Charleston, SC. The course area will be located in Charleston Harbor as close to the Charleston peninsula as possible. For more information about the event, please contact Alice Manard, Director of Sailing at the College of Charleston.

Nations Cup History

The inaugural Nations Cup in 1991 saw six regional qualifiers in each of Denmark, Italy, Greece, Brazil, Bermuda and Japan, with the Grand Final in Barcelona, Spain. At that time only sailed in an Open division, the title was won by Ed Baird (USA). The 1991 Nations Cup Grand Final was the climax of over 1,000 races sailed by some 50 countries.

Moving onto 1993, preceding the Grand Final in Holland, the qualifiers were held in Finland, France, United Arab Emirates, Peru, USA and Singapore, with Roy Heiner (NED) taking the Open Title and Helena Strang (SWE) the women’s event.

The 1995 Nations Cup saw San Francisco, USA host the Grand Final, with the qualifying events in South Africa, Croatia, New Zealand, Ireland, Canada and Chile. The Open Event was won by South Africa’s Bruce Savage, with the women’s title claimed by Susan Walters (AUS).

The Nations Cup had a very successful rejuvenation in 2006, hosting more than 50 nations in eight Regional Finals held around the world. The top teams in the Regional Finals met at the Grand Final at the Royal Cork Yacht Club, with France winning both the Women’s and Open divisions, led by skippers Claire Leroy and Mathieu Richard.

Go to www.sailing.org/nationscup for more information on the ISAF Nations Cup.