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2009 Nautel Laser World Championships Listen Live! 40 Years of Nautel

The Venue

Located on the Eastern shores of the bay St. Margaret Sailing Club boasts a large beach shoreline and thousands of square feet of open grass space. Located at the center of it all, the 4,000 foot clubhouse looks out onto the water and will serve as the focal point of the event.

The Conditions

Link: Current Conditions
The bay consists of 5x7 miles of unobstructed waters. The racing area is free of shoals, commercial traffic, and currents. It is aligned with the prevailing southwest winds and generates a 15+ knot breeze on sunny days.

Did You Know?

The 2009 Nautel Laser Worlds is the largest competitive sailing event in Canadian history, with 500 athletes.

The Laser Worlds were last held in Canada 29 years ago, in Kingston, Ontario.

Masters - Final

Neither wind, nor lack of it, deterred the 2009 Nautel Laser Worlds and Master Worlds Championships. After 18 days of competition, the Laser Worlds came to an end Saturday on St. Margaret’s Bay with races abandoned because of shifty and light winds.

"It’s a disappointing last day," admitted event manager Duncan Enman, "but both the Seniors and Masters had some incredible racing days on St. Margaret’s Bay."

Day Seven of competition for the Laser Masters Worlds proved disappointing because of the lack of a steady wind to set courses, but all fleets had completed ten races in the regatta.

The Masters is divided by age and type of sail used on the Laser, a four metre single handed, single sail dinghy.

For the Radial rig; in the Apprentice class (35 to 44 years old), Australian Richard Bott finished first, New Zealander Scott Leith was second and Australian Grant Willmott took third.

For the Master division (45 to 54 years old), Brazilian Carlos Eduardo Wanderley finished first, followed by Greg Adams of Australia in second, and Joao of Ramos of Brazil ithird. Nigel Heath was the top Canadian in fifth spot.

In the Grand Master fleet (55 to 64 years old); Australian Peter Heywood finished first with Michael Pridham and Ian Rawet both of Great Britain in second and third.

For the Great Grand Masters (65 years old and up); American Peter Seidenberg held on to first, with Australian Kerry Waraker in second and Michael Kinnear of Great Britain in third. Canada’s Johan Van Rossem finished ninth in the field of 41 athletes.

In the Standard rig (a slightly larger sail and mast than the radial); the top three remained the same throughout the Worlds with Adonis Bougiouris of Greece finishing first, Australian Brett Beyer second and Orlando Gledhill of Great Britain in third.

For the Masters, gold fleet; Scott Ferguson of the United States takes home the championships ahead of chief rival Arnoud Hummel of the Netherlands, while Ferguson’s club-mate Andrew Pimental of the US was third. Canadian Andy Roy finished sixth.

Robert Muru of Canada finished first in the Masters silver fleet, with Jan Larkens of the United Arab Emirates in second and Kevin Currier of Ireland taking third.

Wolfgang Gerz of Germany dominated the Grand Master Standard fleet to take first, Mark Bethwaite of Australia finished second and Alan Keen of South Africa took third.
 
Masters - Day Six - Final

If there was a perfect day for sailing, it was Friday on St. Margaret’s Bay just outside Halifax, NS. For the 300 athletes from 27 countries competing in the 2009 Nautel Laser Master World Championships, the day provided ideal conditions for racing. Under sunny skies and with a steady breeze of 16 to 18 knots, it was a day to test endurance, skill and strength.

For the Radial rig; in the Apprentice class (35 to 44 years old), Australian Richard Bott is in first, New Zealander Scott Leith in second and Australian Grant Willmott is third.

For the Master division (45 to 54 years old), Brazilian Carlos Eduardo Wanderley remains in first, followed by Greg Adams of Australia in second, and Joao of Ramos of Brazil in third. Nigel Heath is the top Canadian in fifth spot.

In the Grand Master fleet (55 to 64 years old); Australian Peter Heywood is in first with Michael Pridham and Ian Rawet both of Great Britain in second and third.

For the Great Grand Masters (65 years old and up); American Peter Seidenberg continues to lead, with Australian Kerry Waraker in second and Michael Kinnear of Great Britain in third. Canada’s Johan Van Rossem is ninth in the field of 41 athletes.

In the Standard rig (a slightly larger sail and mast than the radial); the top three remain the same in the Apprentice division – Adonis Bougiouris of Greece is in first, Australian Brett Beyer is in second and Orlando Gledhill of Great Britain remains in third.

For the Masters, gold fleet; Scott Ferguson of the US has a commanding lead over chief rival Arnoud Hummel of the Netherlands, while Ferguson’s club-mate Andrew Pimental of the US is in third. Canadian Andy Roy is in sixth.

Robert Muru of Canada has taken over the lead in the silver Masters fleet, with Kevin Currier of Ireland in second and Jan Larkens of the United Arab Emirates.

Wolfgang Gerz of Germany continues to dominate the Grand Master Standard fleet, Mark Bethwaite of Australia is in second and Alan Keen of South Africa is back in third.

 
Masters - Day Six - 1430h Update

With one race down for the day, competitors are preparing for the second race of Day Six at the 2009 Nautel Laser Masters World Championships. Under sunny skies, winds are steady at about 16 knots (34 kilometres per hour), making for ideal Laser sailing conditions on St. Margaret's Bay. The sea breeze which has made the Bay an ideal sailing venue is back and providing another great day of racing for almost 300 athletes competing in the Laser Masters Worlds.