SAILING: Merricks and Walker are top of the class

SAILING

BY STUART ALEXANDER

John Merricks and Ian Walker again dominated the 470 dinghy class to win the Spa Olympic regatta in the Netherlands which included full squads from France, Italy and Germany. And further good reason for Britain to cheer was Bethan Raggatt and Sue Carr's second place in the women's division behind Yumiko Shiga of Japan.

Fading at the end a little were Lawrie Smith and Chris Mason, 11th after their first outing in the Star class where Denmark's Michael Heistbaek was first and the best British were Stuart Hudson and Tim Carver in sixth.

Shirley Roberston pulled back up to sixth in a Europe class won by Natalia Viadufresne of Italy, but Ben Ainslie could manage only ninth in a strong Laser fleet headed by Brazil's Peter Tenscheit.

There was enough breeze and more for the Irish to have a great day on Loch Fyne for the Rover Scottish Series, some of the smaller classes being recalled to the safety of Tarbert harbour while there were several dismastings and even more shredded sails in a 35-knot gale out on the race course.

Peter Wilson of Howth pushed Alex Duffus into second place in Class 1, with another man of Howth, Max Macmullen, third. Michael Boyd, of the Royal Irish Yacht Club, won Class 2 and Donal Morrissey of Galway Bay took Class 3.

Only in the big boat class did Scotland's Geoff Howison continue to reign supreme, taking Local Hero X to its third win of a regatta which has attracted a record 286 entries.

On the other coast it was the Dutch who were enjoying much but not all success in the Royal Ocean Racing Club's North Sea race from Harwich to Scheveningen. The Noordzee trio beat the East Anglia Offshire Racing Association in the team event, Simon Dierdorp won Class 1, and Jan Valstar Class 3.

But the overall winner was Mike Taylor-Jones in his 34-foot Deerstalker and Ivan Fawcett won Class 2 in Billy Whizz. The majority of the 60-strong fleet continue tomorrow to Heligoland, reviving a two-part race last sailed before the 1939-45 war.

In the sixth qualifier for the BT National Match Racing Championship at Warsash the best-of-three final between the Andover-based South African Graham Dibb and the 19-year-old Southampton University student Joe Llewellyn went all the way, Dibb winning the decider.

Disappointed yesterday was Debbie Jarvis, one of two skippers leading all-woman crews, but Fiona Brown took third place in the fifth qualifier also sailed at Warsash on Saturday. The Winner that day was Peter Dyer of Hammersmith, who overcame a strong challenge from another young man who sails locally, the 19-year old James Lowbridge.