AUCKLAND, New Zealand — Competitors in the New Zealand Olympic Trials near Auckland finally got a dose of heavy air on Wednesday as their Olympic trial regatta hit its fifth day. After listless conditions for most of the regatta, a 25-knot southwesterly blasted in, developing a stiff chop off Eastern Beach and pushing most classes to their upper wind limits.
In the two races sailed that day, sailors in the Tornado and Finn classes managed to cement their leading positions, but the action in the three other classes remains close. After seven races, former America?s Cup sailor Chris Dixon and crew Glen Sowry lead the Tornado class by four points, and Stuart Bannatyne leads the nine-boat Finn Class by four points as well. In the Europe Dinghy Class, Sarah Macky leads by three points, and in the Men?s 470 Class, Nicholas Taylor and Reese Brailey are tied with Simon Cooke and Peter Nicholas, each with 16 points. In the Men?s Mistral competition, Aaron MacIntosh owns a two-point margin. Racing is scheduled to culminate this weekend.