Lufthansa takes final event and the series !

What a battle ! What tension !  Before the last round of the Longtze European Tour, 6 teams could have taken the event and 3 could have won the series.  At the last mark, there were still 2 who could have snatched the Tour victory…So it is by a hair’s breadth but with great panache that team Lufthansa, led by Luc Gellusseau, takes out Kreuzlingen and wins the 2009 European Tour.   A rendezvous is set in 2010 for the 2nd edition of this outstanding European tour…

“We gave it our absolute all in the last round.  There had to be two boats between Kone Monospace and us to take it, there was nothing in it, but it was our race, we sailed well, and we were successful… we couldn’t let that one slip away !” , comments Luc Gellusseau, Longtze Lufthansa skipper.

Everyone was expecting light winds on Lake Constance but in the end it was a very fresh irregular breeze that livened up the 10 regattas of the “Longtze Bodensee Cup” at Kreuzlingen.  Squalls, sunshine, and even hail : the crews had to contend with an extremely tactical and demanding stretch of water. The earlier rounds ran back to back : 4 on Friday, 4 others the next day and 2 on Sunday. An action-packed, tense competition, producing a dramatic finish to the Longtze European Tour  !

Hitchcock-like suspense

"The suspense and the sporting tension was incredible on this event”, notes Pierre Mas, organiser of the Longtze European Tour.“ The regatta had been very well organized, the rounds were quick, very tactical and technical, but in the final, what made the difference, was the ability to control the stress…”
Erwan Tabarly and his Athema crew found some great form in this arena of top level sailing : he finished second by one small point behind Luc Gellusseau.  The Swiss Andréas Beinz  (Broker Line) showed his best performance of the series with an excellent 3rd place.  Nicolas Berenger (Kone Monospace) was 4th, and the German Eckhard Kaller (Wet Feet) was 5th.

The dynamic Swiss !

The Swiss teams who were racing in a Longtze European Tour event for the first time, sailed very well.  Before the last round, three of them were within reach of taking the event ! " It is therefore very possible that we will see them again on the circuit next year", confirms Pierre Mas. " There is a real dynamic energy here in Switzerland.  This first edition of the  " Longtze Bodensee Cup"  is concrete proof of that. The organisation and the energy  that  the Kreuzlingen Yacht Club ( Bottighofen Sailing  Association) have invested in the Longtze European Tour is remarkable."

Equally of note is the excellent  performance of the (nearly all) female crew ( there was one boy in the team), led by Manon Borsi, a journalist with Voiles et Voiliers who has newly discovered the Longtze Premier and the series : " They were very quickly in the running,  they really went well, especially in these delicate conditions ", confirms Luc Gellusseau.

Rendezvous in 2010

Team Lufthansa has therefore taken the first edition of the Longtze European Tour.  The Kone Monospace team has been one of the big players on the circuit with 2 event wins, Athema has equally always been at the forefront with a superb victory at the Grand Prix de l’Ecole Navale.  The German team " Wet Feet", led by Eckhard Kaller has gone from strength to strength, he scored a stunning victory in Belgium in Spetember.  Andréas Beinz’s crew (Broker Line),  the juniors from Kone Maxispace led by Arthur Levaillant, the very worthy team from the Ecole Navale, all were brilliant players on this first Longtze European Tour.


" I salute the assiduity and sportsmanship of all the Longtze European Tour crews.  These competitions were very exciting to follow.  In February, in Monaco, everyone started with a clean slate.  Today, we have sharper crews, the competitions each time a little fiercer...all in an atmosphere which remains friendly. "

" The 5 events of the 2009 series have been very varied and fought out in very different wind conditions.  The victory was so close, proof of the sporting interest and the openess of this competition.  Most of the competitors have been won over by the boat and have enjoyed this tour of Europe : we invite them all to meet again next year ! ", concludes Pierre Mas.

The events which will make up the next Longtze European Tour will be presented at the Salon Nautique in Paris.

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