European Laser Standard Youth Championship 2008

With my first Laser Senior European Championship finished, I am on my to take part in the European Laser Standard Youth Championship 2008 FRANCE ( Douarnenezed). The Regatta starts on Fri 25th July 2008 - Fri 1st August 2008. This will be my Last regatta in Europe marking an end to my European 2008 tour and My two year Olympic Laser class Circuit. There are 132 entries from 25 countries confirmed to take part in this years Youth European Championship. This my third and Last Youth European Championship. I Finished 52nd (silver fleet Gydnia Poland 06) and 99 (Heyeres France 07) at the Last two Editions. The Entry list comprise of few top International U21 sailors ( Australia,Brazil,India,New Zealand and USA) and top U21 sailors across Europe.The give you an Idea of the level of these championships some of the sailors have taken part in a Youth World championships (U 18) including this years Youth Worlds which took place in Denmark a few days ago. I represented India at the 2006 Volvo Youth Worlds Weymouth (GBR) , host of the 2012 Olympic sailing competition . I am India's Only sailor entered at these championships . I have been India's top U21 sailor for the past three years.This Event will also be my last U21 International Laser event.

SLINGSBY And MULTALA Triumph At Laser Europeans

Laser and Laser Radial European Championships 2008 Nieuwpoort, Belgium Australia's Tom SLINGSBY and Sari MULTALA of Finland took the titles at the ISAF Grade C1 Laser and Laser Radial Europeans in Nieuwpoort, Belgium. Tom SLINGSBY (AUS), two-time and reigning Laser World Champion has a five point overall lead after four bullets from six races so far. Paul GOODISON (GBR) lies in second place just one point ahead of Athens Olympic bronze medallist Vasilij ZBOGAR (SLO).Like SLINGSBY, Sari MULTALA (FIN) also has four bullets from six races in the Laser Radial fleet. She leads local favourite Evi VAN ACKER (BEL) by seven points, with Katarzyna SZOTYNSKA (POL) in third. Paul GOODISON (GBR) finished second behind Tom SLINGSBY (AUS) in the Laser standings and top European finisher, winning the Laser European Championship title for the fourth year in a row.Winds over 25 knots and huge waves resulted in the abandonment of the final day of racing in Nieuwpoort. This gave SLINGSBY, the reigning World Champion and #1 in the ISAF World Sailing Rankings, the Laser title by eight points. SLINGSBY scored five bullets during the ten-race series to win by eight points, a perfect send off before he heads to Qingdao, China where he will represent Australia at the 2008 Olympic Sailing Competition. GOODISON came in second, whilst Vasilij ZBOGAR (SLO) completed the top three.In the women’s Laser Radial fleet, Sari MULTALA (FIN) recorded six bullets and led from start to finish. She was pushed all the way by Sophie DE TURCKHEIM (FRA), whose two bullets on Friday brought her to within three points of the Finnish leader, and ultimately earned her second place overall. Evi VAN ACKER (BEL), the 2006 and 2007 European Champion, finished third overall.

My Final Results of the 2008 European Championship

Day 4 and 5 was very windy with lots of current and waves , very difficult sailing All races planned for the last day have been cancelled due to bad wheather conditions. In the morning an average wind of 23kn was measured close to the shore line with rather steep waves as the current is going in the opposite direction of the wind. For the afternoon a wind of 28kn to 30kn had been forecasted. This meant that the European Championship was over by the day 5 of the championships. These are my results . I finished 138 overall and 41 in the bronze fleet there were 48 boats in each fleet and a total of 146 boats the 2008 European Championship 2008 IND 193079 Rau Ajay 313.0 41 38 39 40 (42) (46) 41 37 37 40

Laser and Laser Radial European Championships 2008

Laser and Laser Radial European Championships 2008 Nieuwpoort, Belgium The leaders remain unchaged after three days of racing at the ISAF Grade C1 Laser and Laser Radial Europeans in Nieuwpoort, Belgium, with Tom SLINGSBY and Sara MULTALA dominant in the top spots. Tom SLINGSBY (AUS), two-time and reigning Laser World Champion has a five point overall lead after four bullets from six races so far. Paul GOODISON (GBR) lies in second place just one point ahead of Athens Olympic bronze medallist Vasilij ZBOGAR (SLO).Like SLINGSBY, Sari MULTALA (FIN) also has four bullets from six races in the Laser Radial fleet. She leads local favourite Evi VAN ACKER (BEL) by seven points, with Katarzyna SZOTYNSKA (POL) in third.

Results after six races European Championship 2008

After four Races this is my overall position with my results from each race 123 IND 193079 Ajay Rau 41.0 38.0 39.0 40.0 The first day of racing was a heavy 15-20 + knots and the second day the wind was lighter (15 knots max). I am happy with my sailing , I feel good on the boat , there are many mistakes but this is a very high level fleet and so far i am happy with my performance. Today wind was light 5 -7 knots and dropped 12 places in the overall standings 135 IND 193079 Ajay Rau 42.0 46.0

SLINGSBY And MULTALA Lead After Opening Day At Laser Europeans

Laser and Laser Radial European Championships 2008 Nieuwpoort, Belgium Tom SLINGSBY (AUS) and Sara MULTALA (FIN) both got off to perfect starts on day one of the ISAF Grade C1 Laser and Laser Radial Europeans in Nieuwpoort, Belgium. During the first day of the regatta two races were held in nice weather conditions with a westerly wind of 14 to 18 knots. The first race went smoothly, whilst the second was marred by a series of general recalls.With over 100 boats event in both Laser and Laser Radial events, the start of the series is being sailed in split fleets. World Champion and world #1 Tom SLINGSBY (AUS) won both his races in the Laser fleet to take the overall lead ahead of Michael LEIGH (CAN) and Paul GOODISON (GBR). Similarly, Sari MULTALA (FIN) won both the races in the Laser Radial fleet and leads ahead of Sophie DE TURCKHEIM (FRA) and Evi VAN ACKER (BEL).

Euro 08 Races start tomorrow

Registration and Measurements have been completed and racing will start tomorrow at 1 o'clock for the laser class.I am being looked after by Sailcoach . My Coach will be Sunny (LTU). My team mates are Allen (SEY),Vaseliji(SLO),Ryan(IRL) and Laurynas (LTU).With the Olympics so close i am privileged to be working with the 4 time Olympian from Seychelles and the Olympic bronze medalist from Slovenia.This Years European Championship , for very few European Countries is the last selection process for the 2008 Olympic games

2008 Laser Euros Officially began at 2 oclock Today

Here in New port the 2008 European Championships officially began at 2 o'clock with measurements under way , at the moment there are 150 athletes from 37 countries registered. I have been training hard everyday.apart from a day i had an upset tummy .There has been mix conditions ( light winds,medium and heavy <28>). As this is a top level event, there is no surprise that Practicing with all these Sailors has been exciting and allot of hard work. the practice sessions out here remind me of the practice sessions we had before my first senior world championship this year. there are two days left for the 2008 European Championship to start

Belgium (Newport)-2008 European championship

I will be training at the venue for 10 days with the Sail Coach Team. Many Sailors have already made their way over here to prepare for Europe's best event, The European Championship.click this message or the picture on the right to visit the event Website.

Results Keil Woche 2008....almost time for the laser euro 08 (Belgium)

The Regatta lived up to Expectations as one of the challenging regattas of the Year. There were 11 races sailed over a span of 5 days. Wind speeds varied from 5 to 20 knots, although most of the time it was above 15 knots with big waves. Conditions were a test for all the sailors in the laser class were there were 156 entries from over 50 nations, Olympians fighting for top Honors and the yellow jersey or some just aiming to finish the best possible position. I finished 31st out of 53 lasers in the Bronze Fleet. In the 11 races, I finished with a best position of 6th. Here are the results in sequence Ajay Rau IND 193079 : 50 ,51 , 42 , 47 , 39 , 36 , 30 , BFD , 20 , 6 , BFD . I finished 136 overall. 12 nations finished in the top 15 overall standing showing how competitive the regatta was. Australia’s Thomas Slingsby (07, 08 world champion) won the Regatta almost effortlessly, he wore the Yellow jersey for 4 days out of the 5 days of competition dominating the Regatta. Gustavo Lima of Portugal finished a well deserved second place; he was the only other sailor who had worn the Yellow jersey after day one of the regatta. Michael Leigh of Canada came in third place After the regatta it was time to pack up and hit the Road. With the Euro 2008 Football Championships coming to a close in Austria and Switzerland, there is now hardly any time left for the Laser Euro 08 Championships (Belgium), I will be training and preparing here for a few days before taking part in the 2008 European Championships in Newport Belgium. 45 European and Non European countries have entered for the Euro 08 Championships. 150 of the best sailors from Europe and other visiting countries will make their way for this restricted event, I will be the Only Indian at these championships. This is the last big competition for the laser class before the Olympics. The European championships is the closest you can get to an atmosphere and level of a world championship, It is an honor to represent India at these Championships. This is my First Senior European Championship ,India has a lot to catch up in Laser sailing and this is an important learning curve and stepping stone towards my 2012 Olympic sailing campaign.