The London 2012 Olympic Bronze Medalist in the Laser class, Rasmus Myrgren, sailed to victory in the Swedish Master of Masters Regatta with his team of Thomas Rahm, Rahm Axel and Carl Sylvan. Over the two-day event held on October 11-12, 39 teams participated (all champions of one class or another), sailing 25 races in the 8-boat fleet of evenly-matched J/70s. According to Myrgren, “I had a good crew with me in the boat, and we coordinated nicely in all the races. We focus really hard when it comes boatspeed and worked hard to choose our own path through the fleet.” For the ninth year, the top Swedish champions selected each year in different sailing classes gathered for the Master of Masters Championship. The two-day event in Bastad today is one of the most prestigious in Swedish sailing. This year, 34 Swedish champions and five wild card entries approached the starting line, ready to take to the sea and figure out who is the best of the best; who is the master’s master. The courses were short and concentrated, tactics and maneuvers must be in top form and mistakes were very costly. The format was a round-robin on Saturday followed by two-semifinals Sunday morning; with the top three of each semi going into the final championship round at 1400 hrs Sunday afternoon. “It’s a special feeling to win the Masters championship, where most of Sweden’s best sailors are competing – and it feels fantastic! The whole event is like a big party for us sailors. We have a chance to talk about past seasons and experiences, making new friends and enjoying the camaraderie,” continued Myrgren, who also won the Swedish Master of Masters Championship in 2012 with essentially the same crew. Stefan Rahm, Swedish Sailing Federation’s Sports Director, was very pleased with this year’s races and believes that the final round was the tightest and most exciting seen over the past few years. He said, “The races have ended perfectly, and we are excited about how the weather has shifted in a favorable way during the past few days. First, a little more sunshine sailing in relatively light winds, and now during the final day with better winds and shifts, which meant that the sailors got a bigger challenge. In addition, our live streaming on the web, where this year we invested even more than in previous years, has exceeded expectations. It is a successful venture and a way for us to spread the sport of sailing to more and more people. Sailing is an exciting sport and the champions have a national audience (both on live TV and live on the webcast). This was a fantastic opportunity to follow the races and learn from the commentators.” Finishing behind Myrgren’s GKSS team in second was the KSSS team (Royal Swedish YC) that included Anton Dahlberg, Victor Cuikerman, Per Thorsell and Nils Dahlberg. Taking third from Stockholm YC was the team of Johan Qviberg, Jakob Gustafsson and Martin Nilsson. For more J/70 Swedish Master of Masters Regatta sailing information, click here.

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