In challenging weather conditions, the teams of the first and second German sailing leagues met for the first regatta of the 2022 season on Alster Lake in Hamburg, Germany. The Lake Constance team from the Sailing and Motorboat Club Überlingen (SMCÜ) was able to deal best with the changeable conditions and took the undisputed place at the top of the leaderboard. “We are extremely happy that we were able to win the match day,” said Michael Zittlau, helmsman of the table first SMCÜ after the end of the game day. “It was worth training on Lake Garda in strong winds and familiarizing ourselves with the Alster conditions in Hamburg last weekend. You can’t start the season with better placement.” “On Friday, the first day of sailing, the Alster presented its capricious side, and we had to contend with violent wind shifts and huge puffs from different directions,” says Anke Lukosch from the German Sailing League. “Saturday was extremely challenging with strong gusts of up to 25 knots and very heavy rainfall. It was very clear which teams had their boats under control, even when there is a lot of wind.” For the 18-team first Division, behind the Segel-und Motorboot Club Uberlingen was the Muhlenberger Segel-Club in second, followed by the host’s Hamburger Segel-Club in third. For the 18-team second Division, the winner was determined by a tiebreaker at 21 points each, with the Akademischer Segel-Verein Warnemunde taking the countback over Konstanzer Yacht Club. Earning the bronze was Bocholter Yacht Club with 28 points. The cultural regatta planned for Saturday afternoon, in which the participating boats set colorful sails designed by artist Stefan Szczesny with the sustainability goals of the United Nations, was held Sunday due to the adverse weather conditions on Saturday. From 12 to 1 p.m., the numerous spectators and Sunday strollers around the Alster Lake were treated to an impressive sight as the boats with the colorful sails sailed around the buoys on Alster Lake. For more German J/70 Sailing league information, visit https://deutsche-segelbundesliga.de/.