2016 Russian Dragon Open Programme
11th July: Registration. Measurement. Practice race.
12th July: Racing Day
13th July: Racing Day
14th July: Racing Day
Prize-awarding Ceremony for the winners will be held on the 17th of July within the frames of the European Championship Official Opening Ceremony.
St. Petersburg Yacht Club is happy to welcome the triple Olympic gold medalist and America's Cup legend Jochen Schümann who will be calling the shots for Marcus Brennecke (GER11) a successful sailor himself having scored 3rd in recent Danish Open and 6th in the Italian Championship. There are several more strong crews coming from Germany. GER 1123 Michael Zankel, helm of "Powwow", is sailing with Pedro Andrade, a top tactician from Portugal. The team had a fantastic season last year in Cascais, having won one event and taking two times third places in the winter series. GER 1157, Michael Schmidt, also a great and very competitive sailor, winner of the 2015 Regattes Royales and the Swiss Open Championship.
Four times Dragon European Champion and all-round successful helmsman Marcus Wiezer (UAE7) will be again a part of the Trnasbunker Team together with the Olympic gold medalist and World champion 470 Evgeniy Braslavets and 49er Athens silver medalist Georgiy Leonchuk. 2015 was very successful for the team: Transbunker won both World and European championships so in St. Petersburg the team will face a tough competition to defend their title. This year the team has already won Dragon Grand Prix Germany (UAE20 Hendrick Witzmann) and Italian Open (UAE8 Eugen Braslavets).
Neighbouring Finland fleet will be represented a mixed crew FIN89 of Sara Antila and reciprocal to St. Petersburg YC HSK club's commodore Timo Nurmilaukas (FIN72). Danish fleet is led by former European Champion and acting national champion Jens Christensen (DEN410).
2013 World Champion Klaus Diederichs (GBR758) will be sailing both the Open Russian and continental championship. Diderich's team is reinforced with the famous polish America's Cup sailor, World and European match race champion Karol Jablonski. The Switzerland's Hugo Strenbeck (SUI 311) has already scored this year's Grand Prix Guyader in Duarnenez.
The Russian fleet has grown from strength to strength from Dragon Olympic age to the modern times. So the seasoned sailors are often competing alongside the newcomers. Helm of the 1972 Soviet Olympic Dragon team, 82 years Boris Khabarov is still an active competitor having registered for Open Russian championship.
Anatoly Loginov's RUS27 is one of the most titled crews in the modern Russian fleet having won Gold Cup in 2010. Defending Russian champion Dmitry Samokhin was second last year on both Dragon Europeans and the Gold Cup so no doubt this time his RUS76 Strange Little Girl will be seeking for gold.
Atlanta silver medalist in Soling Georgiy Shaiduco will be helming RUS6 Stasya as well as Vasily Senatorov, IDA Chairman and Russian Dragon Association President: "It is a great honour for the Russian Dragon Association and Saint Petersburg Yacht Club as well as whole Russian sailing community to be the host for Dragon European Championship 2016. For many years our sailors have been an integral part of the worldwide Dragon family so it's the right time to introduce our country.
