– He really gives the younger sailors tough competition. It’s fun to watch, says Jean Olivier Kerr, head of the event committee in the WC for 8 meters in Geneva, to news. The World Championships in sailing for 8 meters began in Geneva in Switzerland on Monday this week. During the week, the participants have sailed a total of nine voyages – or stages – and it is the combined result that determines the position in this year’s WC. Before today’s sailings, King Harald, who is captain on board the boat “Sira”, and his crew were in 13th place. But after two good sailings on Saturday, the king and his team finished in 10th place in the WC. King Harald is captain on board “Sira” and sails with a crew of a further six people. Photo: Trond Reidar Teigen / NTB – A very good and very tough sailor They thus made it into the top ten on the results list. Despite the fact that the result is not quite on par with several of the king’s previous World Cup achievements, the 85-year-old Norwegian king has impressed the international sailing community and is garnering great recognition. – It has struck me that he has a strong competitive instinct. He’s not just here to enjoy himself and have fun, he’s really here to compete with his crew. It is impressive, not least considering his age, says Jean Olivier Kerr. – He is a strong competitor, that’s for sure. I have great respect for him as a very good and very tough sailor, says Werner Deuring, president of the International Association for 8-meter boats and also one of the king’s competitors in this championship, as captain of the Austrian boat “Pandora”. Hope the king aims for another World Cup King Harald, who turned 85 in February, has been in training leading up to the World Cup at the same time as he has carried out his duties and assignments as King of Norway. “Sira” in action in the WC on Lake Geneva. Photo: Kristi Marie Skrede / news An operation on the leg a year and a half ago has not hindered the king’s World Cup participation either. Now Deuring hopes that the king, who has previously become both world champion and European champion, will focus on the next WC. – I have heard him say for the last ten years that “this will be my last year”, but so far he has continued and returned the following year. We all hope to see him also in next year’s WC in Genoa in Italy, says Deuring to news. The WC has been going on since Monday this week. On Saturday, King Harald and the rest of the WC participants sailed to the finish line. Photo: Trond Reidar Teigen / NTB Demanding conditions There were a total of 24 boats from a total of eight countries that competed in this year’s championship: Norway, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Austria, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Finland. On Lake Geneva, the largest lake in Western Europe – more than one and a half times the size of Mjøsa – the teams have been competing this week. The lake is surrounded by high mountains. Precisely this location has created challenges, according to Tom Knutsen, who is captain of “If”, the second Norwegian boat that has taken part in the WC. – This is “lakesailing”, as it’s called, and it’s some special stuff that we Norwegians probably don’t have much experience with. These are very special conditions. There is less wind, so many of the local boats are trimmed and used to sailing in less wind, says Knutsen. – Then you have the fact that we are located in a valley with high mountains on both sides, and there will be very wobbly winds. There can be large wind holes where there is no wind. You make a strategy, and then when the conditions become as unfamiliar as what they do here, you break with it. This probably also applies to the other foreigners. – Much loved and respected internationally Knutsen also praises the “king of sailors” and believes that King Harald has a significant role in the sailing community. – He is a terribly good sailor. Terribly good sailor, that is. That head of his commands a lot of respect when it comes to sailing, I must say. – What makes him a good sailor? – He has been sailing for a long time, and he is very good with weather and wind and clouds and all that. He reads things. Of course, he has a good crew with him, we all do. But I think a lot lies with the king himself, says Knutsen. Photo: Trond Reidar Teigen / NTB Kongen has been an active sailor for 75 years. Prince Harald, as he was then, was only ten years old when he competed as a crew for the first time, according to Kongehuset.no. King Harald started sailing early. Here he is with his mother, Crown Princess Märtha, in the summer of 1939, when the little prince was two and a half years old. Photo: NTB The king is now honorary president of the International Sailing Federation and also of the International 8-metre Association. According to the website of the International 8-metre Federation, it is the highest award that can be given to someone who has made a special contribution to the sport. There, the king is described as “undoubtedly the most experienced 8-metre sailor in the world”. – He is much loved and respected internationally, says Knutsen. He too is impressed that King Harald, at the age of 85, is still sailing at a high level. – He perseveres, he. He is so competitive. He is no easy competitor to deal with, I can promise you that, says Knutsen. – I have both sailed with him and competed against him, and there is nothing dear mother in the yard. – I play most and best at the lake, the king himself has said. Photo: Trond Reidar Teigen / NTB
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King Harald climbed to the top ten in the World Cup – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
