Dutchman crew happy with second place in world titles

Press, 12 July 1988, Page 41

Dutchman crew happy with second place in world titles

NZPA London New Zealand’s Flying Dutchman crew, Murray Jones and Greg Knowles, head home this week for final Olympic preparations, happy with their second place at the world championships in the Netherlands at the week-end. The Kiwis finished close behind the Olympic favourite, Joergen Bojsen-Moller, of Denmark, and clear of the third and fourth-placed crews in the seven-race series.

“We’re happy that we’re getting close to BojsenMoller,” Jones said. “We’ve got a little more work to do but there’s not much in it,” he said.

The Auckland crew came within a couple of metres of winning an exciting final race on Saturday, finishing second behind Laurent Delage, of France.

They needed to win the race and Bojsen-Moller to finish seventh or worse to

take the championship. It looked possible for much of the race. The New Zealanders were at the front of the 50-boat fleet throughout, while the Dane trailed back in ninth place.

“Even on the second to last leg on the flat run, it looked like we could do it,” Jones said. But on the last beat, Bojsen-Moller followed the Kiwis to one side of the course. Jones and Knowles improved to second place on a favourable windshift, but the Dane got up to third.

Bojsen-Moller took the title with 25.4 points from Jones and Knowles on 35, Thierry Berger of France well back on 58 and Delage on 66.7. The New Zealanders had race results of second, first, eleventh, first, fifteenth, seventh and second.

Heading back to New Zealand after their boat is shipped to Pusan this week,

the two will work on their sails and test them in a borrowed boat.

“We’ve learned quite a bit from this regatta so we can make some very small modifications,” Jones said.

“Once we’ve done that, the thing is to use them to know how to set them up in all conditions,” he said.

Apart from those changes, the New Zealanders are satisfied with their new preparations.

“We seem to be sailing consistently well and our speed is not a problem at all,” he said. "We got beaten by a guy who sailed a little more consistently and a bit better than us,” Jones said. Both yachtsmen will return to work in Auckland — Jones to his mast-building business and Knowles to his job with accountants.

They plan to sail as much as possible until leaving for Pusan in early September.