Ida Svensson of the Royal Swedish Yacht Club won the opening race of the New York Yacht Club’s inaugural Women’s International Championship on Tuesday, taking the finish by less than a boat length.
The regatta, which began Saturday and runs through Sept. 19, is sailed out of the club’s Harbour Court on a fleet of 20 IC37s, the 37-foot keelboat designed by Mark Mills for the club. Twenty skippers from 14 countries are entered, with more than 200 sailors competing.
Race organizers moved Tuesday’s first start up an hour to 10 a.m., a decision that proved well-timed. A northerly faded through the morning and the sea breeze never filled. After waiting nearly two hours, the race committee sent the fleet in at 1 p.m. with only one race completed.
Canada’s Lisa Ross led most of the way, playing the right side of the course into a commanding first-beat lead and rounding the second beat about 200 meters clear. A late shift in unstable air cost her the podium entirely, and she finished fourth. Norway’s Ragna Agerup took second and American Megan Grapengeter-Rudnick third. Australia’s Karyn Gojnich was fifth.
Svensson’s boat climbed from seventh to third on the first downwind leg before taking the lead.
“We’re super happy,” said Johanna Sommarlund, who steered for Svensson’s team. “It was our first time together in the boat this regatta, so we didn’t have high expectations, but we worked a lot on our boat handling.”
Dawn Riley, the Sailing Hall of Fame member presenting the daily awards, told the fleet to trade contact information and stay in touch. “This is a powerful, powerful group,” she said. “Don’t be mean to the men, but go ahead and beat them.”
Racing continues Wednesday, with a building southwesterly forecast.
