The two-time German club champions from the Norddeutscher RegattVerein have won the first of two qualifying regattas for the 2017 Champions League final. Before St. Petersburg, helmsman Johannes Polgar, Niklas von Meyerinck, Florian Weser and Klaas Höpcke sat in 48 races with a total of 44 points against the runner-up Fredrikshavn Sejklub (46.4 points) and the host Saint Petersburg Yacht Club (47.6 points) with taxwoman AnnBasalkind through. The Hamburg team thus easily qualified for the Champions League final in front of Porto Cervo in September.
Here the NRV team is still chasing the competition, later the Hamburg team escaped everyone
The second German team in the ambitious Champions League fleet, on the other hand, did not find the wave of success: The Chiemsee Yacht Club ended the three-day regatt in front of the picture-perfect backdrop of St. Petersburg in bottom position 21st. Carl Gerlach, Markus Ostermaier, Wolfgang Böttger and Quirin Landinger presented differently. Only the best 13 club teams from this first qualifying round make it to the finals in Italian waters. The second qualification takes place in front of St. Moritz. There another 15 club teams can qualify for the final.
The team at Club Voile St. Quentin has their hands full
The NRV, in whose home area on the Hamburg Outer Alster the 1st Media Cup was held on Sunday, did not start ideally in the qualification ahead of St. Petersburg with a sixth place, but got better and better in the final and dominated the fleet finally with three daily victories and a second place in the last four races. "We just have fun sailing, we are a great team," said Klaas Höpcke, while his teammates waved the German flag after their victory and smacked their favorite Lotto King Karl song: "Hamburg, my pearl!"
You can find the results here
The local heroes from the Saint Petersburg Yacht Club sailed to third place on the podium with helmswoman AnnBasalkin