48th Palamós Christmas Race Overall
by Jaume Soler 22 Dec 19:22 UTC
18-22 December 2024
The 48th Palamós Christmas Race crowned its winners after four days of intense competition in the waters of the bay of Palamós (Girona), with a very high international participation with teams from 16 countries represented.
Szymon Kolka and Bartosz Zmudzinski (29er) as winners of the Trofeu Diputació de Girona for the best absolute junior and the Polish Hanna Rogowskaya (ILCA 6 Women) as the best Olympic class crew, took the special prizes.
The other champions in ILCA 4 were the Argentinean Bruno Römer in the men's and men's categories and the French Elena Ezraty in the women's category. In ILCA 6, Switzerland's Ulysse Raison in the men's and men's categories and Poland's Hanna Rogowskaya. In 420, the Italians Alessio Cindolo and Sara Valente in the men's 420 and Giulia and Flavia Schultze in the women's 420 and in 29er, Antonina Puchowska and Alijca Dampc in the women's 29er and the Belgians Lotte Meyne and Quinten Opstaele in the mixed category.
On the last day only one race could be sailed in the 420 and 29er classes as the wind blew with only 6 knots of intensity, which meant that the two ILCA classes were unable to race at all.
All the leaders were able to stay in the lead on the final day, in the classes that were able to race there were no changes.
In the 420 class the Italian crews confirmed their hegemony with first and second places, taken by Alessio Cindolo/Sara Valente, followed by Nicolas Margaria/Edouardo Cavero. Third place went to the Spanish crew of Maria Blanco/Alex Camps (CN El Balís). In the women's category, the podium was made up of the Italians Giulia/Flavia Schultze and Ludovica Pastorino/Sara Derin Bottero and third place went to the Balearic Neus Fernández/Martina Gomila (CN s'Arenal).
Meanwhile, in the 29er class, which premiered the EuroCup 2025 circuit in Palamós, the winning crew and first leader of the season was the Polish Kolka/Zmudzinski, with their compatriots Puchowska/Dancj in second place and women's winners. Third place went to Swiss pair Ikke Huber and Liam Berger. In the women's category, behind the Polish crew, the podium was won by Inés Martín-Urda/Natalia Méndez (RCN Gran Canaria) from the Canary Islands and third place went to Carlijn van Surkum/Djamila Troelstra from the Netherlands. While in the mixed category the podium was made up of Meynen/Opstaele, the Italians Maria Busato/Agnese Campagnolo, second and the Dutch Leona Vierling/Rick Dieperink, third.
In the individual classes, in ILCA 4, the big winner was the Argentinean Römer, the only leader from start to finish and the great sensation. After the Argentinean, the Swiss Leanne Turrin has been the one who has followed in his wake, being the winner in the women's category. The third place overall and second male, the Catalan Joan Camats (CN Arenys de Mar) and third the French Castel Castel. In the women's category after the Swiss, the runner-up was the Catalan Mireia Garriga (CN Sant Feliu de Guíxols) and third the French Elena Ezraty.
In ILCA 6 the triumph was for the Swiss Ulysse Raison, followed by the Italian Rayene El Haddadi, who came to dispute the leadership of Raison. Third was the Spanish Guillem de Llano (CN Sant Feliu de Guíxols). In the women's category, Hanna Rogowskaya won, followed by the Ukrainian Sofiia Naumenko and the Swiss Viktoria Jedlinska in third place.
The prize-giving ceremony took place in the Platja Gran Village and was attended by the President of the CN Costa Brava/Vela Palamós, Eduard Sallés; the Secretary General of the Catalan Government's Department of Sport, Abel García; the Director of the Girona Territorial Sports Service, Narcís Casass; the Councillor for Economic Promotion, Toni Bachiller; the Councillor for Sports, Yolanda Aguilar; and the President of the Catalan Sailing Federation, Josep Maria Isern; Manel Albalat.
Full Results available here.