Between April 28th and May 1st, the Monsaraz Nautical Center will host the Monsaraz/Alqueva – Iberian Cup 2012, considered the most important event of the year at the Iberian level in Formula Windsurfing.
This championship, which will be held at the Grande Lago Alqueva, will be scored in the national rankings, the Spanish Cups (Spanish ranking, with the support of the Royal Spanish Federation), the Formula Windsurfing World Class, but also in the new European ranking. .
A novelty, as this will be the opening race of the European Cup, which will have eight stages: Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany, Poland, Greece, Estonia and Croatia.
At Monsaraz/Alqueva – Iberian Cup 2012, a competition organized by the Portuguese Sailing Federation, Portuguese Windsurfing Association and Lagos Sailing Club together with the Municipality of Reguengos de Monsaraz, around 50 athletes from eight countries are expected, with the guarantee of participation of two professionals at the invitation of the international association, namely the current national champion Miguel Martinho and the Spanish champion, Fernando Martinez.
The Iberian Cup Championship is a competition consolidated since 2009 at national, Iberian and world level, having this year it rose in category, moving to Class 2 and therefore scoring a point for the world ranking, increasing the interest of athletes from more countries . Last year, the Iberian Cup 2011 had the participation of Portugal, Spain, Netherlands, Brazil and Estonia, with a fleet of 40 athletes.
Formula Windsurfing was created in 1999 with the objective of being a class with a strong vocation for competition, but also to reduce the amount of material that an athlete has to carry for each championship, as they will only be able to enter one board, three sails and two ends (board keel).
Thus, it becomes easier for an amateur to compete with professionals, since there is greater balance and therefore the technique and tactics of the sailor themselves stand out. This class has a wind range of 7 to 35 knots to carry out the tests, which also reduces the physical capacity of each athlete.
Monsaraz/Alqueva – Iberian Cup 2012 has a great international visibility, as it is one of the first races of the year, all athletes want to know what material is being used and how the sailors are competing at the beginning of the championship.
The organization of the competition intends to promote internationally the exceptional conditions that the Great Lake Alqueva provides for the practice of sports such as sailing and windsurfing, promoting the region so that in the future it can host a European or world championship in the Formula Windsurfing class.
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