Jul 24, 2023
Spain has achieved in Los Angeles its first victory in the history of SailGp. After three seasons of trying, "the roosters" have been the first to cross the finish line in the final of the Oracle Los Angeles Sail Grand Prix.
The Spanish team, led by Diego Botin has gone from strength to strength in this second event of the fourth season. The F50 Victoria that competed in Los Angeles was composed by: Diego Botin, Florian Trittel, Joel Rodriguez, Nicole van der Velden, Joan Cardona, Stewart Dodson and Bernardo Freitas, who competed in one race.
The effort and hard work put in by Diego Botin's team in the first two heats in the first two days of the competition led them to be able to compete for the final of the event on the last day. In the final, they had to compete against Australia and Denmark.
From the starting gun, the Australian team looked uncomfortable due to the low wind pressure that prevented them from lifting their skates. This situation was further accentuated when the Danes pulled off an incredible maneuver that snatched second place and pushed them even further away from victory. Still, despite their third place finish in Los Angeles, Australia remains first in the rankings.
Faced with these finals, they were not all with Spain. The competition was strong with two very experienced boats to compete with and difficult weather conditions. However, Spain made the most of the start and took the lead, and from there on, never let up.
Finally, the race ended with a well-deserved Spanish victory, which gives confidence to the Spanish team to face the season and achieve a better overall ranking, after finishing last in the third season. In this fourth season, they are already second in the general classification, although only two championships have been disputed so far.