MEDALISTS DOMINATE THE SCENE

The Pearson Marine 470 Class Japan Championships 2023 started on September 7 at Yuriage Yacht Harbor (Yuriage Higashisuga, Natori City, Miyagi Prefecture). On the first day of racing, three races were held.  Keiju Okada/Miho Yoshioka (Toyota Motor East Japan/Benesse Holdings), gold medalists at the 2023 World Championships, finished first overall with a 3-1-1 score. Bronze medalists of the 2023 World Championship, Tetsuya Isozaki/Yurie Seki (Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd.) are in second place overall with a 1-2-3 score.

Miho Yoshioka commented: "In the first race, I made a mistake in choosing the right side of the course, but in the second race, I was able to catch the wind on the left side as we had analyzed to be favorable through practice. (The wind is forecast to pick up tomorrow.) When the wind picks up, I think I will be able to leverage speed. Yurie Seki commented “I wanted to finish first in all the races today, but the boat sometimes stalled and I missed the chance.”  Ai Yoshida and Yugo Yoshida (Q'Sfix/Pearson Marine Japan), well-seasoned leaders of the Japanese sailing scene, followed in third place. Ai Yoshida is a talented sailor who won the women's title at the 2018 World Championships and has competed in four consecutive Olympic Games since Beijing. She is sailing with her husband, Yugo Yoshida (Japan's representative at the London Olympics), since this spring. Yoshida/Yoshida will be competing in a new Pearson boat in this year's event, targeting for selection of next year's Japan team. On the first day of the competition, the winds were light, ranging from 6 to 10 knots, and the currents changed from hour to hour. The performance of the boats differed in some situations, so in addition to the competitiveness of sailing, the choice of boats and gear used was also important. The first day of racing has just finished, but the teams aiming for the Paris Olympics are consistently in the top places, and the qualifying races will continue on the second day of the 8-day event. 

More info: https://222.alljpn470.org