Balearic women sailors triumph at the Spanish Women's Snipe Championship

The Balearic-Basque duo, made up of Sara Franceschi (Club Marítimo Mahón) and Silvia Mercé (RCM Abra–Sporting Club), have been crowned champions of the Spanish Women's Snipe Championship. The event began last Friday, May 2, and concluded this Sunday, May 4.

Participants completed a total of six races out of the eight scheduled, under tough wind and sea conditions—especially on Sunday, when only two races were completed. Saturday offered more favorable conditions for both the fleet and the race committee, allowing four races to be held.

With a strong westerly wind nearing the limit and the schedule advanced by an hour, the first race began shortly after 11:00 a.m. The Franceschi–Mercé team pulled ahead early after the start, giving their opponents little chance. Only the duo from Club Marítimo Mahón—Roser Gregori and Blanca Sintes—and the team of Alicia Martínez (RCN de Valencia) and Miriam Sitges (Club Marítimo San Antonio de la Playa) were able to keep pace in the two-lap triangle course.

The finishing order remained unchanged, with Franceschi and Mercé in first place, followed by Gregori and Sintes, and Martínez and Sitges. Another race win for the Balearic and Basque sailors brought them within reach of the championship title.

But then the wind became the main obstacle to this great celebration of women's Snipe sailing in the Gulf of Valencia. With gusts nearing and at times exceeding the limit—reaching peaks of 19–20 knots—the race committee launched the second race of the day on the same triangle course.

The script repeated itself: Franceschi and Mercé had a strong start and positioned themselves at the front early on. They held onto their lead to secure another win—their second of the day and fourth overall. With first place sealed, all eyes turned to the battles behind them, which could dramatically affect the final podium.

Second place became clear and was secured by the Valencia-Murcia pair Rosa Foruria (RCN de Valencia) and María Valverde (CN Los Nietos), thanks to their second-place finish. Despite not doing better than fifth in the first race, the discard rule ensured them the silver medal in Valencia.

Bronze, however, was still undecided. Although Canary Islands sailors Cristina Martínez and Rosa Padrón (RCN Gran Canaria) were strong contenders, it wasn’t their day—finishing 9th and 10th—moving them out of podium contention. This opened the door for Balearic sailors Gregori and Sintes, whose second and third place finishes put them solidly on the podium.

With the results from the six races and the discard applied, Franceschi and Mercé are the new Spanish Women's Snipe Champions with 6 points, followed by Foruria and Valverde with 13 points, and Gregori and Sintes with 17. In the special categories, Foruria and Valverde took home the Master Trophy, while Gregori and Sintes won the Youth Trophy.