Mallorcan Paula Barceló returns to competition after injury at the 49er FX European Championship

Paula Barceló, from Club Nàutic s’Arenal, returned to competition yesterday after the leg injury she suffered on Wednesday, July 8th.

The 49er, 49er FX and Nacra 17 European Championship completed its third day of racing on Thursday, July 9th, in Eckernförde, Germany, with conditions completely different from the previous day. With the racecourse closer to the shore and after winds of more than 25 knots and numerous capsizes on Wednesday, the breeze eased, allowing for a more tactical day, although conditions remained highly unstable.

The day was particularly important for the 49er class, which completed the qualifying phase and established the gold, silver and bronze groups for the remainder of the championship. In 49er FX, meanwhile, the final phase began, with the fleets already divided into gold and silver groups.

The reigning European champions, Martín and Jaime Wizner (RCN Vigo), secured their place in the gold group despite a difficult day. The Galician sailors recorded results of 14-(25) in the two races held and currently sit 18th overall, remaining among the top 25 in a championship featuring 97 boats.

The remaining Spanish representatives will compete in the silver group, all of them members of the RFEV’s 2032 team. Among them, Álex and Pol Marsans (CN Arenys de Mar) completed a solid day with results of 6-19 and continue to show promising form at the European Championship. In the eight races held so far, they have achieved four top-ten finishes within their group, demonstrating the potential of a crew that continues to develop. As Álex explains: “We are in a very demanding fleet, with the best 49er sailors in the world. Mistakes are not forgiven here, and you learn a great deal very quickly because the pace of competition is extremely intense.”

In 49er FX, the final phase began with all four Spanish crews placed in the silver group.

After the incident on Wednesday, Paula Barceló, from Club Nàutic s’Arenal, and María Cantero (RCN Gran Canaria) were able to return to competition. The reigning world runners-up recorded results of 3-21-1 in the silver fleet despite the setback suffered the previous day.

Barceló, who required several stitches after suffering a cut to her leg, was pleased to have been able to return to the water: “I feel much better than yesterday. Today we were able to sail, even though it was in the silver group. We felt comfortable, enjoyed ourselves and stayed focused on sailing. We are approaching the remaining days with great motivation. The forecast indicates light winds, and the days ahead will probably be challenging in the silver group, as it usually includes the lighter crews. We will keep working and refining details so that we can return to the top in the next regatta.”

Cantero also viewed the return to racing positively: “We are happy to have been able to sail. Yesterday was a big scare, but it seems everything has turned out fine. You can always take something positive from every situation, and today was a perfect day to keep working and fine-tune a few details that we still had pending.”

The best Spanish performers of the day were Pati Suárez (RCN Vigo) and Melania Henke from Real Club Náutico de Palma, with results of 5-7-2.

Alicia Fras and Elena Barrio (RCN Gran Canaria) are in 34th place overall, while the young 2032 team sailors Stella Enríquez (RCN Vigo) and Nicola Sadler (CNA) continue gaining international experience. After an early start in the first race left them unable to score, they responded with third and eighth-place finishes in the following two races.

Enríquez and Sadler began sailing together last October and have since been preparing their move towards the elite level, training between the Centro Galego de Vela in Vilagarcía de Arousa and the CEAR in Santander.

For Enríquez, competing at this European Championship represents “a great opportunity to continue growing.” “We are surrounded by outstanding sailors, including Olympic champions and runners-up, and our goal is to learn, improve and identify the areas we need to keep working on over the coming months,” she explained.

Sadler is already looking ahead to the next major event of the season: “Here we want to sail surrounded by many boats, compete in very tight starts and see where we stand ahead of the Youth World Championship, which will be held in the Netherlands in ten days.”

After failing to score on Wednesday, Joan Cardona from Real Club Náutico de Palma and Nicole van der Velden returned to normal competition in the Nacra 17 class. The Spanish crew improved throughout the day and, after results of 21-9, finished with a fourth place that moved them up to 20th overall in the Olympic catamaran standings.

The work of the Royal Spanish Sailing Federation and its national teams, including the Olympic programme and the 2032 team, is made possible thanks to the support of a strong network of institutions and companies committed to sailing, the sport that has delivered the most Olympic gold medals for Spain.

The RFEV is sponsored by Iberdrola, Quirónprevención and Loterías y Apuestas del Estado. Its institutional sponsors include the Spanish Sports Council, the Spanish Olympic Committee and Universo Mujer, together with the Port Authority of Santander and the Government of Cantabria (through the Department of Culture, Tourism and Sport, Deporte Cantabria and the Regional Society for Culture and Sport). Official suppliers include Azul Marino, Nippon Express, Murimar Seguros, Marinepool and Enovis, with ADESP and World Sailing as institutional partners.