Emilio Mendez (Maritip de Canido), Brandán Fernández (director of Vanguard), Antonio Roquette (president Portuguese Vela Federation) and Rui Amorín (president Clube de Vela Atlántico de Leixóes) with the winners (Photo Pedro Seoane)

The Spanish-Portuguese Mario Soares who competed for the Vela Viana do Castelo Clube, proclaimed himself an absolute winner of the Meeting Vanguard of Matosinhos, which organized the Atlantic Sailing Club of Leixóes, and marked the end of the Abanca Week. Despite the efforts of the judges, the wind and sea conditions in the waters of Porto, it was an insurmountable impediment to the hundreds of optimists from Spain and Portugal. It is worth the fact that on the splendid beach of Matosinhos, even the planned surfing competitions were cancelled... that if the spectacle of the haunted sea with waves more than eight meters high, they did the delights of the numerous spectators who gathered there.

From very early hour the environment in the facilities of the Leixóes Atlantic Sailing Clube was a kettle, but the fear was felt that everything would be cancelled. The sea broke with unusual strength, in the gigantic shroud of the docks of the oil refinery of Leixóes, and prudence advised to leave the Meeting Vanguard resolved with the results of Saturday. To highlight the excellent performance of two girls from the Marítimo de Canido, who managed to enter the female podium: Ling Jane and Paloma Pedrosa.

The event was attended by the president of the Portuguese Federation of Vela, former World and Olympic champion Antonio Roquette, who held a working lunch with the general secretary of the Abanca and Comodoro Week of the Maritime Club of Vigo Manuel Pedro Seoane and the newly appointed president of the Atlantic Sailing Club of Leixóes Rui Amorín. On the table a project that was already tried a few years ago and is no other than a great race of cruises, La Coruña-Vigo-Gran Porto, with the support of the Royal Nautical Club of La Coruña and that of the clubs cited. The president of the Portuguese candle presided over the award, in which was also present Brandán Fernández Fombellida director of Vanguard, who has sponsored this Meeting Vanguard of Matosinhos, which has been the guinda of the Abanca Week, which has ended in Portuguese waters in this edition.

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Final Classification

1º Mario Soares (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
2nd Lara Carvalho (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
3rd Guilherme Formoso (Sport Clube de Porto)
4th Tiago Lima (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
5th Henrique Marcelino (Sporting Clube de Aveiro)
6th Benedita Revelo (Sport Clube de Porto)
7th Luis Leite (Sport Clube de Porto)
8th José Luis Batista (Nautical Club Boca Barra de Aveiro)
9th Ling Jane (Vigo Canido Maritime Club)
10th Joao Marinheiro (Leixóes Atlantic Sailing Clube)
11th Tomé Pinto (Sport Clube de Porto)
12th Antonio Pires de Lima (Leixóes Atlantic Sailing Clube)
13th Paloma Pedrosa (Club Marítimo Canido de Vigo)
Fourteenth Francisco Fontaine (Sport Clube de Porto)
15 Luana Gonçalves (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
Sixteenth Pedro Marcelino (Sporting Clube de Aveiro)
Seventeenth Joana Mintalvao (Sport Clube de Porto)
18 ° Joao Pacheco (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
19th Sofia Lau (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
20 Tomás Gonçalves (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)

17 / 11 / 2018: Abanca Week: The Spanish-luso Mario Soares, first leader of the Meeting Vanguard in Leixóes

The judges in charge of Miguel Pinheiro were only able to complete a manga (Photo Pedro Seoane)

The Spanish-Portuguese Mario Soares who is competing for the Vela Viana do Castelo Clube, is the leader of the Meeting Vanguard of Matosinhos at the end of the first day, which organized the Atlantic Sailing Club of Leixóes, and which marks the end of the Abanca Week. For the second Sunday act of this Meeting reserved for the optimist class, with the beginning of the tests at 11: 00 in the morning.

A very irregular day lived in the waters of the great Port... with very strong wind at first hour of Saturday (more than 20 knots), which later with the fleet in the water would go down to the 15 of the south-east component and end on the last edges, of which would be only valid proof of the day, with only five knots of speed.

Moreover, in order to complicate the young regatists of Spain and Portugal, the waves were important, with a sea tended that made it very difficult for athletes. The domain was almost completely for the Lusian optimists, with the exception of the first place that fell on the side of this vineyard, which has double nationality and which competes in the Spanish races for the Maritimo Canido de Vigo, while in the official tests of Portugal (as in the case of the Meeting Vanguard) it does for Portugal.

To be noted also by Spanish, the good race of two of the young promises of the Galician candle: Ling Jane and Paloma Pedrosa, who still have options to end the first of this Meeting: for the moment Lig is the third in girls and Paloma the fourth.

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Day 1 classification

1º Mario Soares (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
2nd Lara Carvalho (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
3rd Guilherme Formoso (Sport Clube de Porto)
4th Tiago Lima (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
5th Henrique Marcelino (Sporting Clube de Aveiro)
6th Benedita Revelo (Sport Clube de Porto)
7th Luis Leite (Sport Clube de Porto)
8th José Luis Batista (Nautical Club Boca Barra de Aveiro)
9th Ling Jane (Vigo Canido Maritime Club)
10th Joao Marinheiro (Leixóes Atlantic Sailing Clube)
11th Tomé Pinto (Sport Clube de Porto)
12th Antonio Pires de Lima (Leixóes Atlantic Sailing Clube)
13th Paloma Pedrosa (Club Marítimo Canido de Vigo)
Fourteenth Francisco Fontaine (Sport Clube de Porto)
15 Luana Gonçalves (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
Sixteenth Pedro Marcelino (Sporting Clube de Aveiro)
Seventeenth Joana Mintalvao (Sport Clube de Porto)
18 ° Joao Pacheco (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
19th Sofia Lau (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)
20 Tomás Gonçalves (Clube de Vela Viana do Castelo)