Strong start for Defending Champion on Opening Day of 60th Congressional Cup
by World Match Racing Tour 30 Apr 22:18 PDT
April 30 – May 4, 2025
USA's Chris Poole with his Riptide Racing crew of Joachim Aschenbrenner, Ben Lamb, Mal Parker, Rob Scivenor, and Harry West on day 1 of the 60th Congressional Cup © Ian Roman / WMRT
USA's Chris Poole, defending champion of the Long Beach Yacht Club Congressional Cup leads the first day of the 60th Anniversary event with six straight wins in the opening round-robin stage.
After a light air morning, Long Beach's trademark sea breeze filled in by the afternoon, allowing the race committee to complete six flights, with three more to finish the first round robin.
Poole and his Riptide Racing team wasted no time asserting their dominance, going undefeated on the first day. With two Crimson Blazers already hanging in his closet, Poole is clearly gunning for a third consecutive title—and his performance today left little doubt that he's in form to do it.
"We had a great day today - the crew is working really well together and we are focusing on one race at a time, but a good start to the event for us and we will build on the momentum and keep improving this week," said Poole.
Switzerland's Eric Monnin, Australia's Cole Tapper, and local Long Beach Yacht Club's David Hood each finished the day on four wins and two losses, a strong opening showing from skippers with something to prove. Match racing veteran Monnin brings experience, finishing on the Congressional Cup podium several times but yet to clinch the event title. Tapper, current youth match racing world champion, is riding the momentum of a strong international season, and Hood showed poise under pressure in multiple close matches.
This year's lineup is a compelling blend of returning Congressional Cup veterans and new faces to the event. If today's results are any indication, the rookies came ready to play. Canada's Peter Wickwire finished the day with three wins, including veterans Monnin and Berntsson.
"Storm Match Racing is pretty excited about our first day. We've been watching Johnie [Berntsson] and Eric [Monnin] for a long time - we've sailed against them before and they have always cleaned us up, so it was a pretty cool day for us to beat them both" commented Wickwire.
Aggressive pre-starts, smart tactics, and plenty of tight finishes underscored the level of competition in this year's field and gave the spectators on Belmont Pier a front-and-center show with the action right at their feet.
With four more days of racing ahead, the leaderboard is only just starting to take shape—but one thing is certain: the road to the Crimson Blazer will be anything but easy.
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