Who wouldn’t be up for a weekend filled with sun, a light breeze, and regattas in the Vigo estuary? This is, without doubt, a fantastic event and at Villalia we were lucky enough to enjoy April 2 and 3 as participants in the celebrations held on the penultimate day of the Villalia J70 Spring Series. This sporting event (a benchmark within the J70 circuit) has been supported by Villalia for a long time as proud main sponsor.
This penultimate and exciting event became a focal point for many thanks to the participation of several Olympic profiles from the world of national and international sailing. Four Olympic medallists, no less, provided fame and star quality at this regatta that keeps growing in popularity with an ever-increasing number of followers. But who were they, these familiar faces from Olympic sailing who didn’t want to miss out on the chance to participate in a top-level J70 regatta?
1. Tamara Echegoyen: a pro from Ourense. We are absolutely convinced that Tamara is one of the leading female profiles in Spanish Olympic sailing. In addition to winning an impressive Olympic gold in London 2012 (in the Elliott 6m class together with Sofía Toro and Ángela Pumariega), she also achieved a fourth place in Rio de Janeiro 2016 and in Tokyo 2020, in the 49er FX class.
In the penultimate event of the Villalia J70 Spring Series, Tamara Echegoyen participated in two races onboard the Sogacsa, which – at present – holds the fifth position in the provisional general classification.
2. Nico Martínez: If you followed the last Olympic Games in Tokyo the name Nico Martínez will definitely be familiar to you. Born in Vigo (our second home), Nico put Spain high on the leading board when he – together with his partner and friend Jordi Xammar – managed to achieve an impressive, very difficult bronze medal for our country in the 470 class.
His boat for the Villalia Spring J70 Series, is the Pazo de Cea: a vessel skippered by Ramón Ojea that (after the last races and waiting for the last race that will take place in May) is placed seventh in the provisional general classification.
3. Tönu and Toomas Töniste: The final two Olympic profiles who didn’t want to miss the chance to participate in the penultimate act of the Villalia Spring J70 Series were brothers Tönu and Toomas Töniste. The Lithuanians also have two medals (a silver from Seoul 1988 and a bronze from Barcelona 1992) in the 470 class. The brothers won these medals when representing the Olympic team of the Soviet Union.
Veterans as they are, they have lent their experience and indisputable skill when it comes to regattas to the Sail Cascais crew, which also includes the Portuguese Olympian Vasco Serpa. This vessel is currently fifth in the general standings.
An exciting weekend
The sun was shining and the conditions ideal in the Vigo estuary (with winds ranging from 12 to 18 knots from the northwest) as the racing weekend started with a bang from LaGuardia&Moreira.
This boat, skippered by the great Gonzalo Araújo, dominated in the Galician waters and stood out from the rest of the participants, putting some distance in in terms of the provisional general standing. Solventis and SailCascais stood on the podium this first day of the weekend.
