Runners and riders

We take a look at the favorites to win this years Hobie 16 World Championship in South Africa

The organization of the 17th Hobie Cat 16 World Championships 2005, has received over two hundred pre-entries. These teams represent 28 countries, of which 10 are European. They will all compete for the World titles in the Nelson Mandela Bay of Port Elizabeth in South-Africa. From Tuesday 25 October until Friday 4 November, the heat is on. The fleet is very competitive with current and past champions, like Cedric Bader and Yann Montoya (FRA) who won this year's Hobie 16 Youth Europeans, as well as the Open, but equally so, the 13 time South African Champion Blaine and Roxanne Dodds. They won the world title in 1998. And former Hobie 16 World Champion Shaun Ferry from South Africa will also keep the top runners working hard.

The history of the Hobie 16 Worlds shows that the Australians have been the most successful with six victories. Fourteen Aussie teams will go for a seventh victory, but Bob Enwirda and Anna Wenmmo and Tim Shuwalow and Cameron Hooper are the strongest candidates. They can expect tough competition of many other top sailors, like the current Hobie 16 Youth World Champion Jerome Legal (FRA). He is now too old to defend that title, therefore he and Mickael Siret are aiming at taking the open class. Christophe Renaud de Malet and Alban Rossollin, also from France, will try to better their sixth position of last year. Other top ten potentials are Mark Laruffa (ITA), Stephan Rumph and Kim Liedtke (GER) and former World Champion (1994) Enrique Figueroa with Carla Malatrasi (PUR). Enrique Figueroa has a wonderful season winning the Hobie Tiger Worlds earlier in the year. Then following that up by winning the North American Hobie 16 Championships. A dark horse, from Guatamala, is young Juan Maegli, who finished fourth at the Cancun Hobie 16 Worlds 2004.

The womens fleet is competitive as well, with last year's winners Pamela Noriega of Mexico and Marie Duvignac and Pauline Thevenot (FRA) who won the Women Europeans 2005. Other favourites are Morgane Laurancy and Marion Pennaneach (FRA) and former ISAF Women's World Champion Inge Schubort (RSA.

The Hobie 16 Youth World Championship 2005 will be exciting with several potential winners. The battle for gold will most likely be between France, Great Britain and Guatemala: Tom Phipps and Jon Cook (GBR), the Hobie 16 ISAF Youth World Champions 2004, against Euope's best team Cedric Bader and Yann Montoya (FRA) with Guatemala's Juani Maegli and Cristina Guirola fresh from their second place in the north American Open Hobie 16 Championships. The first Hobie Dragoon World Champions ever, Richard and Andrew Glover from Great Britain, have switched to the Hobie 16 and will try their luck in South Africa.

South Africans, are in general very competitive Hobie 16 sailors, so it is not surprising that two past World Champions of this country are racing for the Masters title. In 1978, Colin and Matthew Whitebread took the victory in the second Hobie 16 Worlds in Texas. Twenty years later, Blaine and Roxanne Dodds triumphed, in Sotogrande, Spain.

Hobie Beach, part of the Nelson Mandela Bay of the coastal city of Port Elizabeth, will be the event's venue. The sailing conditions are excellent with calm and warm waters and fair breezes. For those who do not compete, the area offers many opportunities to explore. It is the gateway to the garden route, a highly regarded coastal stretch with natural lagoons, bustling wildlife, abundant forests and friendly people. It leads to Cape Town, some 800 kilometers to the west.

The 17th Hobie Cat 16 World Championships start on Tuesday 25 October with the Women, Youth, Master and Grand Master series. The competition takes three days until Thursday 27 October, whereafter the three day Open Qualifier begins. The top 112 teams will go to the Semi-Finals from 31 October until 2 November. The best 56 competitors sail the Finals on the last two days. The Organising Authority is the International Hobie Class Association (IHCA) in conjunction with Worldsports and the South African Hobie Class Association under the authority of South Africa Sailing.