Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/248536
52 Sport maltatoday, SUNDAY, 26 JANUARY 2014 FORMULA 1 SAILING Ferrari launches the new F14 T The biggest international sailing event on the island can grow further FERRARI has become the second team to officially present its new car ahead of the 2014 F1 season. In an online launch on Saturday, the F14 T, which will be driven this year by Fernando Alonso and Kimi Räikkönen, was revealed. "The F14 T is the sixtieth car built by Ferrari specifically to take part in the F1 World Championship," read a statement from the Scuderia. "The name comes from the combination of the current year and the introduction of the turbocompressor in the Power Unit [and was chosen following a fan vote]." "Although the traditional gestation period for a new Formula 1 design is a little over twelve months, this project, which goes by the internal code name 665, began life more than two years ago. 2014 is an exceptional year in the history of the sport, with a raft of rule changes that commanded an early start to allow the ground up revision of every aspect of the car's design." "Followers of the Scuderia will be able to see some of the heritage of earlier Ferrari designs in the F14 T – the obvious areas of continuity are the pull-rod front and rear suspension," the Maranello-based team added. "However, beyond this superficial similarity there is little to connect the 2014 car to its predecessors. "Externally, the car is very different to the cars of recent years: changes to the regulations to lower the chassis and nose in the interests of driver safety give the F14 T a very different appearance to the F138 and presented the designers with a real challenge to repackage the front suspension into a much lower monocoque. "The 2014 rear wing family shares nothing with the previous year owing to three rule changes requiring a much larger stroke DRS, a much smaller overall rear wing depth and removal of the beam wing, thereby requiring the main plane to be supported by central pillars. "The front wing is regulated to be 75mm narrower per side in order to make it less vulnerable to collisions with other cars and with the barriers. This change, perhaps one of the less noticeable visual differences to the 2013 cars, has a profound effect on the aerodynamics of the vehicle. The front wings used since 2009 have all featured elaborate measures to encourage the wake of the front wing endplates to pass around the outside of the front tyres in order to maximize the downforce on the car. An innocent change of just 75mm to the position of the wing tip has required us to reinvent completely the front wing aerodynamics for 2014." Although the external differences are striking though, the 'largest areas of difference occur beneath the skin of the car'. "The new car has completely different cooling requirements from any of its predecessors," Ferrari explained. "Engine oil and water radiators shrink in size to match the relatively smaller V6 internal combustion part of the Power Unit. However, new homes had to be found to accommodate an intercooler for the turbo-compressor system and to manage heat rejection from ERS components that are many times greater than their KERS antecedents. Given that more cooling allows more horsepower, but more cooling also damages downforce generation it was necessary to decide very carefully on the correct level of overall cooling for the car to render the best lap time compromise between horsepower and downforce. This is one of the key areas where having both Power Unit and Chassis under one roof has been strongly to the benefit of the Scuderia." WILFRED SULTANA WITH 145 competitors from 10 nations - Belgium 1 sailor, Cyprus 6, India 7, Israel 8, Italy 21, Malta 50, Netherlands 1, Romania 2, Russia 32, and the United Kingdom 17 – the 14th Edition of Euromed Malta Championship held last December was a record entry which made it the biggest international sailing event on the Island. A span of fourteen years which from a modest start in the year 2000 saw the event grows in number and quality of participants to attain an internationally recognized Championship status. "I imagine that the main factor is our reputation of a great event where we have always done all the races....the serious approach….the perfect setting of the bay and the hotel...the hand of friendship and serene environment throughout the event…in other words the whole set up", observed Anna Rossi, Honorary Secretary of the Malta Young Sailors Club and a determining 'overseer' of Euromed in general. Ms Rossi reveals that "To achieve this and to bring over so many sailors is also due to the contacts I secured when I travel to events. I have worked in the race office of 2 European Championships and was also invited some years back to run the race office of the African Championships in Dar Es Salam as well as assisted in the race office in Dubai for their annual Optimist International event. Besides for the last 9 years I have always been invited by Fraglia Vela Riva of Trentino to assist in the race office of the biggest Optimist event organised. This event attracts between 900 and 1200 optimist sailors every year and 2 years ago they had 1500 sailors for which they won a mention in the Guinness Book of Records for the largest number of registered boats in a regatta. Through all these events over the years I have made many valuable contacts where the promotion of Euromed Malta is always a priority". The MYSC Secretary believes that with more helping hands Euromed can grow further as the biggest drawback facing the organizers is manpower more people on safety....more people on race committee......more people to help out on the shore and with all the jobs that need to be done to be able to have such an event. Euromed is full of the Maltese warmth and hospitality which the foreigners appreciate. In the last edition everyday after the races all the sailors and coaches were presented with a plate of pasta and an ice cream on the beach terrace of race office. This was followed by a free raffle giving away 25 prizes on each day which was enjoyed by one and all. The parents of the member-sailors play an invaluable part in the Malta Young Sailors Club set-up. They are a very important segment and great helpers. In fact a few weeks before the event starts the Club draws up a roster for jobs that need to be done up to and during the event and the parents fill in their slots. Luigi Bertini of the Federazione Italiana Vela was Jury Chairman of Euromed 2013 and was assisted by International Judges Rainer Kornfeld (Austria), Francois Salin and Fabio Furlani (Italy). This panel was backed by a National Jury team made up of Jovin Rausi and Godwin Zammit supported by the Malta Sailing Federation President, and MYSC Secretary, Anna Rossi, who ran the technical and logistic aspect of the event. Peter Dimech was the Championship's Principle Race Officer. Jury Chairman Luigi Bertini regards "The Event is certainly well organised and Mellieha Bay is the ideal place safety wise for the Optimist regattas. Winner 14-year old Fenella Bennett from the Royal Lymington Yacht Club in Hampshire The atmosphere of the Championship is relaxed and friendly and both the families and coaches who accompany their children are cooperative. Furthermore the draw of the gifts and the pasta party at the end of each day, increase socialization among all. In short, a beautiful race, friendly and technique also that naturally becomes a classic event for many nations". 3999 miles is quite a long distance to travel to enjoy some sailing. And that's how far the 7 young sailors from India had to travel to contest Euromed 2013. The team was accompanied by Umesh Naiksatam as coach and Kanthimathi Prabhakar as manager. "It was definitely a positive participation where the organization was well co-coordinated with the level of play being very competitive. The racing location was most appealing and we even had time to visit Gozo. Should there be another opportunity to come for the Euromed we would try to come earlier for our sailors to have more preevent practice and also to orient themselves to the cold temperature thus we would perform better. Special thanks go to Ms. Anna and to one and all at Malta Young Sailors Club, particularly to those Maltese sailors who gave our sailors their sails to enable them to participate in the regatta as some of our equipment arrived late", remarked India's team Manager Ms. Kanthimathi Prabhakar. The 4-day 9 races, with 7 to count, 2013 Euromed Malta Championship saw fourteen-year-old Fenella Bennett from the Royal Lymington Yacht Club in Hampshire winning the first Euromed title for Great Britain in the Event's 14-years history. Taking the final winners of the top three places in each of the five contested categories one find that the countries that made the podium were: Malta 8 winning places, Great Britain 3, Italy 2, Cyprus 1, and Russia 1. Peter Dimech the Championship's Principle Race Officer believes that "Euromed 2013 was another Optimist class sailing event success. I enjoyed seeing the competitive drive of the young sailors. The sailing skills, techniques and race strategy and rules knowledge that they display many times put older sailors to shame. While the younger beginners show an enthusiasm that encourages all. A big thank you goes to the dedicated people making up my team of race officers, jury and other on water helpers whose main aims are to provide safe, equally competitive sailing, in a family friendly environment". The Seabank Resort+Spa in Mellieha was the official hotel of Euromed 2013 while Maxima Lido on the sandy beach of Mellieha Bay housed the race office and the launching area of the Championship. The 2013 Euromed Malta Championship was organised by the Malta Young Sailors Club with the cooperation of the Kunsill Malti għall-iSport and the Mellieħa Local Council. The Mediterranean Bank was the main sponsor of Euromed 2013 held under the patronage of the Malta Sailing Federation.