Kontides wins World Championship race in Hyeres

Cypriot sailor Pavlos Kontides on Sunday thanked the whole team behind him as he marked the end of a podium drought winning gold in the Laser category at the World Championships in Hyeres.

“The ‘Wimbledon of Sailing’ has finished and I am very happy for the gold. It was a very intense medal race,” he said.

It is the forth time Kontides has won gold in a World Cup.

The medal race, the Cypriot sailor said, was a race with a lot of nerves and very little wind.

“The positions were constantly changing. I made the right choice and managed from positions 5-6 to climb to positions 1-2. In the end I managed to stay second,” he said.

“It’s been almost three years for me to get back on the podium and that vindicates the effort of the whole team to which I am very grateful,” Kontides, now ranked number one in the Laser World Rankings, said.

“It is very important that the podium is coming to Hyeres, in a historic race,” he added.

His success was also commented on by President Nicos Anastasiades. “A big victory for our country. You have done us proud,” he said.

His next race will be in Mexico on May 24, again as part of the World Championship.