QS 3 - Group 5: The South American spirit

Two groups of four teams will race in Round 3 of the SSL Gold Cup 2022 Qualifying Series, taking place in Lake Neuchatel, Grandson (Switzerland) from June 9-12.

In Group 5, four South American teams will battle each other to get one of the two qualifying tickets for the Finals in Bahrain this November.

SSL Team Chile (SSL World n°28)
Team Nickname: Finis Terrae Sailors
Captain: Pablo Lorca
Motto: Sons of the Southern Winds

The feared Cape Horn, the cold Chiloé fjords, the swell and strong winds of the central coast, and the calm of the North Sea are the schools that have forged Chileans' mettle, a team of strong and resilient sailors. From the end of the world, they come to surprise and compete as equals against the greatest nations of sailors and inscribe their names in foreign waters.

The Chilean team is made up of varied personalities that, when complementing each other, transform it into an unbeatable team. With years of experience, eager youngsters, international championships, individual and team triumphs and defeats, this Chilean team is well prepared to show off on the water.

Squad: Felipe Echenique, Rodrigo Amunátegui, Felipe Robles, Ignacio Moraga, Rodrigo Robles, Andrés Ducasse, Andrés Guevara, Tomas Middleton, Pablo Herman, Luis Felipe Herman, Benjamin Grez, Rodrigo Ducasse, Juan Esteban Sanchez, Alberto Gonzalez Jr, Carlos Vergara, Nicolas Robertson, Santiago Lorca A.

SSL Team Peru (SSL World n°43)
Team Nickname: Paracas Warriors
Captain: Stefano Peschiera
Motto: Arriba Peru!

Proud of its long high seas heritage, SSL Team Peru is looking to leave a mark in modern sailing and set a standard for generations to come. As far back as 100 BCE, their ancestors started the sport to travel longer distances to conquer more areas and fish. They would build rafts between 6 and 11 meters long, carrying loads between 10-30 tons and capable of speeds of 4-5 knots. It's believed Peruvian indigenous people were able to reach the coasts of Mexico and even Polynesia to do trade. Today, there is a famous regatta called “The Great Regatta of The Century”, held in the town of Cabo Blanco, in the North of Lima, also known for its great surfing waves and fishing records. The regatta consists of a gathering of about 30 traditional fishing sailing boats from around the zone and setting up a long-distance course that local fishermen, together with Peruvian sailors, sail through and compete for the cup. Winning it is an honor for the fishermen and their crews.

Our team combines experienced sailors with the spirit of youth - competitive young sailors motivated to learn and adapt to the Gold Cup boat, the SSL 47. Counting several world titles and Olympic participation amongst us, we have the right mindset and capability to challenge any other team for the cup.

We have demonstrated that we become stronger and tough to beat when Peruvians get together to achieve a goal. We are extremely excited to take this challenge and to be part of the qualified nations to fight for the cup.

Squad: Joaquín Razetto, Augusto Nicolini, Alonso Collantes, Renzo Sanguineti, Luis Olcese, Javier Arribas Harten, Cristina Salinas, Christian Sas, Jean Paul de Trazegnies, Eduardo Cano, Pachin Arribas, Daniel Mendoza, Diego Figueroa, Florencia Chiarella, Ismael Muelle, Esteban Montalbetti, Jorge Castro.

SSL Team Uruguay (SSL World n°36)
Team Nickname: La Celeste
Captain: Ricardo Fabini
Motto: Blood of Champions

With a vast sporting tradition, Uruguay is known worldwide for its four football World titles (2 Olympics, 2 World Cups). Sporting glory in other disciplines has over time fallen behind and, in the last decades, few of our athletes have succeeded on the global stage.

Nevertheless, Uruguayan Sailing has proved it's worth, putting forward sailors to many international contests and titles. This small country has managed to qualify sailors for every edition of the Olympics since 1984 and has obtained medals in each of the last five editions of the Panam Games, being more successful than any other sport for the country. Additionally, Uruguayans have conquered Senior and Junior World Titles in Snipe, Laser, and ORC.

Now it is time for La Celeste - the traditional color and name of the national shirt - to take the stage in the SSL Gold Cup and allow again this little country to dream of the ultimate glory.

Squad: Diego Stefani, Federico Caballero, Dolores Moreira, Pablo Defazio Abella, Roberto Fabini, Hernán Umpierre, Fernando Díz, Dominique Knupell.

SSL Team Venezuela (SSL World n°64)
Team Nickname: Los Caciques
Captain: Andres Lage
Motto: Vela y Federacion!

Situated in the north of the south American continent, Venezuela has a shore line that gives it access to the Caribbean sea as well as the Atlantic Ocean. One of the most populated countries of South America, Venezuela has had plenty of potential sailors to choose from. Historically being a safe land for pirates in the 18^th century the Venezuelan attachment to the sea is strong. We come to the SSL Gold Cup excited and ready to compete against the best of the best.

Squad: José Ruiz, Johny Bilbao, Yamil Saba, José Gutiérrez, Jose Bilbao, Andrea Saba, Gonzalo Cendra, Ricardo Martos, Martin Nespereira, Rodrigo Favela, Chiquinquira Gonzalez, Aldo Salvadori

June 9 & 10 - Follow races on tracker

June 11 & 12 - Follow races LIVE on YouTube

DID YOU KNOW?

Sailing has its own World Cup, finally! Like football in 1930 and rugby in 1987, the SSL Gold Cup is designed to crown the best sailing nation of all! The World's Top 56 countries, selected on their SSL Nation ranking, will battle their way through to raise the coveted and only Sailing World Cup trophy.

The SSL Gold Cup 2022 started on May 19th with the Qualifying Series in Grandson, Lake Neuchatel (Switzerland). All teams ranked from the Top 25 to 56 in the SSL Nations Ranking (based on January 2022's standings) will meet in eight groups of four teams each. There will be five stages, or rounds, until July 17th.

Only the top two teams of each group will go through to the Final Series that will take place from October 28th to November 20th, 2022, in Bahrain.