Hong Kong's Chan Wai-man dropped to fifth overall on the fifth day of the Oceanic Championships after two disappointing races yesterday, but the youngster was still able to advance to the medal race together with her older sister Wai-kei, who replaced her in second place after having an excellent day on the water of Port Phillip Bay, Melbourne. Sailing under beautiful conditions with a 15-20 knots breeze and full sunshine, Chan, who was second overall before the races, managed a 10th and a ninth position in races nine and 10. 'She [Wai-man] failed to get on to speed in the upwind legs, and was unable to point high enough to compete with the front of the fleet today in the rougher waters,' said Hong Kong coach Rene Appel. Wai-kei, meanwhile, had two good races to come fourth and third in the rough conditions. She moved up to second overall, tied with Duan Mingli of China on 38 points. China's Chen Qiubin, who won race nine and finished second in the following race, is still solidly in the lead with 27 points. Wai-man is on 43 points, three behind Yasuko Kkosuge of Japan. In the men's fleet, Ho Chi-ho of Hong Kong struggled somewhat with board speed in the rough conditions, finishing in 12th and ninth, and is now sixth overall with 81 points. Dutchman Casper Bouman is still in a comfortable lead after two second-place finishes yesterday and a score of 15 points after 10 races. The three other SAR representatives - Chan King-yin, Yu Wing-ho and Cheng Kwok-fai - failed to make it into the top 10 and will not be competing in today's medal race. The Oceanic Championships will, for the first time, test the new Olympic sailing format that will be used at the 2008 Olympic Games. Following the completion of 10 races yesterday, the top 10 contestants will carry their series scores through to the medal race from which the eventual winner will be decided. The medal race can not be discarded and double points will be awarded. In windsurfing competition the winner is the one with the fewest points. The regatta is also the first world ranking points event to use the new Olympic standard RS:X board.
