Ian Williams and GAC Pindar retain Monsoon Cup

ISKANDAR PUTERI: Ian Williams of Great Britain today retained the Monsoon Cup
that he won last year after defeating his nearest rival Taylor Canfield of the US
Virgin Islands in the final at Puteri Harbour here. Williams' GAC Pindar team
defeated Canfield's USA One 3-0 in the final with Sweden's Bjorn Hansen and
Nautiska Racing finishing third after defeating Switzerland's Eric Monnin and
Team Sailbox 2-0 in the petit final. The win, which is Williams' fourth in the
Monsoon Cup, also means that he became the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT)
2105/2016 champion for a record sixth time, while Canfield and Hansen finished
second and third respectively in the WMRT standings. The prizes were presented
to the winners by the Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, who also
officially closed the competition, which is being held in Johor for the second time.
Also present were the Permaisuri of Johor Raja Zarith Sofiah Sultan Idris Shah,
the Tunku Mahkota of Johor Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, Youth and Sports
Minister Khairy Jamaluddin and Johor State Assembly Speaker Tan Sri Mohamad
Aziz. Speaking to the media after the closing ceremony, Khairy said the Monsoon
Cup had become an event that all sailing fans looked forward to every year and
had given a lot of publicity to Malaysia. "This year, I have seen an improvement
in the performance of our local sailor Hazwan Hazim Dermawan, who won two of
his races. This is a good sign for the sport in Malaysia," said Khairy. He said the
Monsoon Cup is one of two events that the ministry sponsored, the other being
Le Tour De Langkawi.