Albert Batzill

Albert "Alba" Batzill ( born December 14, 1952 in Friedrichshafen, Baden- Württemberg ) is a German racing sailor. He is a four-time world champion in the class of boat Flying Dutchman. Overall, he steered with changing fellow sailors in the boat classes Fireball, Shark 24, Flying Dutchman, Soling and now on 6mR and ( in the amateur class ) on Melges -24- yachts at European and World Championships ten times to gold, five silver - and seven bronze medals to. 1988 and 1992 took Batzill the Flying Dutchman in the Olympics and arrived digit placements.

In 2004 he was elected to the sailing magazine Yacht to one of the 100 best sailors of all time. Batzill starts for the Württemberg Yacht Club in Friedrichshafen and is an honorary member of the sailing club Alpsee Immenstadt.

Sailing career

Dinghies, especially Flying Dutchman

Albert Batzill sailed first with his about two years younger brother Rudolf; already at that time Albert helmsman, Rudolf was foredeck. Together they won the 1970 discharged during the Travemünde Week German youth championship in Corsair and in 1971 to the Swedish Arild European champion in Fireball. In 1974 she ersegelten in Sandhamn in the winning crew the world championship in the keelboat class Shark 24; its almost the same Cousins ​​Jörg and Eckart Diesch had won the title two years earlier.

In 1974 she rose to the boot class Flying Dutchman, and in the following year they brought with it the bronze medal at the European Championships. As they attracted attention in the elimination race for the 1976 Olympics, the Batzill brothers were sent as backup crew to the Games to Canada. However, they were not used. Instead, the Diesch brothers had qualified to compete and win Olympic gold medals.

1978 fought Albert and Rudolf Batzill before Hayling Iceland, before the English Hampshire, her first world title with a Flying Dutchman. So that you referred the Diesch brothers, who had won the runner-up last year and led to the first passages, to second place. After a runner-up title in 1980, Albert and Rudolf Batzill were 1981 again on the podium, while their cousins ​​again ersegelten silver.

Also in 1984 won Batzill the World Cup, now with the Munich Vorschoter Klaus turning. 1986, subject to the Diesch brothers and won the runner-up title. With the Immenstädter bowman Peter Lang 1988 Batzill took a bronze medal at the European Championships. In the same year, at the age of 35 years and ten years after his first Flying Dutchman World Championship title, Batzill first participated in the Olympic Games, which were held in 1988 in Korea; Batzill and long reached in Busan eighth.

Furthermore, with long sailing took Batzill 1989 his fourth world title in the Flying Dutchman and a year later his first World Championship bronze medal. 1991 was followed by another bronze medal at the European Championships. At the Olympic Games in 1992 reached Batzill and Lang, now antretend for a united Germany, in the Flying Dutchman 5th place

Keelboats: Soling, 6mR, Melges 24

After Batzill, had initially celebrated success especially in dinghies to the Shark -24 World Championship title in 1974, he turned in the nineties, the keelboats to. After the 1992 Olympics Batzill competed in several competitions Soling. He was before the Slovenian Portoroz Vice-European Champion and before the Greek Phalerum Vice World Champion 1993. In 1994 he was on the Soling German champion and won in the Soling Match Racing Championship in Starnberg the bronze medal. In the match racing Pre- Olympic Regatta in 1994 in Savannah, USA, he also reached the third place. In the following Soling competitions and championships ( held with fleet start, not as a match race ) in 1994 and 1995 he succeeded, however, only two-digit rankings. His best ISAF world ranking results were the 7th rank for the match race rankings in April 1994 and the 4th place ( open, ie fleet start) in January 1995.

As of 1999, sailed Batzill in the class of 6 -meter ( " 6mR " ) -Modern yachts as helmsman and tactician with owner Dietrich Grunau Eddy Eich. They first sailed though on front seats, but won no championships. 2004 Batzill was with his crew on the yacht 6mR Courage VII (6 ENG 104) third in the Championship before nordsardinischen Porto Rotondo. With the new boat Courage IX (GER- 118) followed in July 2005 to the Swedish Sandhamn the world champion and in June 2006 in Flensburg, the European champion. In July 2007 Batzill steered the boat to the bronze medal at the World Championship before the English Cowes, Isle of Wight, in June 2008, again for the title of European Champion.

In parallel, Batzill sails on Melges -24- yachts, a class of boat with increasingly more sophisticated participants. In September 2001, he was on the Vito (GER- 507) before the Italian Torbole Europe - runner with just 0.6 points behind the winner Cedric Pouligny. In June 2004, he won at the Volvo Cup Regatta on the No Woman No Cry (GER -582 ) of owner Eddy Eich Rimini before the silver medal after finishing the same point with the Italian champions under Andrea Rachelli. In December 2005, followed in the Melges 24 World Championship bronze medal at Oak's Courage X ( GER -582 ) in the Corinthian standings, which will be held under the boats with pure amateur crews; in the overall standings took the boat No. 19 At the European Championships in September 2005 before the English took Torquay Batzill with No Woman No Cry eventually the title in the Corinthian standings and fourth in the overall standings. The World Cup In 2006, No Woman No Cry with Batzill at the helm, although as the best boat, but in the overall standings only on the 26th place from; at the European Championships in August 2007 contributed Batzill the yacht only 17th (30 participants ) in the amateur class Corinthian Division (ranked 48 in the overall standings ).

Medals at World and European Championships

Private life

Albert Batzill grew up with his brother Edward, Rudolf and sister Heidi, the son of a dentist, in Friedrichshafen. Albert Batzill is married and has 4 children. At times he ran the organic farm Rösslerhof in schlier ( Ravensburg ) in Baden- Württemberg. Later he moved to a small time farming operation. His brother Rudolf, with the Albert Batzill celebrated his first success, has been working as a doctor.