France’s Philippe Presti of Le Defi Areva won the Swedish Match Tour’s ACI HT Cronet Cup, the seventh event on the world’s premier professional sailing series.

Presti opened the first-to-three-wins final by taking the first two matches against fellow countryman Bertrand Pace who now sails for Team New Zealand, and then watched the wily veteran battle back to even the score and force a fifth and deciding match.

In the petit finals Peter Holmberg and his Oracle Racing team rallied back after losing his opening match to Magnus Holmberg’s Team SeaLife to win two in a row and finish in third place. With his third place finish here this week Peter Holmberg clinched the Swedish Match Tour 2001/2 championship.

“We’re very excited to have won the Swedish Match Tour Championship,” said Peter Holmberg. “The Swedish Match Tour have the best teams in the world at each and every event and to finish on top of a leaderboard with some of these teams is a real credit to the Oracle Racing and our efforts all year.

The overall championship is the result of a year of consistent success on the Swedish Match Tour for Holmberg and his core match race team of John Cutler (tactics), Brad Webb (bow), Mike Sanderson (trim) and Robbie Naismith (pit). Holmberg and his crew never finished lower than third any of the six Swedish Match Tour events they entered.

For Magnus Holmberg, passing the torch of Swedish Match Tour champion was bittersweet. “Its tough to lose but congratulations to Peter and his team. They have sailed excellent all year and deserve it. I look forward to sailing against him next month in Marstrand.”

Overall Results

1. Philippe Presti, Le Defi Areva

2. Bertrand Pace, Team New Zealand

3. Peter Holmberg, Oracle Racing

4. Magnus Holmberg, SWE/Team SeaLife

5. Jes Gram-Hansen, DEN/Team Marienlyst

6. Andy Beadsworth, GBR Challenge

7. Tomislav Basic, Croatia

8. Chris Law, Great Britain

9. Bjorn Hansen, SWE/GOL Sailing Team

10. Paolo Cian, Masclazone Latino

Swedish Match Tour Leaderboard

1. Peter Holmberg, Oracle Racing 120 points

2. Magnus Holmberg, SWE/Team SeaLife 80

3. Jes Gram-Hansen, DEN/Team Marienlyst 75

4. Gavin Brady, Prada Challenge 62

5. Ed Baird, USA/Team Musto 35

6. Jesper Radich, Denmark 33

7. Ken Read, USA/Team Dennis Conner 27

8. Philippe Presti, Le Defi Areva 25