Sunday, December 19, 2010

We are slowly moving to a new Site

http://kooracingteam.com/V1/index.php

We are still in the midst of updating our site
Check out our site before we officially opens it !

Sunday, December 12, 2010

TIME OUT :: Lifestyle

Charting her true course
> Match Racing champion Tiffany Koo, who has steered her way to the top in a sport dominated by men, talks about her passion and life


THE SHELL V-Power Women of Influence series salutes high-performing Malaysian women who have achieved remarkable success in their respective fields.
Two-time Match Racing champion Tiffany Koo is one such women. This sailor has proved herself undaunted by the competition from her stronger male counterparts in a sport dominated by men.

Through her skill, passion and perseverance, this SEA Games gold medal winner has demonstrated that a woman can rise above the rest to sail to the top of her game.

Tiffany, congratulations on your remarkable achievements. How do you manage to balance the challenges and demands of both your career and family?

For me, the secret is never to treat sailing as a job! I enjoy everything to do with sailing – from the boat repairs to the training, racing and race preparations, which require me to manage all the logistical matters of getting the boat and team together. Still I never consider sailing as a chore, and that always motivates me.


Because of work, I am often thousands of miles away from home (Kuala Lumpur). Thankfully, my family showers me with all the love, encouragement and support that I need.

I am also very fortunate to have a good role model – my brother Jeremy Koo (Malaysian Match Racing Champion 2010). We work and race together. He is my emotional support and mentor in both my sailing and personal life.

How and why did you get into this sport?

I was inspired by Jeremy and my older sister Emily who both represented the state in sailing back in the early 1990s. I joined their sailing trips when I was only six years old but it was all playground-type fun for me. I never had any formal training until the age of eight when my dad decided to put me on an optimist programme. That was when it all started and I hope it will never end!

Which challenge in your life you feel best define you as a person and why?

[Staying] highly motivated. I am always full of energy and enthusiastic about most things except bad hair days!

As a professional sailor, I always aim to participate in international competitions. However, these require a substantial amount of sponsorship to get the teams ready for the races.

[Getting] sponsorship ... is the biggest [challenge] for me and anyone in this sport professionally. Unlike football or tennis, sailing is perceived as a niche sport that only attracts a small audience group.

In order to overcome this, I need to maintain my high spirits, stay motivated and treat all setbacks as challenges and not obstacles that I cannot overcome.

As the captain of your own crew and a competitor in international events like the Monsoon Cup, how does this make you feel? What challenges did you have to face in getting to where you are today? Any regrets?

It makes me feel quite good actually. The fact that I have my own team in an international sailing event like the Monsoon Cup makes me feel very proud and spurs me to achieve better results in higher performance sailing events.

My achievements are also testimonials to all Asian women out there. It can happen – you only have to believe in yourself.

In fact, the biggest challenge faced is not being a woman in this sport but the lack of recognition for sailing as a mainstream sport. However ... I am hopeful that people will start taking sailing as a potential sport.

I have never regretted a moment of my sailing career. It has helped me in my personal development, improved my interpersonal skills and instilled in me teamwork – as you have to sail with a crew which consists of more than 12 people.

Sailing has also boosted my confidence tremendously and I have learnt so much through real-life experiences – things you would never learn in a classroom.

How do you manage your time with your busy schedule? And how do you make those important decisions that will affect not only yourself but also others working under you?

I am fortunate because sailing is my friend, hobby, work and my life; everything revolves around it.

And as long as I’m focused on achieving the ultimate goal – that is, to do my best in every race – then, decision making becomes easy.

For sailing, it is always crucial to remain focused and calm, and to anticipate [the unexpected] on land or at sea – you wouldn’t know what comes next and winning or losing could be due to one bad call.

What more would you like to achieve and find worth going after?

It has always been a dream of mine to participate in the Olympic Games. For the coming year, I hope to have acquired sufficient sponsorship to participate in the Women International Match Racing and the Open International Match Racing circuits.

I am also working on getting a team together and, more importantly, a highly-competitive boat such as the Transpac 52 (TP52) or a Russell Coutts 44 (RC44) to compete in the international racing circuit.

What are the qualities you feel women today need to have to be successful in life?

I believe most women can achieve whatever they want as long as they believe in themselves and their abilities. Self-confidence and motivation are also essential qualities to have.


This article is brought to you by Shell V-Power 97, designed for improved performance whatever you drive.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Malaysian Match Racing Team Ranking

Jeremy and Tiffany are currently rank 1st and 3rd respectively in Malaysia.
We will try to improve our ranking by 1st Quarter of 2011 !
Source :
http://www.sailing.org/9490.php?includeref=ranking3760&rankdiscipline=1&ranktype=1&rankclass=0&start=&sortfield=RankPosition&sortdirection=ASC&rankdate=2010-12-08&searchname=&searchtype=country&country-121=on

Pos NameCountryEvents Previous BestPoints
315Jeremy KooMAS3 5353151878
328Hazwan Hazim DermawanMAS4 3243221820
499 Tiffany Koo MAS 1
282 1104
579 Rizal Sazili MAS 2 919 579 930
608 Mohamad Razali Mansor MAS 3 348 318 875
629 Nik Ashraf Qaedi Nik Azizan MAS 1
629 828
829 Mohd Masyuri Rahmat MAS 2 544 544 564
838 Nurul Elia Anuar MAS 1 491 491 558
841 Nurulelia Anuar MAS 1
841 552
1071 Rolf Heemskerk MAS 1 689 680 372
1075 Ai Li Ng MAS 1 1070 410 369
1409 Hamdan Yahya MAS 1 1065 1024 186
1529 Jerome Welch MAS 1
1529 132
1592 Abdul Rahim Mohd Zan MAS 1 857 735 120
1774 Nasser Abu Bakar MAS 1 1582 1538 60
1786 Nazreen Abdul Ghani MAS 1 1622 1572 54
1800 Shaeizali Mohd Suhaimi MAS 1 1647 1597 48
1826 Mohd Rais Hashim MAS 1 1700 1641 42

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Moonsoon Cup :50 thousand reasons to smile

'Jeremy Koo in the Monsoon Cup' Subzero Images -Monsoon Cup © Click Here to view large photo
8:58 PM Sat 4 Dec 2010
'Jeremy Koo in the Monsoon Cup' Subzero Images -Monsoon Cup © Click Here to view large photo
Jeremy Koo (MAS) Koo Racing Team-Evernew ended his 2010 Monsoon Cup with another loss today but he still has 50 thousand reasons to smile. Despite finishing in 12th and last place, Jeremy and his crew will take home RM50,000 in the richest sailing competition in the world.

Jeremy, who lost all 11 of his matches in the Monsoon Cup, said the money is a good motivation for the team but also sends a message to the young sailors out there that there is money to be made from the sport.

“Firstly, I would like to apologise to all of those who have supported me as I failed to win a single match. I can only assure them that my team and I gave our very best but it was real tough against the elite skippers of the world,” said Jeremy, who was competing in his third Monsoon Cup but first as skipper.

“I learnt a lot from the event and hopefully, I can come back a better skipper next year and finally achieve my aim of winning a match or two.”
The Malaysian Match Racing Championship (MMRC) winner added: “I know many people don’t think we can make a living from sailing but I believe the Monsoon Cup shows that is not quite the case. Who knows, maybe a few more sailors will be encouraged to take up Match Racing when they realise there is some good money to be had.

“Having said that, people must realise this is not an easy sport. We have to be in tip top physical condition and work hard to secure sponsors. To be able to compete against the elite sailors, we need to race in more events and that involves a lot of money.”

Meanwhile, Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team and Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN stayed on course to win the ISAF Match Racing World title when they reached the semi-finals by beating Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR (3-0) and Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team (3-1) respectively.

Joining them in the final four are Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global Team who defeated Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar 3-1 and Jesper Radich (DEN) Gaastra Racing Team who edged Francesco Bruni (ITA) Team Azzurra 3-2.

Quarter-final Results
Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global Team bt Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar 3-1
Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN bt Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team 3-1
Jesper Radich (DEN) Gaastra Racing Team bt Francesco Bruni (ITA) Azzurra 3-2
Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team bt Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing 3-0




by Monsoon Cup Media

Jeremy: Full time skippers have the edge

12:58 PM Fri 3 Dec 2010 GMT

'Adam Minoprio vs Jeremy Koo. Qualifying session 3 at Monsoon Cup. Photo Subzero Images-WMRT' Subzero Images -Monsoon Cup © Click Here to view large photo He may not have achieved his targets, but Jeremy Koo (MAS) Koo Racing Team-Evernew will come away from the 2010 Monsoon Cup a better sailor.

The 29-year-old, who is competing in his third Monsoon Cup but first as skipper, has lost 10 of his 11 matches against the world’s best sailors with one more match left against four-time World Champion Dato’ Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing.

Prior to the competition, Jeremy, who crewed for his sister Tiffany in the 2006 and 2007 Monsoon Cup, said he wanted to avoid last place and/or win at least two matches to beat his sister’s record of being the only Malaysian to have won a match in the Monsoon Cup.

Tiffany won one match in 2006 while no other Malaysian skipper, be it Nurul Ain Md Isa or Hazwan Hazim Dermawan have been able to better that.

“I knew it was going to be difficult to achieve my targets but I always think positive and wanted to create some records. Having said that, the gap between the qualifiers and the full time sailors is obvious for all to see,” said the Malaysian Match Racing Champion.

Jeremy was referring to the positions of Phil Robertson (NZL) WAKA Racing and Keith Swinton (AUS) Black Swan Racing and who are 10th and 11th respectively. Robertson qualified for the Monsoon Cup by winning the Asian Match Racing Championship while Swinton made the cut from the Sunseeker Australia Cup.

The other nine skippers competing in the Monsoon Cup – Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team, Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing, Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN, Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team , Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar, Jesper Radich (DEN) Gaastra Racing Team – Francesco Bruni (ITA) Team Azzurra, Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing and Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global Team – all regularly sail on the World Match Racing Tour.

Meanwhile, defending World and Monsoon Cup Champion Minoprio crashed out of this year’s event when he finished with a 4-7 record, thus ending his chances of retaining the world title.

Tour leader Richard qualified for the quarter-finals with a 5-6 record and this result means that Williams, who leads the round robin with an 8-1 record, cannot overtake him in the standings. This leaves Ainslie and Mirsky as the only two skippers who can prevent Richard from winning his first world crown.

Monsoon Cup Round Robin Results (After 15 Flights)
1. Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar 8-1
2. Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN 8-2
3. Jesper Radich (DEN) Gaastra Racing Team 8-2
4. Francesco Bruni (ITA) Azzurra 6-3
5. Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global Team 6-4
6. Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team 6-5
7. Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team 5-6
8. Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team 4-5
9. Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing 4-7
10. Phil Robertson (NZL) ETNZ/WAKA Racing 2-7
11. Keith Swinton (AUS) Black Swan Racing
12. Jeremy Koo (MAS) Koo Racing Team-Evernew




by Monsoon Cup 2010 Media

DEFENDING CHAMPION SUFFERS SHOCK EXIT

KUALA TERENGGANU, Dec 3 (Bernama) -- The shock exit of current world champion Adam Minoprio has opened the door for Mathieu Richard and Ben Ainslie to make a no-holds barred charge for the 2010 World Match Racing Tour title.

Richard from France shot straight back into contention with his victory over Minoprio despite a string of disappointing performances throughout the week so over the final two days, the spotlight will fall on Richard, Torvar Mirsky from Australia and Ainslie.

Minoprio, the defending World and Monsoon Cup Champion Minoprio crashed out of this year’s event when he finished with a 4-7 record, thus ending his chances of retaining the world title.

Richard looks set to clinch the title but Ainslie and Torvar Mirsky can dent the Frenchman''s hopes of winning his first world crown.

Ainslie must win the regatta to land the title while Richard has to finish in the top two to beat Ainslie overall.

--MORE

SPORTS-MONSOON CUP 2 (LAST) KUALA TERENGGANU

Meanwhile, local hopeful Jeremy Koo who was sailing under Koo Racing Team-Evernew will come away from the 2010 Monsoon Cup a better sailor, despite not achieving his target.

The 29 year-old, who was competing in his third Monsoon Cup but first as skipper, has lost 10 of his 11 matches against the world’s best sailors with one more match left against four-time World Champion Datuk Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing.

Prior to the competition, Jeremy, who crewed for his sister Tiffany in the 2006 and 2007 Monsoon Cup, said he wanted to avoid last place or win at least two matches to beat his sister’s record of being the only Malaysian to have won a match in the Monsoon Cup.

Tiffany won one match in 2006 while no other Malaysian skipper, be it Nurul Ain Md Isa or Hazwan Hazim Dermawan have been able to better that.

"I knew it was going to be difficult to achieve my target but I always think positive and wanted to create some records. Having said that, the gap between the qualifiers and the full time sailors is obvious for all to see," said the Malaysian Match Racing Champion. Quarterfinalists: Ian Williams (Team GAC Pindar) 8-1; Ben Ainslie (TEAMORIGIN) 8-2; Jesper Radich (Gaastra Racing Team) 8-2; Francesco Bruni (Team Azzurra) 6-3; Bjorn Hansen (Hansen Global Team) 6-4; Torvar Mirsky (Mirsky Racing Team) 6-5; Peter Gilmour (YANMAR Racing) 4-5; Mathieu Richard (French Match Racing Team) 5-6.

-- BERNAMA

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Sibling Rivalry Pushing Jeremy To The Edge

12:49 PM Thu 2 Dec 2010 GMT
'Jeremy Koo during the press conference.' Subzero Images -Monsoon Cup © Click Here to view large photo Jeremy Koo (Mas) Koo Racing Team-Evernew has only three matches left to salvage his pride after suffering five further defeats in the Monsoon Cup at the five-star Ri-Yaz Heritage Marina Resort and Spa today.

The Selangor lad has now lost eight matches with three more flights before the end of the round robin classifications but all that matters to him is to get two wins from his remaining matches.

“My sister managed to win one match in 2006 and it will be terrible for me not to beat her,” joked Jeremy, who could still see the lighter side after a hard day in the office. “After I beat her in the Malaysian Match Racing Championship last month, it was always my goal to get more than one win in the Monsoon Cup. My initial target was not to finish last, but right now, I’ll settle for beating her record!”

Koo Racing Team-Evernew crea in action. - Subzero Images -Monsoon Cup Click Here to view large photo
As the only Malaysian sailor in the season-ending World Match Racing Tour (WMRT), Jeremy has his fair share of support, including a cheering leading squad lead by Permai Inn’s General Manager Azman Ali.

The 29-year-old said: “I hope I can spring an upset or two tomorrow as I really don’t want to disappoint my fans. It feels funny to think I have fans, but I guess being the only Malaysian in the field, means I’ll get everyone’s support and I really appreciate it.”

Jeremy faces a daunting task in his last three matches as he faces defending World and Monsoon Cup Champion Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ BlackMatch Racing, Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN and four-time World Champion Dato Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing.

Regardless of how he does, Jeremy promised we haven’t heard the last of him.

Meanwhile, two-time World Champion Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar leads the way with a perfect record after winning all seven of his matches, including wins over three of his four rivals ahead of him in the leaderboard.

After eight of the nine legs in the 2010 WMRT season, Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team (105 Points), Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing (90 Points), Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN (88 Points), Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team (76 Points) and Williams (72 Points), all have a mathematical chance of being crowned World Champion.

Williams did his chances a world of good by laying down the marker when he defeated Richard, Minoprio and Mirsky and will face Ainslie tomorrow.

“The real racing starts in the knock-out stages when we have the quarter-finals. I won two world titles entering the knockout stage in eighth place so it doesn’t really matter but it feels good to be leading,” said Williams.

For Williams to win the world title, he needs to win the Monsoon Cup and hope neither Ainslie nor Minoprio finish on the podium and Richard finishes outside the top eight. Richard, who has led the tour from the very first regatta in April, recovered from a poor start to be placed seventh with a 3-5 record.

Round Robin Results
1. Ian Williams (GBR) Team GAC Pindar 7-0
2. Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAMORIGIN 5-1
3. Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team 5-2
4. Jesper Radich (DEN) Gaastra Racing Team 5-2
5. Francesco Bruni (ITA) Azzurra 4-2
6. Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Hansen Global 3-3
7. Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team 3-5
8. Peter Gilmour (AUS) YANMAR Racing 2-4
9. Adam Minoprio (NZL) ETNZ/BlackMatch Racing 2-4
10. Keith Swinton (AUS) Black Swan Racing 2-4
11. Phil Robertson (NZL) WAKA Racing 2-5
12. Jeremy Koo (MAS) Koo Racing Team-Evernew




by Monsoon Cup Media 2010