Cameron Pimentel did his confidence no harm after an impressive display in a warm up regatta on the eve of the World Cup Regatta in Miami.

The Bermuda sailor placed tenth at the Lauderdale Olympic Classes regatta in a fleet of 46 Lasers and will now look to carry that momentum into the Sailing World Cup, which starts tomorrow.

“I ended up finishing tenth, which I was reasonably happy with,” Pimentel said.

The regatta was contested in variable conditions which kept the sailors on their toes.

“The Lauderdale Olympic Classes Regatta was an interesting event,” Pimentel said. “The conditions were completely different each day, with one day very light and the next day one of the windiest days of racing I have ever done with gusts to 35 knots.”

Pimentel arrived in Miami last week to get an early feel for the conditions and iron out any kinks in the final lead up to the Sailing World Cup Regatta, where he hopes to qualify for this summer’s Olympics in Rio.

“I came away with a few things that I have been working on this week leading up to Sailing World Cup Miami,” he said. “Physically I’m doing well, my fitness is good and we are doing short, intense training sessions with the other top sailors here in order to stay sharp for day one.

“Mentally I’m pretty relaxed but focused on the goal,” he said. “I’m not worrying about my competitors because the fleet is so big, I can only control what I do.”

Pimentel, fresh off an intense three-month training stint in South America, must finish as the top sailor from the North American region yet to qualify for the Olympics in order to realise his goal of reaching Rio.

“I’m just ready to do my absolute best and hopefully I can make it happen,” he said. “And if not there is always Tokyo 2020.”

Should Pimentel fall short in his Olympic bid he will be hoping to have done enough to earn one of the two wild-card spots available.

Also competing at the World Cup will be compatriot Cecilia Wollmann, who will also be chasing her Olympic dream.

Like Pimentel, Wollmann, who competes in the Laser Radial, will have to finish as the top North American in her class yet to qualify to book her ticket to Rio.

Should she fall short of her qualifying bid in Miami there is still the possibility of receiving a wild card to Rio.