WAIS Sailing Update
Dear WAIS Partners, Supporters and Sponsors,
It has again been a busy period for sailing competitions and hot off the press are the results from the Team Racing World Championships which are being held in Perth.
WAIS sailors have teamed up, and the new Under 21 Team Racing World Champions have just won 3-0 to be crowned with their new World title. Peter Gilmour has been coaching them for the event, and I am sure they have gained valuable experience, which they will be able to takeinto the senior competition.
The team was lead by WAIS 49er sailor, Jasper Warren who now adds this World title to his 29er World title from 2008. He was joined by WAIS sailors David Gilmour, Luke Parkinson and Patrick Vos who have all just finished in the top three in their respective class National Championships in January.Together withtheirteam mates, Aimee Negri and Jamie Turner, this is a great win.
The 470 Nationals finished last week in Port Lincoln and the WA sailors managed to find their form in the second half of the regatta! The early races were in tricky windy conditions under the islands and this posed a big test for Mat Higgins and Tim Rechichi who, as a new team needed a little more time training at 30 knot speeds! A capsize hurt their score card, which cost them later with only one drop in the series. They managed to win a race against the current Gold Medallist Malcolm Page and his helm Mat Belcher who are also teaming up as a new combination. Finishing fifth overall, they were the best of the WA teams.
Hot on their transom were the girls, Stacey Omay and Chelsea Hall who had a tough second day with some equipment failure slowing them down, and this also cost them in the end, but one point behind Higgins, and sixth overall, they were still dominant in the Women’s category, finishing first, and the 470 Women National Champions for 2009.
Tristan Brown sailing with Tim Lynch are also a fairly new combination and as Tristan was still switching between Laser Radials and 470’s, they had a few races where they lost the lead to the more experienced 470 teams, due to sometight tactical positioning errors. They have been sailing better each day and are a team with much potential, finishing eighth overall.
Despite the squad having less coaching due to my foot injury and operation, the 470 teams sailed and competed well over the season, and made the most of other coaches who offered to help under the circumstances. I must thank Victor Kovalenko and Erik Stibbe for the time they spent with the WA teams, which helped them and I enormously.
The Open Team Racing Worlds is still on until the 8th of February, and I wish the WAIS sailors all the best for the next rounds of competition.
Many thanks to you all for your support and fair sailing,
Regards
Belinda