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Spirited Performance from 49er Duo Ryan Seaton & Séafra Guilfoyle at Oceania Championships

3rd February 2020
49er sailors Ryan Seaton and Seafra Guilfoyle 49er sailors Ryan Seaton and Seafra Guilfoyle Credit: Sailing Energy

Irish Olympic 49er campaigners Ryan Seaton and Séafra Guilfoyle put in a spirited performance in the 74-strong fleet at the 2020 Oceania Championships at Geelong near Melbourne, which ended today.

They posted a set of results which included a second, seventh, eighth and 14th, giving them an overall placing of 34th, approximately halfway up in what was in fact a world-class entry and ten places ahead of the other Irish pair competing, Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove.

Winners were the Spanish pair Diego Botin le Chever and Iago Lopez Marre with five first places from eight, with the New Zealand team of Peter Burling and Blair Tuke in second place.

Seaton and Guilfoyle entered under Carrickfergus Sailing Club, but Seaton has been a regular in the past at Ballyholme where he and former crew Matt McGovern trained for the London and Rio Olympics. Guilfoyle is a member of Royal Cork.

An Irish Olympic 49er Trials will be held in Genoa in a bid to secure the final Tokyo 2020 place. More on the Irish Trials procedure here,

Betty Armstrong

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Betty Armstrong

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Betty Armstrong is Afloat and Yachting Life's Northern Ireland Correspondent. Betty grew up racing dinghies but now sails a more sedate Dehler 36 around County Down

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