Strong Start for Ireland at Youth Sailing Worlds as Sienna Wright Takes ILCA 6 Lead in Brazil

12th December 2023

Ireland's 29er European Champions Ben O’Shaughnessy and Ethan Spain of Royal Cork YC and the National Yacht Club are lying seventh from 30 after day one of the Youth Sailing Worlds in Brazil Credit: World Sailing

Howth Yacht Club talent Sienna Wright leads the ILCA 6 fleet after the first day of racing at the Youth World Sailing Championships in Brazil, with a total of four Irish boats and six sailors competing in Armação dos Buzios.

Croatia’s Petra Marendic was declared an early overall leader in the female one-person class but then disqualified from race one, leaving Wright with a two-point lead at the top of the 45-boat fleet.

“It was a nice day on the water,” said Wright. “The wind was pretty nice, the waves were quite choppy, and there was quite a big swell out there, but the wind was up and down all day.”

The youth world championships scoreboard shows Sienna Wrigtht with a six-point lead in the ILCA 6 Female one person dinghy The 2023 Youth World championships scoreboard shows Sienna Wrigtht with a six-point lead in the ILCA 6 Female One-Person Dinghy

A strong Cork-Dublin youth sailing team sees three of the four Irish boats sitting in the top ten of their respective fleets after two races sailed.

Female 29er

Lucia Cullen and Alana Twomey (Royal St. George YC and Royal Cork YC) are lying sixth from 25 in the Female Skiff 29er class. A near-flawless opening day on the water fired Lewandowska and Maria Zmudzinska to the top of the 29er female standings.

The Polish pair won all three races to establish an early six-point lead over Fleur Babin and Sarah Jannin (FRA), with Laura Hamilton and Carolina Zager (USA) a further two points back despite a black flag in the opening race.

Male 29er

In the Male/Mixed 29er, a pair of victories handed Devaux and Revil (FRA) the overnight lead in the 29er Male/Mixed class. The French duo, who won the event in 2021, earned bullets in the day’s second and third races to end the day with a 12-point lead at the top of the standings after finishing fifth in the opening race. Ireland's 29er European Champions Ben O’Shaughnessy and Ethan Spain of Royal Cork YC and the National Yacht Club are lying seventh from 30.

Male ILCA 6

A pair of third-place finishes guided Hidde Schraffordt (NED) to the top of the ILCA 6 male standings after the first day of sailing, with Fiachra McDonnell of the Royal St. George YC lying 19th from 48.

There is no Irish representation in the 420, iQFOiL or Formula Kite classes.

Racing continues on Tuesday. Results are here

Published in World Sailing, Laser, 29er, Howth YC, Youth Sailing

Published in World Sailing

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World Sailing Information

World Sailing is the world governing body for the sport of sailing, officially recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

Founded in 1907, World Sailing's vision is for a world in which millions more people fall in love with sailing; inspired by the unique relationship between sport, technology and the forces of nature; we all work to protect the waters of the world.

World Sailing is made up of 144 Member National Authorities, the national governing bodies for sailing around the world and 117 World Sailing Class Associations.