The final day of the four day, Grant Thornton, Avolon and SeaChange Now sponsored Irish Optimist National Championships at the Royal St. George Yacht Club brought further light winds and blistering sunshine to Dublin Bay.
The hope was to sail two races in the Main Fleet to bring the complete race schedule to eight races. However, just one was sailed in a five to six knot northerly before perseverant race officers Ed Totterdell and David Lovegrove had no choice but to send sailors ashore as the breeze had reduced to two to four knots and was oscillating wildly.
GBR sailor Lila Edwards of Parkstone Yacht Club (PYC) continued her form with a fourth-place finish in the final race to take the Open Championship prize in the Senior Main Fleet, while IRL sailor Conor Cronin of MYC/RSGYC took the Irish Championship prize with Caoilinn Geraghty- McDonnell (RSGYC) in second and Harry Dunne (HYC) in third.
In the Junior Main fleet, GBR sailors Eliana Edwards (PYC), Jonny Rogers (Royal Limington YC) and Harry Draper (PYC) took first, second and third place, respectively, in the Open Championship prize category, while Emily Donagh (LDYC/RSGYC), Kate Spain (HYC) and Max O’Hare (RSGYC) took first, second and third place in the Irish Championship category.
After ten races in the Regatta Racing fleet, Aureiele Dion (NYC) was first, with Oliver Ryan (MYC/RSGYC) in second and GBR sailor Finn Byrne (Royal Southern) in third. Irish sailor Alex Butcher (MYC) took third in the Irish Championship prize.
In the Regatta Coached fleet, RSGYC sailors Adam Anderson, Jessica Walsh and Rebecca Murdock took first, second and third place, respectively.
At the sun-kissed closing ceremony, Mary Hanafin, Cathaoirleach of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, highlighted the success of the female sailors across all categories and encouraged them to continue sailing and sports pursuits, especially through their formative teenage years. Mark Hennessey, RSGYC Vice Commodore, thanked the Cathaoirleach and DLRCOCO for their support of the event, particularly granting access to the Carlisle Pier for boat and trailer parking.
Irish Optimist Championship Prizegiving 2022 at Royal St. George Yacht Club by Andrew Clonan
Brendan Foley, Event Chairman, thanked the forty GBR sailors, their parents and coaches for making the trip over, which very much added to the fun and competitive nature of the event.
The Royal St George put on a masterclass in event management, with many visiting sailors saying it was the best event they had attended in quite some time. The sun most definitely helped add to the festival feel, but without the seventy-plus volunteers working tirelessly behind the scenes, this event simply would not have been the great success it was.
