Royal St George Yacht Club's Johnny Flynn laid the foundations for victory with a flawless opening day before sealing the Waszp Irish National Championship after eight races at Ballyholme Yacht Club.
A fleet of 10 foiling dinghies raced over the weekend of 25-26 July in fresh west-north-west and north-west winds that regularly produced speeds in excess of 20 knots and tested even the most experienced sailors.
Saturday's four races proved decisive. Flynn won every race to establish a perfect overnight score, while Ballyholme Yacht Club's Rob Espey and Matt McGovern emerged as his closest challengers after an intense battle for second place.
The conditions changed again on Sunday as the breeze strengthened and swung north-west, removing the shelter that competitors had found close to the beach on the opening day. Race wins were shared between Flynn, Espey and McGovern as the chasing pair attempted to claw back Flynn's advantage.
Local Battle – Ballyholme Yacht Club sailors Rob Espey (right) and Matt McGovern race bow-to-bow during their closely fought duel for the runner-up position.
The final scores underline how important Flynn's opening-day clean sweep proved. Although Espey won two races on Sunday and never finished lower than second in the six scores that counted, Flynn's four consecutive victories on Saturday left him with enough of a cushion to absorb a pair of discarded fourth-place finishes and still claim the championship by two points.
McGovern completed the podium after producing one of the most consistent scorecards of the weekend. His results featured no finish worse than third among his counting races, but without a run of race wins he was unable to close the gap on the leading pair.
Behind the podium, Henry Start recovered from a difficult opening day to finish fourth overall, while Conor Paul completed the top five.
The race management team, led by Sheela Lewis, completed the full eight-race programme despite the challenging conditions, ensuring the championship was decided on the water.
Foiling Glory – Michael Ferguson of Ridgeway Rockbags and Ballyholme Yacht Club organiser Sheela Lewis present Johnny Flynn with the Waszp Irish National Championship trophy.
Overall Top Five
- Johnny Flynn (Royal St George Yacht Club) – 8 points (nett)
- Rob Espey (Ballyholme Yacht Club) – 10 points
- Matt McGovern (Ballyholme Yacht Club) – 14 points
- Henry Start (Royal St George Yacht Club) – 19 points
- Conor Paul (Lough Ree Yacht Club) – 36 points
Download full results below
