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Daniel Copithorne of Schull and Matt Mapplebeck of Crosshaven are “Sailors of the Month (Junior Nationals)” for September.

1st October 2026
Cup Retained: Daniel Copithorne and Matt Mapplebeck (centre) celebrate a second successive Irish Sailing Junior Champions’ Cup victory in Schull, with bronze medallists Dylan O’Driscoll and Aidan O’Reilly (left) and silver medallists Leo West-Hurst and Jackson Clark (right)
Cup Retained: Sailors of the Month for September Daniel Copithorne and Matt Mapplebeck (centre) celebrate a second successive Irish Sailing Junior Champions’ Cup victory in Schull, with bronze medallists Dylan O’Driscoll and Aidan O’Reilly (left) and silver medallists Leo West-Hurst and Jackson Clark (right)

Daniel Copithorne of Schull and Matt Mapplebeck of Crosshaven are Afloat.ie’s “Sailors of the Month (Junior Nationals)” for September.

Autumn sailing and the Irish Sailing Junior Champions’ Cup at the Fastnet Marine Outdoor Education Centre in Schull are now neatly entwined in the Irish sailing calendar, and a truly all-Ireland line-up of teams set the scene for the 2026 edition.

Yet despite the best intentions of the opposition, Daniel Copithorne of Schull Harbour Sailing Club, crewed by Matt Mapplebeck of Royal Cork Yacht Club at Crosshaven, retained the title — and the Junior Sailors of the Month accolade with it.

It was a second successive victory in the event for Copithorne and Mapplebeck, who also won the Junior Champions’ Cup in Schull in 2025.

Their September success continued a strong 2026 season for the West Cork pairing, which included victory in the 420 Southerns at Royal Cork Yacht Club in March.

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