ISAF Youth: Three NZ crew in top ten at regatta midpoint

Yachting New Zealand
Media Release

17 JUL 2012

ISAF Youth: Three NZ crew in top ten at regatta midpoint

Day three at the 2012 ISAF Youth World Championship marked the half way point of the regatta, and again the day started with more rain before the wind dropped completely.

Racing was initially delayed but once sailors left shore in the early afternoon, they managed to get two full races in a building breeze.

Head coach Ian Neely commented: “It was another crazy and difficult day with the weather. The 420 girls put in an awesome effort to get two good race scores, with each race sailed in completely different conditions.”

Again Ellie Copeland and Erica Dawson in the girls 420 have improved their overall standing with a hard earned third and fifth in their two races.

“We’re really happy to have consistent scores” said Ellie. “We finished the first race and both said that it was mentally exhausting. That really summed up the conditions today; our results were not easy to come by.”

Two other NZ crews are still in the top ten; Gemma Jones and Tomer Simhony are fifth in the SL16 (pictured above) and Alex Munro and Trent Rippey are eighth in the 29er fleet. Andrew McKenzie in the Laser Radial continues to climb up the score charts in recovery from the first day’s results, is now up to 22nd overall.

Day 3 Standings

5th- Gemma Jones and Tomer Simhony- SL16 Multihull (12, 4, 5, 5, 1, 6, 10)

6th- Ellie Copeland and Erica Dawson- Female 420 (1, 21, 10, 5, 11, 3, 5)

8th- Alex Munro and Trent Rippey: 29er skiff (17, 9, 8, 5, 4, 11, 6)

22nd- Andrew McKenzie- Laser Radial (59 BFD, 50, 18, 14, 14, 29, 12)

27th- Jayvee Buchanan and Matthew Morrison- Male 420 (13, 10, 28, 23, 20, 28, 26)

Tomorrow is a lay day and the NZL Yachting Trust Youth Team have opted for some rest and relaxation, catching up on some sleep followed up by a game of Frisbee in the park if the rain holds off.

This annual week-long regatta is regarded as the pinnacle event of the global youth sailing calendar, and is a significant step for many into the Olympic class pathways. Past Notable NZ winners include Russell Coutts, Dean Barker and Stuart Bannantyne.

To follow the NZL Yachting Trust Youth Team, ‘like’ Yachting New Zealand on Facebook , visit Y-SAIL on the YNZ website for exclusive youth content, or the full results on the official regatta website.

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