Sharp Australian Youth Match Racing Championship – Day 2

by Olivia Price on 22 Oct 2016 It was another spectacular day on Sydney Harbour for the second day of competition at the Sharp Australian Youth Match Racing Championship. The iconic Sydney building sea breeze, which peaked at 25knots in the afternoon, again tested all crews from Western Australia, Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales.

The Race Committee had a short delay whilst the breeze settled in, but at 10:30am, racing for round robin two of the series got under way. It was another long day on the water for competitors and officials completing ten flights, now with only six remaining to complete qualifying; a triple round robin stage, before the knock-out flights begin.

A stable sea breeze resulted in some very close matches throughout the day. None more so than the match against the two female skippers in the regatta. Clare Costanzo (RPAYC) led off the line and around the majority of the race track against Claudia Thackray (RSYS), but having infringed in the pre-start, Costanzo was unable to complete the penalty turn before finishing, allowing Thackray through to take the win.

Yesterday’s leader, Will Dargaville (RPAYC), again found himself in a tight match against the world’s highest ranked youth skipper, Harry Price (CYCA). Yesterday, Price received a double penalty whilst Dargaville ultimately took the win, yet today saw Price inflict two penalties on his opponent and raced to a comfortable race win. This also gave Price the overall lead for the regatta.

“Today we sailed pretty well. We executed our game plan the majority of the time and my team in front of me of Ben Robinson, Harry Morton, Jim Cooley and Hugo Stoner did a great job of getting us around the race course”, commented Price, who went undefeated in today’s matches.

The second last flight of the day produced some drama with Thackray being issued with the first black flag of the regatta against Queenslander James Hodgson (SCSC/MYC). The team from Mooloolaba Yacht Club continue to trail in third place behind Price and Dargaville, with Tom Grimes (CYCA) holding onto the fourth semi-finals berth for now, two points clear of their nearest rival.

There are still six flights remaining, and it is anyone’s guess as to who will make it through to the semi-finals. The Race Committee is confident in completing the qualifying stage tomorrow, with another solid 15-24 knots predicted for the afternoon. Racing will resume at 10:00am in the vicinity of Rushcutters Bay. Racing can be followed live via the CYCA website or on the CYCA Youth Sailing Academy Facebook page.