EUROSAF European Youth Championships – British sailors on the podium

by RYA on 31 Jul 2015 As sailors head into the third day of racing at the EUROSAF European Youth Sailing Championships, Brest, France, four British Youth Sailing Team boats sit in podium spots.

Lymington’s Jenny Cropley and Emma Baker, from Weirwood, lead the girls’ 420, Jack Cookson in the Laser Radial and 29er sailors Anna Prescott-Eve Townsend (Hayling Island Sailing Club) sit in silver medal position. SL16 team Eddie Bridle and James King (Brightlingsea) are nine points from first in bronze.

Some 28 British sailors are out in Brest competing for European honours at the EUROSAF Championships.

The British representatives were selected off the back of their 2015 RYA Youth National Championships performance, held at Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy back in April. Racing started on Wednesday (29 July) and will continue until Saturday (1 August). Sunday (2 August) will see the top ten boats battle it out in a double points medal race.

420
A one hour protest on Thursday (30 July) evening confirmed Cropley and Baker as the current leaders in the 420 girls’. They are being chased by Germans Sofie Schone and Line Johanna Thieleman, who have one four of the six races, but also count a starting penalty.

With only one discard available, minimising risk is key explains Cropley, who turns 17 today: “It’s extremely shifty, one moment one boat will be in the lead and the next moment it will be a different boat. It’s just about keeping consistent and not banging the corners, sometimes the corners will make you do really well and sometimes they won’t. It’s just about staying in the middle of the course.”

Isle of Wight’s Dan Atherton and Matt Viney from Cardiff are fifth, they also count a starting penalty, a consistent day may move them onto the podium when the discard comes into play. In ninth are Warsash brothers Alex and Robbie King. An injury for Gemma Viney has prevented her and crew Tilly Matthews continuing with the week of racing and she is now back in the UK.

Laser Radial

Laser Radial Youth European bronze medallist, Jack Cookson is in silver medal position after six races and just a point away from Italian, Gianmarco Planchestainer, in first.

“It was warmer than yesterday, which was nice, but just as shifty,” began Cookson from Portland.
“I am feeling pretty good, just a point off first. All my races are good, I am just trying to stay consistent and we will see how it goes for the rest of the week.”

Team-mate Daniel Whiteley (Pwllheli) won the first race of the event and is sixth. Karyna Manuel (Grafham Water) has also scored a first but counts a starting penalty in eighth and Ellie Brown (Beaver SC) is 11th.

29er
Prescott-Townsend’s consistency has put them second on the leader board at this half-way stage, mastering the shifty conditions explains Prescott: “We feel really confident, we like shifty conditions, we just play them and it’s simple for us. We know what we are doing.

“We are pleased with our position at the moment, five points behind first but another five behind us to third.”
Townsend continued: “We didn’t know what the competition was going to be like, we knew it was going to be tough but we are really happy to be at the top with just a few points off first.”

European champions, Mimi El-Khazindar and Emma Loveridge from Stratford-upon-Avon are ten points behind their teammates in fourth. In the boys’ fleet Sutton’s Daniel Venables and Patrick Keech are third just one point from second. Ollie Aldridge and Nathaniel Gordon (Parkstone YC) are ninth.

SL16
“It’s really good, it’s great to be on the podium,” said an excited Bridle.
“A few more decent races tomorrow, maybe first or seconds and we could move up the board a bit more.”
Bridle and King, both from Brightlingsea, are in bronze medal position and are happy playing the shifty conditions: “It’s been really shifty, we don’t usually play them in the catamarans [SL16] but we have been playing them and making lots of gains out of it,” concluded Bridle.
Parkstone sailors Jack Butters and Sam James are seventh.

RS:X
Emily Hall, racing in girl’s windsurfer is fourth, touching distance from the podium while Alice Read is seventh.
In the boy’s RS:X Cameron Coghill and James Hatcher sit in seventh and eighth respectively.
Racing continues each day until a double points medal race on Sunday 2 August.