Game on for 29er Youth Crews at Victorian Youth Championships

by David Price on 15 Apr 2012 Midway through this weekend’s OAMPS Victorian Youth Championship 2012 the scene could not be more compelling and exciting with the series lead changing on day one after each of the seven races oscillating between 2012 AUS Youth Team 29er crew Tom Siganto and Joel Turner from Queensland and 2012 NSWIS athletes Harry Price and Nathan Edwards.

Complementing this electrifying atmosphere was an outstanding and welcomed comeback performance from Victoria’s gun youth skipper Tess Lloyd and crewmate Lewis Duncan comfortably lying in third place returning to the water again after Tess’ serious incident back in January’s AUS Youth Championship.

Also clearly benefiting from their recent three day AUS Youth Sailing Squad Training Camp at Sorrento was a further strong and consistent performance from NSW Youth Sailing Team crew Nina Long and Ben Robinson staking out fourth position with local Victorians Phillipa and Eliza Solly, and Oliver Kalpokas and Thomas Trotman crews level pegging in fifth and sixth places.

The regatta is the first of the 2012 Youth Sailing Grand Prix series in line with the Yachting Australia’s High Performance Strategy and the Australian Sports Commission’s ‘Pathway to Success’, building a stronger national domestic competition that encourages youth participation and competition in youth sailing.

With only one point separating the first two crews and a tightly bunched afterguard handful of places there will be no quarter given on day two amongst the fourteen youth crews battling it out to claim first blood in the coveted series.

Day 1 Scoreboard

1 SIGANTO, Tom TURNER, Joel Seriously Guided 1929 SPYC (2) 1 2 1 1 2 1 10 8
2 PRICE, Harry EDWARDS, Nathan Crunchie 29er 1407 MH16'SSC 1 2 1 2 (6) 1 2 15 9
3 LLOYD, Tess 193 SSCBC 3 3 3 (5) 2 3 3 22 17
4 LONG, Nina ROBINSON, Ben 29er AUS 1696 B16ftSC 4 (6) 4 4 4 6 4 32 26
5 SOLLY, Philippa SOLLY, Eliza Soll' Sisters 29er AUS1404 SYC 5 (15)
BFG 8 3 5 4 6 46 31
6 KALPOKAS, Oliver TROTMAN, Thomas 129 SSCBC, SYC, RBYC (8) 5 5 6 3 5 7 39 31
7 STONE, Sinead CITTADINI, Mitchell AUS1875 29er AUS1875 AWYC 6 7 6 (9) 7 8 5 48 39
8 ABBOTT, Jack EAST, Bevan TBC 29er 1940 MSC 7 4 7 7 (15)
BFD 7 8 55 40
9 FORD, Jemma Two Girls Dont Make A Brain AUS1000 MSC (10) 8 9 8 8 10 9 62 52
10 MCLENNAN, James REEVE, Jack Vahalla 29er 1575 RBYC,SYC,BRYC 9 9 12 12 10 (13) 10 75 62
11 SILVESTER, ALICE EAST, Kieren DANIELLA MIA 29er 1675 RBYC/MSC/SYC 11 10 10 11 (12) 11 11 76 64
12 BURNS, Gemma SILVESTER, Eloise Addiction 29er 2059 BYS/SYC 12 11 11 (13) 11 12 12 82 69
13 FECHT, Mussimo JAMES, Ed Outside The Square 465 SYC (15)
DSQ 15 DSQ 15 DNF 10 9 9 13 86 71
14 BROWN, Hayden RIETMAN, Harrison tba 100 BYS 13 12 13 (15)