Youth Sailing World Championships - Aussie youth start strongly despite protest
by David Sygall 11 Dec 2017 18:12 PST
9-16 December 2017
Featherstone Henry - Youth Sailing World Championships 2017 © Jesus Renedo
The Australian Sailing Youth Team will enter the second day of competition at the Youth Sailing World Championships in China sitting in second place in two events, though a late setback threatened to take the wind from their sails.
The team made a flying start to the world's premier underage regatta with South of Perth Yacht Club siblings Shannon and Jayden Dalton two points off the lead in the 18-boat Nacra 15 fleet after coming second in race one and 13th in race two.
Another WA sailor, Rome Featherstone of Fremantle Sailing Club, crewing for Otto Henry from Sydney's Woollahra Sailing Club, ended up second in the 420 Boys. However, Caelin Winchcombe of Fremantle Sailing Club & Geographe Bay - who had been in second place after two races in the Laser Radial Boys class - was the subject of a late night protest which was upheld. The automatic 52-point penalty demoted Winchcombe to 28th overall.
Elsewhere, Victorians Laura Harding and Eleanor Grimshaw were in seventh place in the 420 Girls, Sydneysiders Henry Larkings and Miles Davey were ninth in the 29er Boys and West Australian Elyse Ainsworth was 13th in the Laser Radial Girls class. Alex Halank, from NSW, ended 23rd after three races in the RS:X windsurfing and Queenslander Hailey Lea is 16th in the RS:X Girls.
Results can be found here
Australian Team Profiles