Youth Worlds: USA at the threshold, aiming to finish strong
by US Sailing 14 Dec 2017 10:42 PST
9-16 December 2017
Nacra 15 Racing at the Youth Worlds © Tomas Moya / Sailing Energy / World Sailing
With one day remaining at the 2017 Youth World Sailing Championship in Sanya, China (December 11-16), the U.S. Youth Worlds Team is aiming to finish strong after a highly competitive week of racing by fourteen of America's best young athletes. With 374 sailors and 60 nations present in Sanya, the U.S. leads three fleets going into Friday.
Charlotte Rose (Houston, Texas) in the Laser Radial, Carmen Cowles (Larchmont, N.Y.) and Emma Cowles (Larchmont, N.Y.) in the Girls I420, and Thomas Rice (Garden City, N.Y.) and Trevor Bornath (Stuart, Fla.) in the Boys I420 will all wear gold jerseys in their final races, capping what is already a proud week for American youth sailing. Additionally, the U.S. Nacra 15 team is right in the hunt, and will have a crack at all three positions on the podium on Friday.
"I could not be more excited by how our team has performed this week," said Leandro Spina, US Sailing's Olympic Development Director and U.S. Team Leader in Sanya. "To have our sailors have a chance at four gold medals tomorrow, and the Nation's Trophy, is very encouraging. Our athletes have done an amazing job here in Sanya, and the future of the Olympic Development Program (ODP) and U.S. high performance sailing is looking very bright."
Girls Laser Radial
Having led the regatta since the opening race, Charlotte Rose had a dramatic penultimate day in the Laser Radial fleet. The Houston native finished 25th in the first race of the day, which counted as her new drop race. However, showing mental toughness, Rose won the second of two races on Thursday, her fifth bullet in eight races. She is carrying a two-point lead into Friday, with Rio 2016 Olympian Dolores "Lola" Fraschini of Uruguay hot on her heels.
"To bounce back after the 25th, and to secure at least a silver medal with a bullet in the last race today, is something that only an incredible athlete could do," said Laser Radial coach Rosie Chapman (Houston, Texas). "Charlotte has sailed an excellent regatta, and has worked immensely hard this past year to get to this position."
Standings: Girls Laser Radial
Girls I420
In the Girls 420, Carmen Cowles (Larchmont, N.Y.) and Emma Cowles (Larchmont, N.Y.) continued their remarkably consistent series on Thursday, recording two more seconds. The sisters have only submitted first or second place finishes since a Race 1 disqualification significantly narrowed their margin for error. The Cowles have been up to the challenge, however, and have shown both ability and poise. They lead the french team (who are also carrying a DSQ) by 12 points heading into the final race, with the Italians 22 points back in bronze position.
Standings: Girls I420
Boys I420
The Boys 420 team of Thomas Rice (Garden City, N.Y.) and Trevor Bornath (Stuart, Fla.) jumped up the leaderboard on Thursday with a 2, 10, which moved them into the leading position for the first time in the regatta. Rice and Bornath have been steady and consistent all week, and the 10th place on Thursday was their first double-digit score of the event.
Standings: Boys I420
Nacra 15
In the Nacra 15 multihull, Mark Brunsvold (Sarasota, Fla.) and Dylan Heinz (Sarasota, Fla.) have had three distinct stages of the regatta, with a strong opening, a middle section with a trio of double-digit scores, followed by a clutch set of finishes on Thursday (4, 1, 3) to set up a dramatic final race on Friday. The Americans are one point out of bronze, five from silver, and eight from gold. For Brunsvold, who narrowly missed the Youth Worlds podium in 2015, Friday will bring another opportunity. Nevertheless, their regatta already represents a successful progression on their high-performance path. "This team kept learning every day, even with the challenging conditions," said Leandro Spina, coach and U.S. Team Leader.
Standings: Nacra 15
Neil Marcellini (Lafayette, Calif.) and Ian Brill (San Diego, Calif.) had their best day of the event on Thursday, submitting scores of 8, 1, 4 and moving up to 6th overall in the Boys 29er. Boys Laser Radial athlete Joseph Hou (Newport Beach, Calif.) will fight for a top-10 spot on Friday after finishing 17th and 12th on Thursday. Hou, the 2017 U.S. Youth Champion, is currently in 8th overall. Marcellini, Brill and Hou can finish as high as 4th overall after racing concludes on Friday.
In the Girl's 29er, Berta Puig (Key Biscayne, Fla.) and Charlotte Mack (Stuart, Fla.) had scores of 17, 19, 14 and are in 16th overall. In the Boys RS:X, Steven Cramer (Miami Beach, Fla.) finished 18, 13, and 17 and is in 17th overall. Dominique Stater (who currently lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina) is also in 17th overall, with scores of 14, 12, and 16 on Thursday.
The coaching staff for the team is comprised of Leandro Spina, Steve Keen (Stamford, Conn.) and Rosie Chapman. Racing will continue until Friday, December 15.
Full results from all classes are available here.