2015 Nacra 17 World Championships – Best standing ever for NZL
by Yachting New Zealand on 12 Jul 2015
Gemma Jones and Jason Saunders - 2015 Nacra 17 World Championships Yachting New Zealand
Gemma Jones and Jason Saunders finished fourth at the 2015 Nacra 17 World Championships which has concluded today in Aarhus, Denmark.
Fourth is New Zealand's best result ever at a Nacra 17 World Championship Regatta. Jones and Saunders placed ninth in 2013 (the Hague, Netherlands) and then fifth (Santander, Spain) in 2014 indicating a promising upward trend from the young kiwi pair who formed their sailing partnership in 2013.
A total of nine races were sailed over the six day regatta where crews were challenged with a wide range of conditions.
Jones and Saunders managed to finish within the top ten in seven of those nine races and capped the regatta off with a second place in today’s medal race. Lying fifth ahead of the medal race, it was enough to lift them into fourth by just one point.
21 year old Jones and 24 year old Saunders are New Zealand’s top hopes in the mixed multihull class which will be sailed for the first time at the Olympic Games next year in Rio.
The title went to Billy Besson and Marie Riou of France who are defending champions and now three time winners of the Nacra 17 World Champion crown.
Gemma Jones represents Auckland’s Murrays Bay Sailing Club, while Jason Saunders hails from Tauranga Yacht and Powerboat Club. Saunders represented New Zealand at the London Olympic Games sailing in the Men’s 470 class with Paul Snow-Hansen where they finished fifth. He was also a member of the NZL Sailing Team crew that won the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup in 2013.
The next major event for Jones and Saunders is the up-coming 2015 Rio Test Event which runs from 13 – 22 August in Brazil. There they will be part of the seven strong kiwi contingent competing in the Olympic dress rehearsal regatta on Guanabara Bay.
The second New Zealand crew of Olivia Mackay (Napier Sailing Club) and Micah Wilkinson (Ngaroto Sailing Club) missed out on the top 33 crews for the gold fleet finals racing however they went on to take a race win and wrap up the regatta in second place in the silver fleet.
Full results
Gold Flight
Silver Flight
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