Brits on top as Yngling Worlds reach halfway

by RYA/Lindsey Bell on 7 Jul 2006 Olympic sailing gold medallists Sarah Ayton and Sarah Webb with new crew Victoria Rawlinson are currently in pole position at the Yngling World Championships in La Rochelle, France, with two race days left to run.

Thursday has been a layday for the competitors, and at the half way point Ayton, Webb and Rawlinson are in front with a four point lead over the American defending champions Sally Barkow, Carrie Howe and Debbie Capozzi in second.

Thunderstorms curtailed the second day's action at the Championship on Tuesday, but the sailors had a busy day of racing on Wednesday in near perfect 14 knot conditions, with the Skandia Team GBR sailors hanging on the top spot in spite of a 24th in the fifth race of the six staged so far.

The golden girls and 22-year-old former Youth World Champion Rawlinson embarked on their campaign towards Beijing with a first competitive outing together at the Rolex Miami Olympic Classes Regatta in January this year. They claimed bronze and have medalled at each of the subsequent Olympic Classes Regattas they've competed at in Palma, Hyeres and Holland, with Victoria's sister Emma deputising at the latter two events while Victoria was completing her medical exams.

Victoria is now back in action with the two Sarahs for the Yngling Worlds where they join a 37-boat line-up from 19 nations in the women's fleet.

'We're pleased with how things have gone so far,' Ayton explained, 'But when we're back in the boat tomorrow after our day off, it's almost as though we're starting again, so we just need to make sure we keep banging out some solid results.'

Racing at the 2006 Yngling World Championships concludes on Saturday 8 July.

See leading results here: http://www.sail-world.com/indexs.cfm?nid=25439