Day One at the OAMPS Insurance Brokers Australian Youth Championship

by Laura Baldwin on 9 Jan 2009
This years’ pinnacle Australian youth sailing regatta, the OAMPS Insurance Brokers Australian Youth Championship is underway at the Mandurah Offshore Fishing and Sailing Club (MOFSC) in WA with racing concluding on 11th January 2009.

The Championship includes events for Laser 4.7 (Girls and Boys), Laser Radial (Girls and Boys), Laser Full Rig (Boys), 420 (Girls, Boys & Mixed), 29er (Girls, Boys & Mixed) and the developing Bic Techno 293 Sailboard (Girls and Boys).

Not only are there National titles up for grabs but this event also forms part of the selection for the OAMPS Insurance Brokers Australian Youth Sailing Team for the 2009 Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship which will be hosted in Buzios, Brazil from 9th to 18th July.

For the second time Yachting Australia will also include the opportunity for competitor’s results to contribute to the ‘State Cup’. A perpetual trophy will be awarded to the best performing Australian state. The ‘State Cup’ is seen as an exciting initiative to further build the competitive experience and inter-state rivalries among the competitors who travel from across Australia to compete at the event.

Day One Race Report & Results:

Windsurfing Event, BIC Techno 293Class:

In the BIC Technos’ second appearance as the Windsurfing Class at this Championship the entries have increased from 5 to 9 with the Girls getting an event this year with 3 female entries. The competitors come from 4 different states showing that windsurfing is spreading. In some states such as NSW there has been a massive push to boost the sport with a team of enthusiasts of the highest calibre with three time Olympian and former World Champion, Jessica Crisp fronting a campaign to share her skills and knowledge with the next generation.

Jessica runs training and racing, along with her Beijing Olympics training partner in the RS:X, Janice Stolstrom from Norway and talented Coach, Jenni Bonnitcha. The team use different clubs around Sydney Harbour with training from MHYC on Tuesday and racing at DSC on Wednesdays, WSC on Thursdays and back to MHYC on Fridays followed by a BBQ. Jessica bought 12 One-Design Windsurfers and charters them out for $10, an unbelievable bargain when considering the level of coaching the sailors get! And it’s not just for the kids, many adults have been inspired to dig their old boards out of the garage and join in the fun.

To find out more, come along to the lawn between MHYC and MHASC on Friday 9th January.

Yachting Australia has also invested in windsurfing’s development with the purchase of 10 BIC Techno 293 boards that rotate around the states to enable learn to windsurf courses to run.

Results:

Windsurfing Boys Race One:
1 – Tom England (VIC)
2 – Scott Sharpe (WA)
3 – Eamon Robertshaw (WA)

Windsurfing Boys Race Two:
1 – Luke Baillie (QLD)
2 – Tom England (VIC)
3 – Eamon Robertson (WA)

Windsurfing Boys Race Three:
1 – Luke Baillie (QLD)
2 – Tom England (VIC)
3 – Eamon Robertson (WA)

Windsurfing Boys Leader Board After Day One:
1 – Tom England (VIC)
2 – Luke Baillie (QLD)
3 – Eamon Robertson (WA)

* 2008 Champion: Tom England (VIC)

Windsurfing Girls Race One:
1 – Rebecca Wyatt (NSW)
2 - Joanna Sterling (QLD)
3 - Emily Pettersson (WA)

Windsurfing Girls Race Two:
1 – Joanna Sterling (QLD)
2 – Rebecca Wyatt (NSW)
3 – Emily Pettersson (WA)

Windsurfing Girls Race Three:
1 – Joanna Sterling (QLD)
2 – Rebecca Wyatt (NSW)
3 – Emily Pettersson (WA)

Windsurfing Girls Leader Board After Day One:
1 – Joanna Sterling (QLD)
2 – Rebecca Wyatt (NSW)
3 – Emily Pettersson (WA)

* 2008 Champion: NA

One-Person Dinghy Event, Laser Radial Class:

The fleet of 30 sailors come from two different Countries and six different states and is being lead by the two sailors from Singapore with the 2008 Beijing Olympic representative, Elizabeth Yin having a 2 point lead over Scott Sydney. Scott does actually live in Sydney and trains out of Woollahra Sailing Club at Rose Bay. The top Aussie sitting in third place is Mark Whittington from WA.

Last year's Laser Radial champion, Gabrielle King and Laser Champion,Tom Burton are both at the regatta venue catching up with friends and offering advice to sailors as they are no longer youths. They are on a break between the Laser / Laser Radial National Championship and the Asia Pacific Regatta. Gabrielle added another gold medal to her collection with winning the Women’s title at the National Championship. The current leaders of the trials after the Laser Radial Class Championship in Freemantle last week are Ashley Stoddart in the girls and Curtis Skinner in the boys.

After scoring 15, 3, 9 today in the combined boys and girls Laser Radial fleet, Ashley Stoddart (QLD) is just 2 points ahead of her rival, Alex South (NSW). Ashley talked through her races with the same relaxed manor in which she attacked the day with confidence, 'I got a good start in the first race and rounded well at the top mark but the land and sea breeze began to fight making it really tricky and I lost places by the finish but in race two the sea breeze had set in and so after a bad start I was able to tack away quickly to clear my air and use my boat speed advantage to pull back up to 3rd by the end. The same was the case in the final race, again a bad start and a very deep first mark rounding but I pulled back up to 9th so I’m very happy with today. The wind and waves by the end were awesome!'

Results:

Laser Radial Girls Race One:
1 – Elizabeth Yin (SIN)
2 – Alex South (NSW)
3 – Ashley Stoddart (QLD)

Laser Radial Girls Race Two:
1 – Ashley Stoddart (QLD)
2 – Alex South (NSW)
3 – Elizabeth Yin (SIN)

Laser Radial Girls Race Three:
1 – Elizabeth Yin (SIN)
2 – Ashley Stoddart (QLD)
3 – Alex South (NSW)

Laser Radial Girls Leader Board After Day One:
1 – Elizabeth Yin (SIN)
2 – Ashley Stoddart (QLD)
3 – Alex South (NSW)

* 2008 Champion: Gabrielle King (NSW)

Laser Radial Boys Race One:
1 – Michael Vincent (NSW)
2 – Martin Wright (WA)
3 – Mitchell Kennedy (QLD)

Laser Radial Boys Race Two:
1 – Curtis Skinner (QLD)
2 – Scott Sydney (NSW)
3 – Christopher Jones (TAS)

Laser Radial Boys Race Two:
1 – Curtis Skinner (QLD)
2 – Elliott Noye (QLD)
3 – Mark Whittington (WA)

Laser Radial Boys Leader Board After Day One:
1 – Scott Sydney (NSW)
2 – Mark Whittington (WA)
3 – Mitchell Kennedy (QLD)

* 2008 Champion: Elliott Noye (TAS)


Two-Person Dinghy Event, 420 Class:

The Singapore Team has 11 boats competing in the 420 fleet of 45 entries, an impressive turn out. The 2006 Optimist World Championship Silver Medallist and Women’s World Champion, Griselda Khng wasn’t really happy with her days performance but was still enthusiastic about how much she enjoyed the days racing and explained, 'We don’t have conditions like this in Singapore, it is always the same at home with flat water and light winds so it is really helpful to race in these different conditions. I like the wind and waves, its good fun!'

With just 8 months experience sailing in the 420, Griselda is showing huge potential for the future and is clear about her goals she explained, 'This event together with the Australian 420 National Championship is the trials for the Singapore Team to compete at the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship, it’s my goal to win the trials and then to finish top three at the Worlds. My dream goal is to race at the Olympics'.

Before sailing the 420, Griselda spent 7 months sailing a 29er. When asked which she prefers she ans