Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance post the best ever Canadian performance at 2021 49er FX Worlds

Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance - 2021 49er FX World Championships © Sailing Energy / Pedro Martinez

Sisters Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance from Chester, N.S., took the 6th spot in overall and final standings at the 2021 49er FX Sailing World Championships held from Tuesday to Sunday in Oman, posting the best Canadian performance ever at this competition that has been held since 2013.

On Sunday, Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance became the first Canadians ever to qualify for the medal race of the 49er FX Sailing World Championships, which features the teams that rank among the top 10 following the first 15 preliminary races, after coming up with two first-place and three second-place finishes. In the medal race, they took the 9th spot to finish off the competition in 6th place overall.

Odile van Aanholt and Elise Ruyter from the Netherlands won the gold medal, followed by Helene Naess and Marie Ronningen from Norway and the gold medalists at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze from Brazil.

Canada's previous best performance at the 49er FX World Championships was a 17th-place finish by Erin Rafuse and Danielle Boyd in Santander, Spain, in 2015.

"2021 has been busy. It feels great to finish our last regatta of the year on this note," said Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance, who also won a bronze medal at the 49er FX European Championships held in September. "Oman hosted a phenomenal event. It's a beautiful place to sail, and the wind kept everyone on their toes. It's a pleasure to race against the best of the fleet. Thank you everyone for getting us here, and thank you Oman Sail for your hospitality!"

Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance also improved on their first result in this competition, when they came in 39th position at the 2020 49er FX World Championships held in Geelong, Australia.

Ryan and Andrew Wood finish 27th

At the 2021 49er World Championships, held simultaneously with the 49er FX competition, Ryan and Andrew Wood from Vancouver, B.C., finished 27th. It was their first time at this event.

During the preliminary races, they finished first on two occasions and took the second spot in one race.

More information can be found on Sail Canada's website at www.sailing.ca.