Please select your home edition
Edition
Cyclops Marine 2023 November - LEADERBOARD

Light winds prevail at 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 European Championships

by Australian Sailing Team 14 Nov 2023 18:55 AEDT
Jake Liddell and Lucy Copeland - 49er, 49erFX & Nacra17 European Championships © Vilamoura Sailing and PROW Media

The story of the week at the 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 European Championships was the unseasonably light winds, so it almost seemed fitting that the final day of racing was cancelled as the winds died right out at Vilamoura in Portugal.

That meant no Medal Race for the Australian Sailing Squad 49erFX team of Laura Harding and Annie Wilmot who finished the regatta in ninth place. While they were delighted with the result, like most of the fleet they would have preferred to finish the regatta on the water.

"It would have been our first Medal Race of the year," said Wilmot after a day of waiting.

"It would have been nice to do, but we can't complain as it has been a personal best for us so we will take that and try to put the learnings into the next regatta."

In the Nacra 17 class it was the Australian Sailing Futures team of Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown who finished the best of the Aussies in eleventh place.

"It's a bittersweet result for us as it's our best result ever in the Nacra 17 fleet, but we were so close to cracking into the top 10 and making our first medal race," said Liddell.

"Throughout the week we had some great race results but also made some critical errors by not executing our races and getting caught up in the mess with other boats."

The regatta doubled as an Olympic qualifying event for European nations, so there were some testing times as swathes of the fleet were fighting for their Olympics campaigns.

Vilamoura usually presents a consistent breeze at this time of year, but learning to sail a full regatta in light winds was an experience the entire Australian squad will find valuable as they develop towards Paris 2024.

The Australian Sailing Team 49er pairing of Jim Colley and Shaun Connor were left to rue a couple of bad qualifying results that sent them back to Silver Fleet.

"We had no more than six knots the whole regatta, which is a bit of an anomaly for this place," said Colley.

"We certainly thought we'd get wind, and we trained here in wind, but that's just how it goes sometimes with the sport.

"In terms of our regatta we were disappointed to not make Gold Fleet, we just had a couple of bad races halfway through qualifying and that was that. This fleet is red hot, and you can't give anything away and we missed a few critical decisions and that was that."

The Paris aspirants aren't walking away empty handed though.

"We've got a lot to work on and as always, we come away with a good list (of improvements).

It has been a long European season for the three classes, stretching right back to the Princesa Sofia Regatta in Palma in early April.

They will now turn their attention to the domestic season, where the 49er and Nacra 17 teams will attempt to secure Olympic Qualification quota spots for Australia at Sail Sydney in December.

The 49erFX have already secured Australia's quota spot thanks to Olivia Price and Evie Haseldine's bronze medal at the 2023 World Championships in The Hague.

After that, it is back to Europe for the 49er and 49erFX World Championships in March.

"Over January we are planning to come back over here to Lanzarote where the worlds venue is and we'll get another couple of weeks training there," finished Colley.

"There is plenty of work ahead."

Australian Sailing Squad (AST), Australian Sailing Squad (ASS), Australian Sailing Futures (ASF) and other Australian (AUS) results at the 2023 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 European Championships:

49erFX - 55 entries

9th - Laura Harding and Annie Wilmot (ASS/VIC & NSW)
37th - Tash Bryant and Evie Haseldine (ASF & ASS/NSW)

Nacra 17 - 39 entries

11th - Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown (ASF/NSW)
17th - Jake Liddell and Lucy Copeland (ASS/NSW)
22nd - Ruben Booth and Rita Booth (AUS)

49er - 92 entries

31st - Jim Coley and Shaun Connor (AST/NSW)
51st - Tom Needham and Max Paul (ASS/QLD & NSW)
66th - Tom Cunich and Jack Hildebrand (ASF/NSW)

Full results available here.

Related Articles

Australian Sailing Team and Element 6 Evolution
Elite Partnership Continues Towards LA 2028 The Australian Sailing Team's (AST) ILCA program is built on a legacy of excellence, underpinned by world-class athletes, a strong squad culture, and elite equipment. Posted on 31 Jul
Sailing's Lost Olympic Dream
Honouring the 1980 Yachting Team In an era where politics overshadowed sport, the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow became a defining moment of sacrifice for many Australian athletes, including the 12 sailors who were selected to represent their country but never got the chance to compete. Posted on 30 Jul
Strong start on LA waters for Australian Sailors
A valuable week of racing at the Long Beach Olympic Classes Regatta Australia's top Olympic class sailors have wrapped up a valuable week of racing at the Long Beach Olympic Classes Regatta in California, gaining firsthand experience at the future venue of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. Posted on 17 Jul
Tough conditions test Morris
As iQFOiL World Championships wrap up The iQFOiL World Championships have drawn to a close in Aarhus, Denmark, following a week of light and unpredictable wind that tested both race officials and athletes to the limit. Posted on 11 Jul
Grae Morris Takes on the iQFOiL Worlds
Shifty conditions on the first day in Aarhus, Denmark Aarhus, Denmark is serving up everything but predictability as the iQFOiL World Championships get under way, and Australian Olympic silver medallist Grae Morris is ready to assert his place at the top of the new Olympic cycle. Posted on 6 Jul
AST and B&G extend high-performing partnership
Continuing a collaboration that has been critical to the success of the team AST has announced the renewal of its long-term partnership with B&G, the world's leading sailing navigation and instrument specialists, continuing a collaboration that has been critical to the success of the team over the past eight years. Posted on 2 Jul
Bronze breakthrough for Liddell and Brown
Nacra 17 duo claim their first international podium at Kieler Woche Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown have claimed their first international podium in the Nacra 17 class, securing bronze at Kieler Woche, the third Sailing Grand Slam event of the season. Posted on 30 Jun
Aussies Break into Top 10 at Kieler Woche
Put to the test from light air to heavy breeze The first half of Kieler Woche has wrapped up in Germany, with Australian sailors putting themselves to the test in five Olympic classes. Kiel delivered a complete spectrum of conditions for athletes to sharpen their racing skills. Posted on 26 Jun
Australian Sailors ready to tackle Kiel Week
The third event within the five event Sailing Grand Slam Australia's Olympic class sailors are set to tackle Kiel Week, the third event within the five event Sailing Grand Slam, held in the north of Germany. Posted on 21 Jun
Top 10 finishes for Aussie crews in Europeans
Australia's 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 sailors have wrapped up a demanding week in Greece Australia's 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 sailors have wrapped up a demanding European Championships in Thessaloniki, Greece, with light winds, lengthy delays, and multiple general recalls pushing teams to their limits throughout the week. Posted on 9 Jun
X-Yachts X4.3Excess CatamaransAllen Dynamic 40 Footer