James Juhasz earns Canadian sailing's best result at the Men's ILCA 7 World Championship since 2016

James Juhasz earns Canadian sailing's best result at the Men's ILCA 7 World Championship since 2016 © Sail Canada

James Juhasz from Oakville, ON, was the top Canadian at the 2025 Men's ILCA 7 & Women's ILCA 6 World Championships held May 12-17 in Qingdao, China, as he came in 37th in ILCA 7 and therefore earned the best Canadian result at the event since 2016.

In ILCA 6, Clara Gravely was the best Canadian with a 41st-place finish, a personal best for her at that competition.

At this regatta where only the last two of six days of racing were held due to weather conditions, James Juhasz took the 37th position in ILCA 7 out of a total of 138 sailors. Juhasz's previous best ranking at the Men's ILCA 7 World Championship was 40th place, a result he had earned last year as well as in 2020. This was the fifth time overall he was taking part in the event. His 37th-place finish was also the top Canadian performance at the competition since Robert Davis came in 31st in 2016.

Willem Wiersema from the Netherlands won gold, followed by Paris 2024 Olympic Games silver medalist Pavlos Kontides from Cyprus and Zac Littlewood from Australia.

Other Canadian results include Liam Bruce from Oakville, ON, who took the 63th position, Ryan Anderson from Halifax, N.S., who was 74th, and Alexander Heinzemann from Tsawwassen, B.C., who was 118th.

"It's been a long week of waiting around," said James Juhasz. "We spent the first four days without getting any races in. It was a bit tedious, but we kept our wits about us. And then Friday, we managed to get two races in, in light marginal conditions."

"Saturday, it was cranking at the last day of racing with winds of 20 to 25 knots, offshore direction. We got three races Saturday and it went all right. I have a feeling that I left a little bit on the table, but I'm happy to come away with 37th place, which is a personal best for me and for the Canadian ILCA 7 boys over the last few years. I'm happy enough and will be ready to get back to training in a couple of weeks."

A personal best for Clara Gravely

In women's ILCA 6, Clara Gravely from Toronto was the top Canadian with a 41st position, which was also a personal best for her.

Her previous best performance at the Women's ILCA 6 World Championship was a 42nd-place finish in 2022. This year was her sixth time at the event.

Louise Cervera from France, who finished 10th at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, won gold, followed by Agata Barwinska from Poland, who was 15th in Paris, and Eve Mcmahon from Ireland, who was 13th in Paris.

Other Canadian results include Victoria Coady from Coquitlam, B.C., who finished 88th overall out of 99 sailors, and Lilly Rainham from Halifax, N.S., who was 90th.

"It feels so strange to have wrapped up the World Championships with only two of six days of racing," said Clara Gravely. "This was a challenging event for me, especially with a tough day 5 with two yellow flags. But the final day today, there was an amazing breeze and super exciting racing! I was happy to finish off strong with a good last race despite a less than perfect event. On to the next!"

Canadian sailors at the 2025 Women's ILCA 6 and Men's ILCA 7 World Championships

ILCA 6 (/99)

41. *Clara Gravely - Toronto, ON (ABYC)
88. Victoria Coady - Coquitlam, B.C.
90. Lilly Rainham - Halifax, N.-S.

ILCA 7 (/138)

37. *James Juhasz - Oakville, ON (OYS)
63. *Liam Bruce - Oakville, ON (PCYC)
74. *Ryan Anderson - Halifax, N.-S. (RNSYS)
118. Alexander Heinzemann - Tsawwassen, B.C.

*Members of Sail Canada's National Team