From Light Air to Heavy Breeze: Aussies Break into Top 10 at Kieler Woche

Casey Imeneo at Kieler Woche © Saskia Johannsen

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.

Casey Imeneo led the charge in the ILCA6 fleet, finishing sixth overall after a strong comeback from a challenging start. "The overriding feeling from this week is that I'm pleased with my fight back after a disappointing day one," she reflected. "While I was disappointed, I didn't drop my head and remained focused on trusting the processes we have in place, which showed through my finals series."

Kiel's unpredictable conditions made consistency tough to come by, but Imeneo held her ground in a volatile medal race. "While I was unable to improve from sixth today, I'm taking plenty of positives from this week and looking forward to the European championships in Sweden," she said.

The Australian ILCA6 squad is proving their hard work is raising their collective level, with Elyse Ainsworth and Mara Stransky making the top ten in ninth and 10th, and Zoe Thomson just outside in 12th, while rising athlete Sylvie Stannage impressed in 15th overall.

In the ILCA7, Michael Compton and Ethan McAullay both secured top ten finishes in a fiercely competitive 148-boat fleet, finishing ninth and 10th, respectively. After a Black Flag DSQ early in the regatta, Zac Littlewood bounced back to 16th, and Lawson McAullay ultimately finished 17th after leading the event on day one and demonstrating his potential.

49er fleet at Kieler Woche - photo © Sascha Klahn

In the 49er, Otto Henry and Shaun Connor broke through for their first ever medal race appearance in the class, finishing 8th overall. "The first Medal Race with Otto was super cool," said Connor. "Happy to get inside the top ten and get that Medal Race practice in. It's great to be here this soon into our campaign."

They've been on a steep learning curve since forming their partnership. "We have gained a lot of experience so soon into our campaign and have a clear direction on where we need to focus our attention now ahead of Worlds in Cagliari (Italy)," Connor explained.

Laura Harding and Annie Wilmot continued their strong push in the 49erFX, finishing ninth overall, remaining consistent throughout the European season and will take confidence into the back half of the year.

In the iQFOiL Women's fleet, Samantha Costin flew to seventh overall in a small field, showing she's gaining pace and confidence with every international start.

Australian Sailing Team Technical Director Michael Blackburn observed, "Kiel gave us a mix of encouraging progress and clear reminders of where we still need to lift. Some athletes showed they've been applying the lessons from earlier events, particularly in starting, but there's still inconsistency across the board."

"At this level, intent and discipline matter every race, regardless of the regatta's status. We saw both under- and overconfidence creeping in at times. That said, I'm pleased with the effort and the direction many of our sailors are heading."

While the first part of Kiel Week wraps up, the second half is already under way with the Nacra 17s taking to the water and it's shaping up to be another strong showing. Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown are currently in third, just ahead of Ruben and Rita Booth in fourth.

Australian Sailing Team (AST), Australian Sailing Pathway Team (ASPT), Australian Sailing Futures (ASF) and other Australian results (AUS) at the Kiel Week:

ILCA6 - 88 Entries
6th - Casey Imeneo (ASPT)
9th - Elyse Ainsworth (AST)
10th - Mara Stransky (AST)
12th - Zoe Thomson (AST)
15th - Sylvie Stannage (ASF)
60th - Lili McAullay (ASF)

ILCA7 - 148 Entries
9th - Michael Compton (ASF)
10th - Ethan McAullay (ASPT)
16th - Zac Littlewood (AST)
17th - Lawson McAullay (ASF)
42nd - Isaac Schotte (ASF)
102nd - Alexander Bijkerk (AUS)
116th - Hamish Gilsenan (AUS)
147th - Charles Allen Toyn (AUS)

49er - 74 Entries
8th - Otto Henry and Shaun Connor (ASPT)

49erFX - 48 Entries
9th - Laura Harding and Annie Wilmot (AST)

iQFOiL Women - 21 Entries
7th - Samantha Costin (ASF)

Nacra 17 - 13 Entries (Racing continues)
3rd - Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown (ASPT)
4th - Ruben Booth and Rita Booth (ASPT)
7th - Archie Gargett and Sarah Hoffman (ASPT)
8th - Jake Liddell (ASPT) and Niamh Meehan (ASF)

Full results can be found here.