There was a stormy conclusion to Investwise Irish Sailing Youth National Championships on Cork Harbour

The final day of the Investwise Irish Sailing Youth National Championships was cancelled as gale-force winds swept across Cork Harbour.

However, final results from Saturday’s long day afloat weren’t initially confirmed as two protests on Sunday morning might have affected the standings.

On Saturday evening, a protest by ILCA6 (Laser Radial) overall leader Eve McMahon saw the Howth Yacht Club sailor extend her lead over Michael Crosbie of the Royal Cork YC when he was disqualified from Race 10 due to a port and starboard incident.

However, the Crosshaven sailor returned to the protest room on Sunday morning. He had his result reinstated as McMahon had not informed the race committee of her protest on Saturday.

McMahon still emerged as ILCA6 Youth National Champion after the tie-break with Crosbie.

Meanwhile, the host club’s James Dwyer with Ben O’Shaughnessy won the 29er skiff national title by a single point. This was after a close contest with Timothy Norwood and Nathan Van Steenberge from Royal Irish YC and National YC.

The runners-up were also in the protest room on Sunday morning. They were seeking redress for equipment failure in their second race of the series on Friday but their submission was ruled out of time.

Crosshaven’s Rian Collins handsomely won the 38-boat Topper class with a 12-point lead over his clubmate Dan O’Leary. Collins will now be considering whether to move into single or double-handed classes within the Irish Sailing Academy.

The Topper fleet shared the same course as the ILCA4 (Laser 4.7) class. This was the second largest of the event with 31 boats. A newcomer to the class Sam Ledoux of the National YC emerged youth national champion.

The Malahide and Wexford Harbour pairing of Jack McDowell and Henry Thompson continued their three-day lead of the 420 class. They won over Eoghan Duffy with Conor Paul of Lough Ree YC in their battle in the nine boat class.

“We have seen incredible racing over the past three days and great sailing by all 144 young sailors,” said David O’Brien, President of Irish Sailing. “To achieve three out of four days in mid-Autumn and only lose one race from the schedule is a mark of the dedication of the 100-plus volunteers led by organiser Maurice Collins.”

“From the standard of competition that we have seen over the series, these sailors have clearly managed to keep up their training during the Covid pandemic,” said Sean Evans, Irish Sailing’s Youth Academy manager. “Our prospects for 2022 are very good thanks to this resilience and positive attitude.”

Irish Sailing’s Olympic Steering Group (OSG) will now review the results of the championships. They will also decide the line-up for Ireland’s squad at the Youth World Championships in Oman in mid-December.

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The ILCA 6 (Laser Radial) Youth World Champion delivered two first places and a second in winds ranging from light to medium on the Curlane Bank racecourse.

Howth Yacht Club’s Rocco Wright took the other race win though had a mixed set of results to lie seventh overall.

Michael Crosbie of the hosting Royal Cork YC leads the chasing pack in seventh but is still some ten points behind McMahon.

Meanwhile, in another strong showing for north Dublin clubs, Malahide’s Imogen Hauer with Hugo Micka have a narrow overnight lead in the 420 class as a tight top three battle is already emerging.  Lough Ree’s Eoghan Duffy with Conor Paul are a point behind the Dublin crew but only on tie-break from Jack McDowell with Henry Thompson, a Malahide and Wexford Harbour combination.

“It was a tricky opening day with a switch in conditions after the first race,” said Sean Evans, Irish Sailing’s Youth Academy Manager. “We had a tidal effect as well which made laylines interesting.

“There were quite a few very strong performances with plenty of battles at the front of the fleet although the result of the day came from Eve McMahon in the ILCA 6 class.”

The four-day event steps up a gear on Friday when the remaining classes start racing for the 29er, ILCA 4 (Laser 4.7) and Topper fleets that will bring the turnout up to 130 sailors.

The championship is normally sailed over the Easter school holidays but was postponed to the Autumn mid-term break due to the Covid 19 pandemic.

To see all the results from day one of the Irish Sailing Youth National Championships, click here.

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Over 150 sailors will take part and they will be joined by several Olympians, including Olympic silver medallist Annalise Murphy, and Tokyo Olympic 49er team Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove who will give inspiring talks to the young sailors after hard days racing on the water.

Dickson and Waddilove will be joined by local Crosshaven 49er team Seafra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan who have started their bid to represent Ireland in the Paris 2024 Olympics.

The Youth National Championships are set to take place from Thursday, October 28 – Sunday, October 31.

The Youth Nationals are unique – not only is it the biggest youth event held in Ireland, but it’s also the only time that different youth classes come together to compete, gain valuable experience on the water, hear from Irish Sailing coaches, and, along with their families, learn more about the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway.

Young sailors from across Ireland will compete across four different classes of boat at the Youth Nationals: 420, Topper, ILCA 4 (Laser 4.7) and ILCA 6 (Laser Radial).

These are the classes that have been identified as the best to facilitate progression through the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway.

Although normally part of the event, this year due to COVID safety measures, Irish Sailing and the IODAI (Irish Optimist class) decided to organise a separate training week.

The IODAI National Training Week is part of an overall plan to kick-start the junior pathway and as such is being supported by Irish Sailing.

This year’s training week is in Malahide; future editions will rotate nationally. The remaining four classes will be joined for the first time by the 29er class who are in discussions with Irish Sailing about becoming a full Performance Pathway class.

Organiser Sean Evans, Irish Sailing’s Laser Radial Academy Coach said: “We’re delighted that the Youth Nationals are back on this year.

“The Youth Nationals are a very important part of the talent pipeline and gives coaches a chance to see what’s coming through.

“It’s a special event where families and friends can gather together in one location to share their experiences, learning and generally have some fun”.

David Quinn, MD, Investwise Financial Planning, commented: “We are delighted to support this wonderful event for young sailors.

“Sailing teaches important life skills such as awareness, responsibility, patience and respect, as well as building friendships that last a lifetime.

“We’re delighted that our youth sailors have the opportunity to get back out on the water to compete again at their National Championships after a break of two years.

“It promises to be a superb event in Cork over the mid-term break and I look forward to meeting everyone there.”

The evening talks include a racecourse debrief with Olympians Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove along with 49er teammates Johnny Durcan and Seáfra Guilfoyle.

James O’Callaghan (Irish Sailing Performance Director) and Olympic Silver Medallist Annalise Murphy will discuss her journey on the Performance Pathway.

For more information, visit: https://www.sailing.ie/Racing/Irish-Sailing-Youth-National-Championships

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The event has run every year since 1947 until 2020’s historic pause due to the COVID pandemic. One of the most unusual regattas in the world, the competitors represent sixteen of the thirty-nine Irish Sailing affiliated classes and compete to find sailing’s “champion of champions”.

Despite coming from a wide range of one-design classes, they race against each other in a boat that is often unknown to many. This year’s chosen boat is the National 18.

Homeward bound at evening. (panoramic, click for full view) @PhotosCork @PhotographyWx @ThePhotoHour @pure_cork @Carrigdhounnews @LoveCork @corkharbour @CorkHarbourWX #crosshaven #currabinny #sailing #corkharbour #landscapephotography #seascape #cobh pic.twitter.com/HyQHx1fbVk

— John Hall (@johnhall_john) November 23, 2019

Familiar names competing include Charlie Cullen, the youngest competitor at just 19 and a first-time nomination for the Waszp class; JP Mccaldin who will race his wife Carolyn; Olympians Ger Owens with Ross Killian; Philip Doran with brother Simon; Michael O’Connor with his winning crew from previous years, Davy Taylor; Hammy Baker, RYA Northern Ireland’s Performance Director.

There’s a strong representation this year from the Royal St George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire with five of their members competing.

Wild cards include Irish Sailing Academy member Tom Higgins sailing with his brother Jack, and Robert O’Leary from the 1720 class who sails with his brother Peter.

This year’s National 18 champion Ewen Barry is one to watch as he will compete in a boat more familiar to him than others.

The Irish Sailing All Ireland Championships are back!
Hosted this year by the Royal Cork Yacht Club on 2 & 3 October, sailors from sixteen different Irish Sailing classes will compete to find the "champion of champions".
Read more about the competitors at https://t.co/4b2R0DYiJ0 pic.twitter.com/o9OjlgcarB

— Irish Sailing (@Irish_Sailing) September 28, 2021

Hosted this year by the Royal Cork Yacht Club in Crosshaven this weekend, each competitor has been nominated as a result of their achievements and rankings for the year.

Once chosen, each competitor selects one crew member. As the National 18 needs a third crew, the third member of the team is nominated by the class.

Racing will consist of two heats. The top three from each heat go straight into the final. The remaining competitors who placed 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th compete in a repêchage, and the top two then enter the Final with the six other teams.

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After a delayed start to their day’s racing at Enoshima Island in Tokyo, the Irish sailing duo, Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove got the final day of their 49er fleet races underway.

Going into this afternoon’s sailing, the pair sat in 14^th position, and needed conditions and results to go their way in order to finish in the top 10 and advance to the medal race.

Their disqualification two days ago dropped them from seventh to 13th and they had been playing catch-up since.

A strong opening Race 10 for the team, saw them finish in third place putting them right in the mix.

A tougher Race 11 followed though, and they finished out the race in 17th place.

A fantastic final Race 12 saw them take the win that perfectly bookended their Tokyo journey with a win at the start and a win at the end.

However, it wasn’t enough to see them through to the medal race, as they bowed out of the competition in 13^th place overall, just three spots outside of qualifying.

Speaking afterwards, Dickson said: “I’m pretty proud of the way we sailed, it’s really good to finish on a high with the last race, and pretty amazing that we got two race wins.  We’ve learned a lot from these games and we’re going to bring that forward to [Paris] 2024.”

Waddilove added: “Overall, it was a very positive experience and we’ve learnt plenty from this Olympic experience that we can bring forward.”

“My biggest takeaway from this week is that we were very much capable of competing against these guys that have done multiple Olympics and have medals and medals under their belts and there’s no reason why we can’t get to 2024 and be medal contenders.”

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Despite her recovery of form on Thursday when she scored a race win and a second-place, Friday saw her finish the ten race series in 18th place overall, outside the top ten for Sunday’s medal race final.

Murphy noted after the race to RTÉ that she “can’t see [herself] going to another Olympics”, possibly ending a fruitful period for Irish Sailing.

“Over two decades, Annalise has made a massive impact on our sport and is certainly Ireland’s greatest Olympic sailor ever,” said James O’Callaghan, Performance Director with Irish Sailing.

“She has been a European champion and competed in three Olympic Games, won races in each and won a Silver medal.  Her legacy lives on in the dozens of female and male athletes inspired by her performances.”

The Irish squad gathered at the dinghy park in  Enoshima Harbor where there was an informal tribute gathering held to honour the National Yacht Club sailor.

Ireland still has one boat competing with the final three races of the Men’s 49er skiff event scheduled for Saturday afternoon.

Robert Dickson (Howth YC) and Sean Waddilove had two top ten results and an 18th on Friday and lie 14th overall.

Saturday’s three races are crucial to their prospects of achieving a place in Monday’s medal race final.

“We have moved on and are completely focussed on the remainder of the regatta,” said O’Callaghan, after the sailors’ times were disqualified yesterday after they used illegal equipment.

“When we fully debrief what has occurred with the equipment issue plus every aspect of our preparations, we will strengthen our processes to ensure this sort of thing cannot happen again.”

Team management will also be engaging with World Sailing and the International 49er Class Association to provide feedback about equipment rules and their application of them by measurers and International Juries in future.

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Laser Radial Women Race 9/10 – Annalise Murphy

Murphy came into this morning’s races seemingly back on he usual form after finishing first and second in her last two races. Due to her bad luck and form and the beginning of the competition she sat in 14th place overall in the rankings.

If she managed to pull off two more great performances today she would be in with a shout of the ten-team medal race.

The wind had slowed to eight knots but it remained hot in Enoshima with 27 degree temperatures and 80 percent humidity.

Race nine seemed like a bridge too far for Murphy as she dropped back to 30th place effectively leaving her knocked out.

Race ten took place an hour later and Murphy started poorly again, she finished her final race of Tokyo 2020 down in 40th place.

This ends a disappointing run at the Olympics for the 31-year-old who only briefly showed her true quality in yesterday’s races finishing first and second.

#Sailing

Both @Annalise_Murphy about to start racing in Race 9 of the #LaserRadials this morning and 49ers Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove in Race 7. #TeamIreland #Tokyo2020 @irishsailing pic.twitter.com/rGOdaWBa4R

— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) July 30, 2021

49er Men Race 7/8/9 – Robert Dickson, Sean Waddilove

This Irish pair were looking to be having a great Olympics so far until yesterday’s second and sixth place finishes were disqualified for using a harness that was too heavy.

This dropped them in the rankings from seventh to 13th with an uphill battle to reach the medal race in a few days time.

The Irish pair lined up in slightly hotter conditions of 29 degrees in Kamakura.

In race seven they showed some of the form that saw them so highly ranked before as they fought for an eight place finish.

This was following by race eight that saw them drop all the way back to eighteenth while the Australian’s received a ‘U’ Flag disqualification.

This left a lot of pressure on their final go of the day in race nine. The pair bounced back to come home in ninth place. This now leave them with an overall ranking of 14th leaving it all to do in the last three races.

Ireland’s last day of sailing will take place tomorrow morning at 04:05 with the 49er team competing in race 10, 11 and 12. They will need to but everything into it to make the medal race.

#Sailing

A 9th place for Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove in Race 9 of the #49erclass this morning. Race 8 starts shortly@Annalise_Murphy still racing#TeamIreland #tokyo2020 @irishsailing

pic by @SailingEnergy pic.twitter.com/WVo6ThGkHH

— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) July 30, 2021

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Laser Radial Women Race 7/8

The 31-year-old has continuously improved as the Tokyo Games have progressed. She came into today’s races ranked 20th after finishing tenth and ninth in her last two races on Tuesday morning.

She showed her real class in Fujisawa in the early hours of today in tough conditions. The 44 sailors had to compete with 13 knots of wind in 28 degree heat but Murphy was unaffected.

In Race seven she earned a well-needed victory over Denmark’s Anne-Marie Rindom and Italy’s Silvia Zennaro. This boosted the Dublin women into rank 18 overall in the competition.

This result boosted her going into race eight less than an hour later. In this race she finished second behind the Danish sailor but it is still a very impressive result.

Now she is ranked at 14th overall in this competition with two races left before the medal race. This will be a nail-biting finish for Murphy as only the top 10 will qualify for the final race so another world-class performance will be needed on the final race day.

Murphy’s final two races will go ahead tomorrow morning at 04:05, 30th July.

#Sailing

2nd place in Race 8 for @Annalise_Murphy brings her up to 14th place overall in the #LaserRadial.

Last 2 races tomorrow and top 10 boats go into Medal Race.

pic @davidbranigan #TeamIreland #Tokyo2020 @Irish_Sailing pic.twitter.com/z3CKfH9kVT

— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) July 29, 2021

49er Men Race 5/6

This was an amazing day of sailing for Ireland as Robert Dickinson and Sean Waddilove tried to out due Murphy in the men’s 49er event.

Yesterday morning, the pair completed race two, three, four and finished 12th, 11th and 12th. Today they stepped up their game massively.

In race five, Dickinson and Waddilove finished second behind the dominant Danish team. Slightly later on in race six, the lads finished sixth in an event won by the Brazilian team.

The Irish pair are now ranked seventh overall in a very tight event where a favourite for gold in still very uncertain.

Their next races will be tomorrow morning at 04:05 as they have a triple header of Race seven, eight and nine. The team still have to compete in six more races over the next two days before a winner will be announced.

#Sailing

A 6th place for Robert Dickson and Sean in Race 6 brings them up to 7th place overall in the #49erclass. More racing to come tomorrow @Annalise_Murphy has just started Race 7 in the #LaserRadials

pic by @davidbranigan #TeamIreland #Tokyo2020 @Irish_Sailing pic.twitter.com/nmvq3RlOMQ

— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) July 29, 2021

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Ireland’s Murphy came into this race with her chances of grabbing another Olympic medal very low after the Rathfarnham sailor scored a 24th and discarded a 37th the last morning.

The weather had calmed drastically since the typhoon that hit Japan’s coast earlier in the day but was still very challenging.

The competitors faced 13 knot of of wind in 25 degree heat with 72 percent humidity but Murphy looked unfazed.

Brief explainer feat Annalise’s favourite Labrador – sailing is a hard mental sport & Annalise is on the wrong side of confident at the moment – she’s not out of it yet but she’ll need to bring a really strong performance to the next 6 races to shoot for a medal – we believe pic.twitter.com/46RlJF666v

— Annalise Murphy (@Annalise_Murphy) July 26, 2021

As the race five began, she went hard knowing she needed to pick up some positions in these two races if she wanted any chance of silverware in Tokyo.

The Irish sailor turned on her class finishing the fifth race scored all the way at ninth. This was a vast improvement of her previous days sailing.

The 31-year-old tried to maintain that position in the sixth race following shortly after. She dropped slightly into 10th but have still left herself in an alright place for the fourth day of racing.

Wooo! A 10th in race 6 – these conditions are super tricky and we’re going to see a LOT of movement on the leaderboard – Annalise sailed 2 great races today and if she keeps improving like this she’ll be well set for the last 4 races of the series! Now bedtime + full update later pic.twitter.com/YJ9XOYhLVd

— Annalise Murphy (@Annalise_Murphy) July 27, 2021

She is currently ranked 20th overall but with four races to go, this could still change a bit. This morning was already a major improvement of her rank of 31st before today.

She will need to break into the top ten in rankings if she wants to be a part of the medal race.

Switzerland’s Maud Jayet won the sixth race with a quick, stellar performance. The 25-year-old is turning heads at her first Olympic Games and has made herself one of the favourites for the competition.

The Laser Radial women’s race seven in Fujisawa will take place at 04:15 on Thursday 29th July shortly followed by race eight.

The final day of sailing will take place on the morning of Friday 30th July.

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In a thrilling final fleet race at the 49er Olympic Qualifier in Lanzarote, the Irishmen qualified for Tokyo with a race to spare.

Dickson from Howth Yacht Club and Waddilove of Skerries Sailing Club faced a threat from the Belgian crew. The Belgians sixth place finish was enough to assure the Irish boat of a higher overall standing. They were then unbeatable for the final nation place at Tokyo.

James O’Callaghan, Irish Sailing Performance Directed commented:

“The whole team have all worked really hard preparing for the Tokyo Olympics and qualifying today is a really important step, and a milestone for Rob and Seán. The result is proof positive of our sailing programme supported by Sport Ireland – demonstrates what is possible when you invest and plan long-term. In addition, the Irish Sailing Foundation funded the Performance HQ which played a vital role in preparing the team for today. Qualification has given the whole team a lift and it’s some good news for our fantastic support base at home in Ireland”.

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