Australian Sailing Youth Team announced to compete at 2017 Youth Worlds
by Megan McKay 15 Jan 2017 21:58 GMT
15 January 2017
Australian Youth Team with Lisa Darmanin © Beau Outteridge / Australian Sailing
Australian Sailing has announced the 2017 Australian Sailing Youth Team, who will represent their country at the 2017 Youth Sailing World Championship.
The 2017 team is a mix of new faces along with a few sailors who represented Australia at the 2016 Youth Worlds in Auckland in December.
The team members are:
- Girls single-handed (Laser Radial): Elyse Ainsworth, Royal Perth Yacht Club & Fremantle Sailing Club, WA
- Boys single-handed (Laser Radial): Caelin Winchcombe, Fremantle Sailing Club & Geographe Bay, WA
- Girls Windsurfer (RSX): Hailey Lea, Lake Cootharaba Sailing Club, QLD
- Boys Windsurfer (RSX): Alex Halank, Georges River Sailing Club, NSW
- Boys double-handed (420): Otto Henry, Woollahra Sailing Club, NSW and Rome Featherstone, Fremantle Sailing Club, WA
- Girls double-handed (420): Laura Harding and Eleanor Grimshaw of Blairgowrie Yacht Squadron, VIC
- Boy's skiff (29er): Henry Larking and Miles Davey of Woollahra Sailing Club, NSW (NSW)
- Girl's skiff (29er): Natasha Bryant and Annie Wilmot of Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club, NSW
The crews were selected following their results at the 2017 Australian Youth Sailing Championships, which were held at Adelaide Sailing Club from 10-14 January. 245 competitors competed at the event, which saw 10 races held across mixed conditions over the four days of the event. The final remaining place in the 2017 Australian Youth Team, the mixed multihull crew, will be selected at a separate event in April this year.
Both Alex Halank and the 29er crew of Natasha Bryant and Annie Wilmot have previously represented Australia at the Youth Worlds.
"We had a rough final day on the water but managed to keep our third position overall and first (in the girls)," said Bryant. "We just wanted to sail our own race today and use this regatta as training. We're really happy to have earned the Australian Sailing Youth Team selection and look forward to representing Australia again."
The team is still to be ratified by the Australian Sailing Board. The dates and venue for the 2017 Youth Sailing World Championship are yet to be finalised.