CYCA's winning youth team heading for the home of the America's Cup

by Lisa Ratcliffe on 15 Feb 2001 CYCA's winning youth team heading for the home of the America's Cup

The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia's winning youth team will once again set sail for foreign shores when they contest the International Youth Match Racing Championships in New Zealand, home of the America's Cup, next week.

Trent Ross, 19, Gareth Collins, 19, and Kurt Fatouros, 18, have been invited to represent their home Club in the weeklong regatta, along with 11 other teams from the UK, USA, Japan, Italy, Denmark, New Zealand and a second Sydney team.

Youth Sailing Academy Coach Lindsey Marwood predicts that the local team from the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron will provide the toughest competition in the invitation only, round robin competition for under 20 year olds.

'Trent and Gareth successfully represented the CYCA at the Royal Pines Cup in Japan last year and they are looking forward to repeating their recent winning result in New Zealand, and to some friendly home-town rivalry against the team from RSYS,' said Marwood.

'The standard of youth match racing in Australian is now arguably the best in the world,' she added. 'It is a tribute to our Academy graduates that they are regularly invited to these regattas, which are the breeding ground for top level international events such as the America's Cup.'

This will be the eighth time the CYCA has competed in the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron's International Youth Match Racing Championship, formerly know as the Coca-Cola Cup, with the best result a second placing along with numerous other top four finishes.

The CYCA team will leave Sydney on Monday for the regatta, which runs until February 25.

For further information please contact Lindsey Marwood on 0418 214 830 or
Lisa Ratcliff on 0418 428 511.